Tenant Filed Fair Market Rent Appeal More Than 20 Years Too Late

Tenant filed a fair market rent appeal (FMRA) in 2019, claiming improper deregulation of his apartment in 1999. The DRA ruled against tenant and found that the apartment had been deregulated on June 21, 1999, when tenant moved into the unit.

Tenant appealed and lost. The apartment had been rent controlled until the rent-controlled tenant vacated and the complaining tenant moved in. Under RSC Section 2521.1(a)(1), when a rent-controlled apartment exits rent control, the initial legal regulated rent shall be the rent agreed to by landlord and tenant. Here the prior landlord and the complaining tenant agreed to an initial rent of $2,000 per month in 1999. Since that amount was above the vacancy deregulation threshold then in effect, the apartment was vacancy-deregulated. The fact that landlord didn't give tenant an RR-1 initial registration form when he moved in merely extended tenant's time to file a FMRA from 90 days to four years.  That four-year period expired in 2003. Tenant had waited more than 20 years to file his complaint, which was now time-barred. And the RSC makes no provision for any extension of time in which to file a FMRA based on fraud. The DRA correctly ruled that the apartment was deregulated in 1999 and that DHCR therefore had no authority over the apartment.

Feld: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket No. MN410020RT (10/9/24)[4-pg. document]