Tenant Gets 40 Percent Rent Abatement for Vermin Condition

Landlord sued to evict tenant for nonpayment of rent from January 2004 to May 2005. Tenant claimed that, throughout this period, her apartment was infested with roaches and other vermin. The court gave tenant a five percent rent abatement. The court found that tenant notified landlord of the problem only infrequently and didn't give landlord access to fix the condition. Tenant appealed and won. The appeals court increased the rent abatement to 40 percent. The record showed that landlord was fully aware of the problem in tenant's apartment. The HPD had placed a ``B'' violation on tenant's apartment for the condition in 2002. And in a prior nonpayment proceeding, the court gave tenant a 30 percent abatement for similar conditions. Tenant testified in court that she could not cook in the kitchen and, therefore, kept all of her food in cartons in the living room. And landlord didn't prove that tenant failed to give access except on one occasion in April 2005.

501 New York LLC v. Anekwe: NYLJ, 1/16/07, p. 38, col. 5 (App. T. 2 Dept.; Pesce, PJ, Golia, Rios, JJ)