The New York Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (HSTPA) was a significant piece of legislation that passed in the state of New York in June 2019. The law's primary objective is to protect tenants from abusive landlords, protect affordable housing, and strengthen tenant rights.
The HSTPA is a comprehensive law that includes several provisions that address a range of housing issues in the state. This article provides a detailed overview of the HSTPA and its provisions. For more renter resources, be sure to check out RentPeek's tips and tricks.
Rent Regulations
One of the critical components of the HSTPA is the establishment of stronger rent regulations. These regulations aim to protect tenants from rapid rent increases and lease renewals, which can make it difficult for tenants to afford their homes. The law limits rent increases on rent-stabilized apartments and limits landlords' ability to raise rents on vacant apartments. Additionally, the HSTPA eliminates "vacancy bonuses" that allow landlords to raise rents by up to 20% when a tenant leaves.
The HSTPA also strengthens the process for renewing leases. Under the new law, landlords are required to offer tenants a renewal lease at least 30 days before the current lease expires and in some cases a 90 day notice is required. The renewal lease must also include a statement of the legal rent, which helps prevent landlords from illegally raising rents. If a landlord fails to offer a renewal lease or offers a lease with an unlawful rent increase, tenants can file a complaint with the housing court or the Office of Rent Administration.
Eviction Protection
The HSTPA provides additional eviction protections for tenants, providing more notice periods and allowing tenants more time to respond to eviction proceedings. The law also expanded the definition of harassment, making it easier for tenants to take legal action against landlords who engage in abusive behavior. The law also provides additional protection for tenants who are victims of domestic violence, prohibiting landlords from evicting tenants who are victims of domestic violence.
The HSTPA also restricts the ability of landlords to evict tenants for nonpayment of rent. Under the new law, landlords are required to provide tenants with a 14-day notice of their intention to file a nonpayment petition. Additionally, landlords must provide tenants with a "rent demand" notice, which outlines the amount of rent owed and provides information about the tenant's right to dispute the amount. The rent demand notice also includes information about the tenant's right to a hearing if they dispute the rent owed.
Tenant Protections
The HSTPA establishes stronger tenant protections, including the right to renew a lease, the right to a safe and habitable living environment, and the right to organize and form tenant associations. The law also prohibits landlords from discriminating against tenants based on their source of income, including rental assistance programs. This provision aims to protect low-income renters who often face discrimination from landlords.
The HSTPA also establishes new tenant protections for residents of mobile and manufactured homes. Under the new law, mobile and manufactured home residents have the right to form tenant associations, access to a dispute resolution process, and protections against arbitrary rent increases.
The law also includes provisions aimed at protecting tenants from landlord harassment. The HSTPA creates new penalties for landlords who engage in harassment, including a $1,000 fine per violation. The law also expands the definition of harassment to include a range of behaviors, including disrupting essential services like heat and hot water, threatening tenants, and intentionally causing health and safety hazards.
Lease disclosure
Additionally, the HSTPA requires landlords to provide tenants with a copy of the lease agreement and a receipt for any rent payments. The law also requires landlords to register their properties with the state and provide tenants with information about the property, including the owner's name and address.
Impact of the HSTPA
The HSTPA has had a significant impact on the housing market in New York since its passage in June 2019. According to a report from the Community Service Society, the law has helped to stabilize rents and prevent evictions, particularly in rent-regulated units. The report found that the HSTPA has led to a significant reduction in eviction filings and a decrease in the number of tenants who are forced to move due to rent increases.
The HSTPA has also been credited with providing significant relief to low-income renters in New York. The law's provisions protecting tenants from landlord harassment, discrimination, and rent increases have provided essential protections for renters who are most vulnerable to housing insecurity.
However, the law has faced criticism from some landlords who argue that the regulations have made it difficult for them to maintain their properties and have reduced their ability to make a profit. Some landlords have also expressed concern that the law's restrictions on rent increases will discourage investment in the housing market, leading to a decrease in the supply of affordable housing.
Conclusion
The New York Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019 is a comprehensive law that includes several provisions aimed at protecting tenants from abusive landlords and preserving affordable housing in the state. The law's rent regulations, eviction protections, tenant protections, and housing court reforms have provided essential protections for renters in New York. While the law has faced criticism from some landlords, it has had a significant impact on the housing market and has provided much-needed relief to low-income renters in the state.
Summary of the 2019 HSTPA
(The below summary is provided by NY.Gov)
Preferential Rent
If you are a rent stabilized tenant and your landlord offered you a lower rent than the legal regulated rent, you have a preferential rent.
