Tenant's Rent Reduced to $1 After Fire

Tenant complained of a reduction in services. Tenant claimed that he was forced to move out of the apartment after a fire in the building. The DRA ruled for tenant and reduced his rent to $1 per month while the apartment remained uninhabitable. Landlord appealed and lost. Landlord claimed that tenant had caused the fire and wasn't forced out of the apartment. Inspection showed that the fire had caused massive damage to tenant's apartment and that tenant couldn't live there. Walls and ceilings were smoke damaged, and some walls had collapsed. There were no bedroom doors, and windows were boarded up. Under the circumstances, tenant's rent was $1 to maintain the landlord/tenant relationship until tenant could move back in or be evicted.

Sumball Realty Corp.: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket No. UA610021RO (8/10/06) [3-pg. doc.]