November 11, 2009

Landlord Selling Building

I currently rent in Park Slope - a decent one bedroom with a little yard. My landlord mentioned that a real estate agent would be stopping by to look at all the units in the building. So, my question is - if he decides to put the building on the market - is there a legal time period that he would need to give us to find a new apartment?

November 9, 2009

Rent Stabilization Succession

One of my tenants moved in to a rent stabilized apartment with his girlfriend almost two years ago. The girlfriend is not on the lease. He is permanently moving out shortly but I fear that she is planning to obtain the apartment thru succession. As a non-relative can she do this? And if she can, will I at least be able to get a vacancy rent increase?

November 5, 2009

Help with Demanding Tenant?

Hi all. I own a small building in Brooklyn - 2 apartments and a store. The units have consistently been rented for the last 7 years, with no problems from any tenants. We have a part-time super that cleans in front of the building every week, as well as the landing, stairs & hallways several times a month. I've had no complaints except for this one tenant who has been increasingly demanding and borderline harassing in the last year or so. I have accomodated her every request, since she pays on time and keeps her apartment in good condition. She calls every week to demand the hallways be painted - though they were painted three years ago and traffic in the building is minimal. She complains about the cleanliness of the stairs, though I always check on them at least twice a month and they really are spotless. She refuses to sign her lease unless I remove several clauses regarding any alteration in the apartment. These clauses have been in the lease I present my tenants with since I bought the building, which clearly state (among other things) no painting can be done without my approval. She recently repainted the apartment without my permission, though upon inspection I was fine with it. She emails and calls constantly, calls me names - my favorite is "belligerent" - though I have truly done everything I can to keep this woman happy. I recently renovated the kitchen & bathroom for her, though she is now complaining that the work is not professional enough and the workers made her apartment dirty. She has lived in the apartment for 2 years, this would be her third, and she has only had one 4% rent increase. This is not a rent-stabilized building and the rent is slightly below market (downtown Brooklyn/Cobble Hill area.)

I am at my wits end. She now calls my husband and daughter - who both manage the property with me - to complain on a consistent basis. She has called me the same names to them, says I am inconsiderate to her needs and that I do not address any of the problems the building has fast enough. I am consistent with the heat and painting laws in NYC, as well as those regarding security, water, etc. What to do when a tenant is so demanding despite all you do? What are my rights here?

I appreciate any help & will be glad to provide more info.

November 4, 2009

Sublet/Share Legal Issue

I have a question about the apartment I live in in Brooklyn. The facts: first of all, technically (according to the lease) it is an "artist's loft" and is NOT rent-controlled or rent-stabilized, so those laws do not apply. Second, there are 5 of us that live here, yet only one of our names is on the lease (i'll call him John). john has lived here the longest and he signed a 2 year lease first in 2006, and renewed it last year. third, technically it is a "share" not a "sublet" since he has lived here with the 4 of us for most of the time. so every month he writes the check to the LL and we write checks to him. we recently found out that he is gouging us quite badly. john misrepresented the total rent on the loft to us, so while he writes a check for $3000 to the LL every month, he collects about $2900 from us. he's not making a profit from us, but he is only paying $100 rent/month while the other 4 of us pay about $700. also, about 6 months ago he quit his job in brooklyn and "moved" to miami to be with his girlfriend. he left all of his furniture here, and just took personal things and clothes. so since then, he has "subletted" (since now he is gone) out his room to another roommate--and charges him $800/month. so now john still writes the check to the LL for $3000/month but the 5 of us write checks to him that total $3600 (4 of us @ $700/mo and the new subletter at $800/mo. so he is making a profit now. john has only come back once since he's been gone--for 2 weeks, and will not tell us when he plans on coming back again, or for how long. he's obviously doing this to perpetuate the great deal he has. my question is--do we, as "roommates" or sub-tenants have any rights to pay less/receive damages? again it is technically an "artist's loft" not an "apartment" so i believe different rules apply, and also it is not rent stabilized or rent controlled. also, because john is the only one who signed a lease, he's in privity with the LL, and when i asked the LL for a copy of the lease, he didn't reply to me and instead went directly to john and told him someone was asking to see the lease. john never let me see the lease (but i sneaked and looked at it quickly one day) and that's how i figured out the rent was way lower.

is there anything i can do?