Tenants paying a preferential rent on June 14, 2019, whether their lease started before, on, or after this date, cannot have their rents increased to the legal regulated rent at their next lease renewal.
Once a tenant vacates an apartment, the owner can legally charge up to the legal regulated rent to the next tenant, except under very limited circumstances.
Vacancy Increases
Owners may no longer apply a 20% increase to an apartment rent upon vacancy. Further, no Rent Guidelines Board is permitted to set a separate vacancy increase. If authorized by the Board, a one- or two year lease guideline may be applied.
Major Capital Improvements
Increases in rent due to Major Capital Improvements (building-wide improvements such as boilers, windows and roofs, known as MCIs) must be removed from the rent 30 years after the date the increase becomes effective inclusive of any increases granted by the Rent Guidelines Board and will no longer be a permanent rent increase
Increases in rent due to MCIs are limited to no more than 2% above the tenant’s rent in place at the time the MCI was awarded. In New York City, this is a decrease from a 6% rent increase cap. In Emergency Tenant Protection Act counties, this is a decrease from a 15% cap.
The 2% cap applies to existing MCIs for any renewal lease beginning on or after June 14, 2019. Therefore, if an MCI has been awarded in the last seven years, any future increases based on those MCIs will be subject to the 2% annual cap.
The monthly MCI costs passed on to tenants will also now be lower because the formula for calculating costs has changed. The amortization period for MCIs has been lengthened to 12 years for buildings with 35 or fewer units and to 12.5 years for buildings with more than 35 units.
The burden for determining what qualifies as an MCI has significantly changed and the costs approved for MCIs will be based on a reasonable cost schedule that will be created by HCR.
HCR will annually inspect and audit 25% of all approved MCIs.
Rent Control
Rent increases for tenants in rent controlled apartments will now be calculated by averaging the last five years increases for rent stabilized renewal leases, set by the Rent Guidelines Board.
Rent controlled tenants will no longer pay or have their rent increased by fuel pass along charges.
Individual Apartment Improvements
Increases in rent due to Individual Apartment Improvements (IAIs) must be removed from the rent 30 years after the date the increase becomes effective inclusive of any increases granted by the Rent Guidelines Board and will no longer be a permanent rent increase.
Increases in rent due to IAIs are limited the following formula: maximum of $15,000 in improvements over a 15-year period in no more than three separate IAIs.
Owners must clear hazardous violations in apartments before applying an IAI rent increase.
IAIs completed while an apartment is occupied must be evidenced by informed written consent and uploaded by the owner to a centralized database.
The monthly IAI costs passed on to tenants will also now be lower because the formula for calculating costs has changed. The amortization period for IAIs has been lengthened to 14 years for buildings with 35 or fewer units and 15 years with buildings with more than 35 units.
Rent Overcharge
Tenants now have six years to claim a rent overcharge. Previously, a tenant could only claim that they had been overcharged within a four-year window and claim damages for this four-year period.
The period for which a tenant can receive damages, including treble (triple) damages, as a result of a willful overcharge, has been extended to six years.
Owners can no longer avoid treble damages simply because they refund an overcharge after a complaint has been filed.
Owner Occupancy Provisions
Owners choosing to reside in a building they own may now only occupy one rent regulated unit for themselves or their family members. Residents who have been in place for 15 years or are elderly or disabled have additional protections pursuant to changes in the owner occupancy provisions.
Nonprofit Secured Housing
Certain nonprofit corporations leasing rent stabilized apartments pursuant to government contracts to service vulnerable individuals or individuals with disabilities or individuals who were homeless or at risk of homelessness and their residents are given occupancy protection under the rent stabilization law.
High-Rent/High-Income Decontrol
Apartments can no longer be removed from rent stabilization because their rents exceed a certain amount or because the tenant’s income rises above a certain amount.
The high-rent vacancy decontrol provision, ending rent regulation for an apartment when the rent for that apartment crossed a set threshold and the unit became vacant, has been repealed.
The high-income vacancy decontrol provision, ending rent regulation for an apartment when a tenant’s income is $200,000 or higher in the preceding two calendar years and rent for that apartment crossed a set threshold, has been repealed.
There is an exception for market rate units with a 421-a(16) tax abatement, which will continue to be treated as they were under the prior version of the law.
Units that were lawfully deregulated prior to June14, 2019 remain deregulated.
For more renter resources, be sure to check out RentPeek's tips and tricks.
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