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Received Petition of Non-Payment in Thursday March 7th mail.

NYC Housing Court Practice/Procedures

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Received Petition of Non-Payment in Thursday March 7th mail.

Postby damndude » Mon Mar 11, 2013 2:36 pm

I called several of the legal assistance for HIV+ numbers when I received the Three Day Notice two weeks ago. The only one who returned my call was Legal Aid in Harlem. I am appreciative of any help I get but the paralegal I spoke to just repeated the call HASA mantra. I did a lot of research after I received the 3-day notice. I found several reasons why I he coudn't take me to court. She didn't want to address any of these issues. She would say , " I don't know about that. Call HASA they will pay".

Could you suggest an agency that may be more helpful short-term to deal with the Non-Payment Notice and if different an advocate agency who will help me prove the apartment was illegally deregulated, get the rent adjusted down and help me apply for DRIE?

Thank you in advance. I know if I start down the legal road with the wrong representation I will likely regret it later.
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Postby TenantNet » Mon Mar 11, 2013 3:27 pm

Not knowing what the HASA mantra is (or even what HASA is), the first option, assuming you can't afford an attorney, is to go to Legal Aid or Legal Services. Did you try GMHC? Also there is Northern Manhattan Improvement Company.

For basic court information, you can look at the material on TenantNet's Court section. If you plan to use the defense of illegal deregulation, you will need some evidence to support that. Without more specifics, we can't really respond.
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More Info

Postby damndude » Mon Mar 11, 2013 3:59 pm

HASA is the HIV wing of the Human Resource Administration in NYC. I have reason to challenge this landlord. I already received the rent history of my apartment from the appropriate agency. It is clear that the apartment rent jumped higher than the allowed amount a few times, which took it over the $2000.00 threshold. I get a preferred rent which is $1100.00. The only reason I even got into the research was that I asked him as a gentleman could I pay him the $900.00 over a few months due to overwhelming medical bills I had in Dec and Jan. His response was to cash my Feb rent and send me a three day notice with the comment " let the judge decide". If HASA gets involved they will simply pay what the landlord asks. They would not help me fight this guy legally at all. They will do exactly the opposite and insist I don't upset things. They will be sure to tax my SSI benefits however to get their funds back. They will give him what his asking which is more than the $900.00 I owe if the accounting was all in his favor. I will be paying him back more than I owe. That's painful. I also found out that he hasn't registered the rent rolls with the Finance Dept. It clearly states on their website that a landlord who is not registered has no standing in eviction cases. And if that isn't enough he gets the NYC tax abatement for a Rent Stabilized Building and just prior to my moving in my apartment was deregulated. I need a real advocate, not a placater.
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Postby TenantNet » Mon Mar 11, 2013 4:48 pm

I also found out that he hasn't registered the rent rolls with the Finance Dept. It clearly states on their website that a landlord who is not registered has no standing in eviction cases.


Please point me to where that is said. I've never heard that.

And if that isn't enough he gets the NYC tax abatement for a Rent Stabilized Building


What sort of abatement doe the LL receive? That might be material in whether an apt may be deregulated.
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On the HPD (Housing Preservation and Development) website

Postby damndude » Mon Mar 11, 2013 6:03 pm

Select "HPDonline" which can be found under the section on residential buildings, type in address, and it will indicated if the building has a valid registration. It clearly states in the residential buildings category that landlords cannot undertake eviction proceedings if the building isn't registered.


Yes, that's HPD. It is not the Finance Department, which is what you stated. Two different things.

I think the tax abatement is J-51 (have to look it up again) which allows the owner to pay roughly an 1/8th of the the normal tax due because the building is rent stabilized.


So research the Stytown (Roberts v Stytown) decision ... and the fallout with multiple cases over the last few years. In a nutshell, that prevents deregulation for apartments in buildings that do receive J-51 benefits. You can find out about J-51 benefits for a building by going to the Finance Dept. site (not HPD).
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