Looking for North Slope rental?

Hi - we have a 1+ BR North Slope rental available immediately. Know of anyone interested?

Newly renovated, 2d floor of brownstone, lots of light, huge bathroom (ensuite), #1 bedroom fits queen-sized bed, #2 bedroom fits twin/office. $2,050 includes all utilities until meters are installed for tenant usage. Then rent decreases by $100 month. B/w 5th & 6th Avenue. Please indicate your email address and I'll get in touch.

October 26, 2009

Rent to a Pianist - Crazy?

I have a prospective tenant for my top floor rental - a jazz pianist who plays at one of the swanky Manhattan hotels. She has a baby grand piano she would move in. The piano is set on top of carpet and she swears that she has never had a noise complaint from other tenants in her current building. She only practices in the apartment from 11-3 in the afternoons. Am I crazy for even considering this?? I'm only talking about noise at this point, sometimes I can hear people walking on the floor below me (vibration) so why am I even considering this tenant? Maybe b/c the sound of jazzy piano played well would not be so bad. What do you think?

October 23, 2009

Tenant Rights: Hallway Upkeep?

Hello,
I am new to this site and am also in a new apartment in Bed Stuy. The apartment is wonderful, but after moving in I have a few qualms with the general maintenance of the building. Is there any support for tenants in this situation?
The issues specifically are: roaches (when I did the walk through I didn't see any-- however every night when I come home-- they scatter and then linger), and the hallway is disgusting. The floor is sort of peeling up on the stairs, but worse than that are the totally grimy walls (that are painted a horror-film blue with remnants of graffiti). As a renter do I have any power to request better up keep of the building?
Thanks, I appreciate any and all advice.

October 7, 2009

Getting Commercial Tenant Out

My commercial tenant from hell's lease is finally up at the end of January. Has anyone had success in getting a tenant out once their lease has expired, without going for a holdover

September 30, 2009

Mailbox Issue

I have a three family brownstone, I live in the bottom apartment and rent out the top two. The mail for all three units is dropped in my downstairs gate by the mailman and I put the mail for the two tenants out in the secure hallway in unlocked boxes. My new tenant has an issue with not having his own locked mailbox and with me touching his mail. Am I legally obligated to install and give him his own locked mailbox? I think there are maybe two 3-family buildings on my block with those ugly silver units with separate locks, everyone else does it the way we do. Anyone?

September 28, 2009

Does the landlord have to clean?

Just moved into a brand new apartment in Brooklyn Heights, where i'm renting from a private owner. The cleaners (supposedly hired by the landlord to clean the apartment) did an awful job. There's stains on the appliances, dried food stains in the fridge, dirty windows, a grimey shower stall, grease stains on the stove, and cat hair everywhere. Upon our move in, we didn't believe we could unpack given the condition of the apartment and went ahead and used our housecleaner (who we originally brought with us to help us unpack since i was working and my wife was handling the move alone) to clean. Given that i had specifically asked for professional cleaners becuase of my severe cat allergies (we had agreed to this over email) i think it only fair that the landlord defray some of the cost for our own cleaner. We are asking for $70 for the cleaning. The landlord is currently refusing to cover this as she feels we should have contacted her prior to engaging our housecleaner so that she could contact the original cleaners she (supposedly) hired and get them to re-do the apartment.

I see her point, but, ultimately, it's not our fault that her cleaners screwed her. She should be responsible for the cleanliness of the apartment (especially in regards to the cat hair which i could not clean myself) prior to us moving in. Further, it's not reasonable to expect us to stop our move-in and wait for her to contact cleaners, etc, especially not on a Friday afternoon, and especially given that i can't even live in the apartment if there's cat hair everywhere. I think it's only fair she covers this reasonable expense, and handle the issue with the cleaners she hired herself.

If she continues to refuse, do i have any recourse?

Any thoughts welcome!!!

Thanks!

Forum: Tenants