Tenants Didn't Provide Information Needed to Verify Their Income

(Decision submitted by Terry L. Hazen of the Manhattan law firm of Mitofsky Shapiro Neville & Hazen LLP, attorneys for the landlord.) Landlord applied for high-rent/high-income deregulation of tenants' apartment in 2000. Tenants answered by stating that their income was under the deregulation threshold during 1998 and 1999. Tenants said their income tax returns for those years weren't filed at that point due to ''not complete data.'' The DRA later notified tenants that their answer was incomplete and they must submit copies of the tax return extension requests. Tenants said their extension requests weren't available. The DRA later notified tenants that it couldn't match their names and address to tax returns on file with the Department of Taxation and Finance. Tenants were then asked four times to submit a copy of the first page of their income tax returns. They didn't do so. The DRA ruled for landlord, and tenants appealed. The DHCR denied tenants' appeal, and tenants challenged this ruling in court. They claimed that the DHCR's ruling was unreasonable. Tenants argued that since they had answered the deregulation notice, they did what they were legally required to do. The court ruled against tenants. The DHCR reasonably interpreted the law. Tenants' answer was evasive and incomplete. Tenants' further claim that they didn't receive the DRA's later notices wasn't believable. The notices were sent to tenants' address and weren't returned as undeliverable.

Zitron v. DHCR: Index No. 124216/02 (Sup. Ct. NY 4/29/03; Lippmann, J) [7-pg. doc.]