Improvements Done by Me, on my dollar

[lipka]

Over the last 7 years I've been living in my apartment I have spent THOUSANDS of dollars on the backyard on landscaping, building a deck, etc., which is only accessible from my apartment and the apartment next door (both ground floor). The other tenant never goes in the backyard - ever. My dogs stay back there all day, I have patio furniture, bbq, etc. My lease doesn't specifically say I have "use of backyard" but it doesn't say I don't. Lately my landlord has hinted he might sell the building -- I'm worried that a new owner (or even the current one) might try to "take back" the backyard, limit my use to it, or try to open it up to all tenants in the building (there is an entrance from the basement only, so that wouldn't be feasible). I want to ensure I have the right to use it. I have all receipts from all of the work I've done. Do I have a case? Is there something I can do now to force it to be put into my current lease as a rider(I just signed a two-year renewal in April)?

[Cranky Tenant]

This is a good example of why it's never a good idea to invest too much of your money in someone else's property. Not only is there no guarantee that your next neighbor won't want to use the yard, but you might also consider yourself lucky if the next LL doesn't want your apartment along with your yard.

If your apartment is stabilized, you should probably photograph it as it is now, and put it together with any photos you might have before your improvements. Then if somewhere down the toad the LL wants to open it up to the entire building, you could try making the arguement that it was a semi private back yard, and any changes regarding it's use are a decrease in services. Don't know if it will owrk.. but it might have a shot.

[permarenter]

Wow. How much of this did your landlord know about before you started? If you don't have written permission from him/her/it, technically they could tear it all out and make you pay for restoring it to its original condition. Even though this probably won't happen, you don't have a lot of recourse whatever the landlord decides to do. If they have seen it, know about it, and have never said anything you may be able to claim implicit consent but if you are limiting access to the yard by any other tenants and have your personal property all over the place without a clause in your lease and/or paying extra for your personal use of the yard, you're probably what they call SOL. I'm assuming that you did all the gardening work yourself, since a landscaping company would have no right to sign a contract with someone who could not authorize any work on the building. I hope your landlord really likes you or you're out for all of it, receipts or no.

[Cranky Tenant]

Sure the LL could insist that it's "restored" to the original condition, but plenty of LL's are happy to get some improvements to their property at the tenant's expense.

[MikeW]

The big question is if the apartment is stabilized. If it is, and the poster can show that he's had exclusive use of the back yard for seven years with the LL knowledge, he could file a reduction of service complaint with any change the LL makes that reduces his access to the yard. This would carry over to a new LL. At the same time, he does have exposure on the improvements, which the LL could use if he gets in a fight.

If the apartment isn't stabilized, all bets are off.

[Cranky Tenant]

True. But lipka.com already said the yard is shared with another tenant who never uses it. It would be interesting to go back over the rent history to see if it rented for more than comparable apartments in the same building. "Garden Apartments" often go for a premium and that difference might imply this apartment has some amenity the others lacked.

[Phil Cohen]

Putting aside for a second the issue of who paid for what -- and I agree it is ridiculous to make improvements on property you don't own -- the fact is that you have something that seems awfully like a required service. If some future LL cuts back on your required service, you have a legitimate beef. Maybe. No point sweating over it at the moment.

[Cranky Tenant]

I guess the reality is, it never hurts to get as much as you can in writing. If you have a reasonably good relationship with your present LL, why not ask him to outline your backyard rights in writing, before the problem arises?

Maybe if you can sell him on the idea that your investment increased his property value he'll be willing to ourline your rights as a trade off.

[Phil Cohen]

Maybe. But if this guy brings the thing to his LL's attention, it could backfire--with the LL trying to take away his right to the backyard. After all, it reduces the value of the property to a prospective buyer if a tenant has encroached on the common areas. Best to let sleeping backyards lie.

[lipka]

Wow! Thanks so much for the info. Here is the information you all asked:

YES, it is stabilized;
YES, I had permission from my landlord -- not in writing, but verbally.
YES, I had a landscaper from a corporation, and the deck was built by a friend who is a carpenter. The rest I did myself. The friend who built the deck showed plans to the landlord and he approved it with him, as well.
My apartment has the highest rent in the building. The rest of the apartments have these huge "fire escapes" that are about 4 times the size of a normal fire escape -- it's more like a balcony. They all have chairs outside, etc.
The landlord was very happy about my improvements:
1. He "donated" some of the bricks for the patio that he had left over from a job he did on another building (party of his "day job").
2. He proudly boasts about my achievements to all visitors, and brings them in the backyard to see it (through the basement).
3. He often sits in my porch swing and drinks wine. He and I sit outside and chat.
4. The tentant next door has just started using the yard and I have helped her to build her own brick patio on her "half" of the yard, and loaned her all of my tools, etc. told her she could use my BBQ, and other neighborly things (so it's not about being selfish, to the one that posted that ... those sorts of posts aren't helpful ...).
The problem is -- the "owner" is only a part owner, with a consortium of investors. He is the only "hands on" guy -- he holds the title of "building manager" as well as being part owner. But he put in less money than the other owners, and has less "power" than they -- they are jerks. Their attitude is like "that's nice, but remember -- IT DOESN'T BELONG TO YOU AND SOMEDAY WE MAY DO SOMETHING WITH IT" just to keep their "options" open. I'm more worried that the mean owners are going to turn it into a storage facility, or some other money-making scheme for themselves. The "Building Manager"/Owner is at the building often, but the other investors have NEVER BEEN TO THE BUILDING SINCE THE DAY THEY BOUGHT IT.

So, I guess what I need to do is wait until they try to take it away, and then see. I do have "before and after" pictures, and I'm sure tenants who have lived in the building for 20 years would testify that it was a garbage dump before I moved in, and I did all of that.

In response to people who say "don't invest thousands in someone else's place" I say -- it IS MY HOME. This garbage dump was right outside my living room window, and it wasn't pleasant to smell or to see. I've lived in this apartment for 7 years, it is rent stabilized and it is in an extremely disreable neighborhood, so I don't plan on moving. The landlords are LAZY and barely fix things that they are legally required to, let alone improving the backyard, so it was either live like that or do it myself. Under these circumstances, I think I did the right thing -- but getting approval in writing for improvements would have been best! Any more comments after reading the above?