Posted by TenantNet on November 11, 1997 at 16:54:11:
In Reply to: Re: The old folks home posted by stan on November 11, 1997 at 16:27:35:
:
: : Hi,
: : Thanks so much for the speedy reply..but a few more questions:
: : 1)You suggested that I be careful because this could be a "case of non-primary residences"..
: : what does that mean? And what should I be careful about?
: : 2)How do you, or can you, establish non-traditional family status? In this instance, Pauline has one son (from whom she is
: : estranged) & a granddaughter that she never sees. I, along with a neighbor, are really her family.
: : 3)You mentioned not jeopardizing Pauline's status..what do you mean? Maybe I wasn't clear -- she is in the home for good & I pay
: : the entire rent. Basically, I give the $$ to the neighbor (who has always handled Pauline's finances) & she writes a check from Pauline.
: : Thanks again,
: : meghan
: I agree with Tenantnet that you havent a prayer of getting the lease continued in your name, as you are not a relative and the rules on nontraditional families are strict (intermingled finances and so on).
: However, I think (someone should correct if if Im wrong) the situation is that Pauline remains the tenant even though she is in the nursing home. And as the "tenant," with the apartment --not the nursing home-- her primary residence, you can be her "roommate."
: Look at it this way--what if she gets better and returns from the nursing home? She has to have someplace to live. They cant just evict her as long as she's paying the rent, with the help of her "roommate.".
: Best bet is to be low-key, try not to let the landlord know that Pauline is in the nursing home if he or she doesnt know just yet.
Thanks for offering that perspective. To answer Meghan's question, all RC and
RS tenants are required to live in the unit to get the benefit of the protections.
It must be your primary residence. Yes, you're allowed to have vacation cottages
and things like that, but you can't have a real residence elsewhere and just
use the NYC RS/RC apartment as a pied a terre. Primary residence is proven
with a host of evidence, but it boils down to where does one spend the bulk
of their time.
If the owner feels this is not the tenant's primary residence, he can
refuse to renew the lease on that ground.
Direct family members (subject to some limitations) have rights of
succession. Non-traditional familiy members can also get succession
rights, but to do so is difficult. Most of the cases I know involve
gay/lesbian relationships. From what you say, even though you may
feel close to Pauline, you're still a friend, not a non-traditional
family member.
I have heard of a case where a tenant in a nursing home was deemed
to not haven given up the primary resident status of the RC unit,
even though there was no prayer he would return. But to claim a
roommate on top of that (unless you were a long-term roommate before
she went to a nursing home) might be seen as a disguised sublet.
That's why, all-in-all, it's good to keep it all quiet for as
long s you can.
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