If you’ve had your eye on a parent or grandparent’s rent-stabilized or rent-controlled apartment as a way to finally be able to afford to live in New York, you may have heard about succession rights. Let’s take a brief look at what these are (and aren’t). First of...
Disputes with a tenant are almost inevitable. You may have a misunderstanding about trivial issues like minor repairs to a full-blown fallout over things like non-payment of rent or damage to the property. Either way, you need to find an efficient and cost-effective...
It seems as if the country’s marijuana laws are in a constant state of flux these days. However, in all five boroughs of New York City, recreational use of marijuana is legal for residents aged 21 and older. But the list of places where smoking cannabis is entirely...
As a landlord, it's inevitable that some level of damage or deterioration is going to occur while someone else is leasing the space from you. Landlords often take security deposits and to give them a little bit more protection. If the tenant causes severe damage to...
As a landlord, you may be trying to decide if you should include the utilities in the monthly payment. You can either charge someone rent and then tell them they have to pay the utilities on top of that, or you can raise the amount that they have to pay each month and...
Your apartment is rent stabilized, but you just got notice that your landlord is raising your rent due to improvements that have been made to the building. Is this legal? Quite possibly. It depends partially on the type of improvements your landlord made. Here’s what...
Most lease agreements require new tenants to pay security at the beginning of the rental period. The security deposit is meant to replace or fix any damages or losses occasioned by the tenant. The tenant has a right to their security deposit at the end of the lease...
As a landlord, you want to know that the people you rent your apartments to will look after them well. You want to be sure they won’t use them to conduct criminal activity such as drug dealing or prostitution. You also want to know that a tenant will not threaten...
As a landlord, you may occasionally want to enter the apartments you lease out. While you might own the place, you cannot just enter when you feel like it. Tenants have the right to a certain amount of privacy. This can create conflicts for you, as a landlord....
You get a new tenant. They never mention they are a pet owner, and you made it clear you do not accept pets. Yet, within a week, you hear meowing from their apartment. When you knock on their door and ask if they have a cat, they say that the cat is their emotional...
