Tenant's Default Excused If She Moves Back in, Pays Arrears

Landlord of Mitchell-Lama cooperative sued to evict tenant for nonprimary residence. Landlord and tenant signed a settlement agreement in court. Tenant agreed to move out temporarily so that structural repairs could be made. Then landlord would notify tenant, and she would move back in immediately and begin paying maintenance and using the apartment as her primary residence. Landlord sent tenant notice that renovations were done in August 2008. Tenant didn’t move back in, but instead continued to do further renovations at her own expense beyond what landlord was required to do. Later, landlord asked the court to restore the case for a judgment based on tenant’s violation of the settlement agreement. The court ruled for landlord based on tenant’s failure to appear. Tenant later asked the court to reconsider, claiming that she never received landlord’s request to reopen the case. She also claimed that she misunderstood the settlement agreement.

The court ruled for tenant in part. Tenant breached the settlement agreement. She didn’t move back in when required and failed to pay maintenance. Since landlord didn’t have tenant’s correct alternate address, tenant did have an excuse for missing the court date that resulted in the eviction warrant. Since tenant had lived in the apartment for 42 years, the court didn’t want her to lose the apartment based on her failure to appear in court. The court also believed that the 80-year-old tenant misunderstood the settlement agreement. The court delayed eviction to give tenant a chance to cure by paying $10,000 in back maintenance. If she did so, she had to then move back in immediately and use the apartment as her primary residence for the next year. Otherwise, landlord could seek to execute the eviction warrant.

East Drive HDFC v. Carter: NYLJ, 1/6/10, p. 26, col, 3 (Civ. Ct. NY; Martino, J)