Value of Leases for Illegal Basement Rentals

My understanding is if the unit is illegal, any lease is invalid. The renter can stop paying rent anytime, and eviction could be even more challenging and costly than usual. If the unit poses an imminent danger (for example, it’s in an underground cellar) and the city knows about it, they will issue a vacate order for the unit. There could be fines for the owner as well.

To whom do you wish to claim the lease has value? A bank? There is a certain real estate tycoon with properties in nys and nyc who has found creative ways to overstate the value the of his real estate. Give his accountant a call and see how that is going. Though none of this seems to be hurting his other pursuits, i doubt the rest of us would have such luck at turning sh*t to shinola.

If you mean are they legally binding to the people in the lease agreement, that is a different matter. Not sure. But i bet a court in this city would stick it to the landlord either way. If my thinking is correct, the lease would hold no value and might even be a liability.