Tenant's Rent Properly Frozen, Then Fully Restored, Since 1991

Tenant complained of rent overcharge. The DRA ruled for tenant and reduced tenant’s base date rent to $875 due to a 1991 rent reduction order. Since a rent restoration order was issued effective September 2013, the legal rent was now again $2,346. Tenant appealed and lost. Tenant claimed that the collectible base date rent should be $331 because that increase, taken in 1985 according to apartment registrations, was the most recent guideline increase commencing before the Sept. 1, 1991, rent reduction order. Tenant claimed that landlord wasn’t entitled to any rent increase from 1985 to 1990 because it failed to register the apartment during those years. Tenant also argued that the rent should have been restored only to $875 because that was the rent in effect at the time the rent reduction order was issued. Tenant also sought triple damages.

The DHCR noted that $331 was the rent paid by the last rent-controlled tenant and that no rent registration was required from 1985 to 1990 while the apartment was rent controlled. The rent was properly frozen at the 1990 rent paid by the first rent-stabilized tenant in the apartment. Also, the 1991 rent reduction order didn’t prohibit legal increases to the rent from 1991 to 2013 but merely barred collection of those rent increases. Triple damages also weren’t warranted because landlord gave tenant rent credits for the overcharge after the complaint was filed. And tenant’s complaint was filed before the Court of Appeals decision of Cintron v. Calegaro was issued, which permitted application of a pre-base date rent reduction to freeze a base date rent.

Carlyle Apartment Co./Bloom: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket Nos. EN110037RO, EN110045RT (9/14/16) [14-pg. doc.]