There are specific requirements that landlords must follow before moving to evict a tenant. Unfortunately, landlords do not always comply with eviction requirements, and many attempted evictions in Queens are unlawful. There are, however, lawful reasons for which a landlord might move to evict a tenant. It may be helpful for New Yorkers to be familiar with some permissible reasons and methods for eviction.
“For cause” evictions arise when a tenant is in violation of his or her rental agreement. A tenant might receive a “Pay Rent or Quit” notice if he or she has failed to pay required rental payments. This type of notice will typically allow a tenant a limited number of days to pay the rent owed before he or she has to vacate, or “quit,” the premises.
In a “Cure or Quit” notice, a landlord alleges that a tenant has violated one of the lease’s specific terms. Such a notice will allow a tenant to correct his or her actions that are in violation of the lease within a certain time frame, such as by removing a pet that is not permitted, before he or she must vacate the premises.
Third, in an “Unconditional Quit” notice, a landlord does not present a tenant with a time period in which to correct his or her behavior. The tenant must simply vacate the rental property. A landlord may send an unconditional quit notice if a tenant has caused major damage to the property, conducted illegal activities on the premises, or violated the lease repeatedly and failed to correct his or her behavior, for example.
Though the aforementioned eviction notices are permissible methods of eviction, landlords must still comply with state law requirements in their execution of the notices. If you have received an eviction notice, it may be wise to consider consulting with an attorney for guidance.
Source: FindLaw, “Tenant Eviction: What You Should Know as a Renter,” accessed April 22, 2016
