TRIPLE DAMAGES DENIED

No Triple Damages Where Landlord Bought Building in Foreclosure Sale

January 24, 2018    

Rent-stabilized tenant complained of rent overcharge. The DRA ruled for tenant, disallowed some of the individual apartment improvement (IAI) increases claimed by landlord, and ordered landlord to refund $1,302,...

DHCR Applied Amended Rules for Setting Rent After Temporary Exemption from Stabilization

January 23, 2018    

Rent-stabilized tenant complained of rent overcharge. The DRA ruled for tenant and ordered landlord to refund $18,700, including interest. Landlord and tenant both appealed and lost. Landlord claimed that the...

Landlord Sent Refund in Response to DHCR Complaint

November 21, 2017    

Rent-stabilized tenant complained of rent overcharge. The DRA ruled for tenant, finding willful overcharge, and ordered landlord to refund $34,400, including $16,300 in triple damages. Landlord appealed, claiming...

No Triple Damages Where Landlord Promptly Refunded Rent Overcharge

September 28, 2017    

Rent-stabilized tenant complained of rent overcharge. The DRA ruled for tenant but found that no refund was required because landlord had already refunded to tenant the overcharge plus interest in an amount that was...

No Overcharge for $100 Air Conditioning Fee Included in Initial Rent

August 25, 2017    

Rent-stabilized tenant complained of rent overcharge. The DRA ruled for tenant and ordered landlord to refund $58,490, including triple damages and interest. The DRA found that a prior DHCR order permitting a change...

Legal Rent of Apartment Calculated as Average of Comparable Rents

May 29, 2017    

Tenant complained of rent overcharge. The DRA ruled for tenant and ordered landlord to refund $22,365, including interest. The DRA found that, since the apartment was temporarily exempt on the base rent date, tenant...

No Triple Damages for Overcharge Finding Based on Rent Reduction Orders

May 29, 2017    

Rent-stabilized tenant complained of rent overcharge. The DRA ruled for tenant and found there was a $26,640 overcharge, with triple damages. Since landlord already had refunded over $13,000, it must refund the...

No Triple Damages Applied More Than Two Years Before Overcharge Complaint Filed

May 29, 2017    

Rent-stabilized tenant complained of rent overcharge. Tenant had lived in the apartment since 1977. In 2012, the DHCR granted tenant a rent reduction and made it retroactive to 2010. Tenant claimed that landlord...

Landlord Refunded Overcharge and Filed Missing Registrations

March 14, 2017    

Unregulated tenant complained of rent overcharge. The DRA ruled for tenant and ordered landlord to refund $5,355. Since landlord had already refunded more than that amount to tenant, no money was due to tenant....

No Triple Damages Where Overcharge Due to Improper Vacancy Deregulation

February 24, 2017    

Tenant complained of rent overcharge. The DRA ruled for tenant and ordered landlord to refund $11,415, including interest. Tenant appealed and lost. Tenant claimed that the overcharge was willful and that triple...

No Triple Damages for Second Vacancy Increase Improperly Added

December 18, 2016    

Rent-stabilized tenant complained of rent overcharge. The DRA ruled for tenant and ordered landlord to refund $44,476, including triple damages. Landlord appealed and won, in part. The DRA had found that tenant moved...

No Triple Damages Where Overcharge Based on Failure to Register Apartment

October 28, 2016    

Tenant complained of rent overcharge. The DRA ruled for tenant and ordered landlord to refund $12,400, including triple damages. Landlord appealed and won, in part. The DRA properly froze rent paid on the base date...