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Lease Expires Soon, Building Sold, Yikes

Rights for non-regulated tenants

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Re: Lease Expires Soon, Building Sold, Yikes

Postby AmericanCafe » Fri Aug 25, 2017 4:12 pm

Is there any requirement in NYC that a landlord provide notice before the end of the term of a non-regulated lease regarding renewal (or termination)?
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Re: Lease Expires Soon, Building Sold, Yikes

Postby TenantNet » Fri Aug 25, 2017 4:30 pm

For a month-to-month tenant in NYC, the LL must provide 30 day termination notice.

But for unregulated units, the lease controls. Look at the fine print. Usually the LL must have cause to end the lease early; they can't just end it because they wish it.

However, once the lease expires, there's no requirement it get renewed.

In practical terms, if a tenant does not move at the end of a lease, and the LL accepts rent, they turn into month-to-month tenants if there is not a renewal lease in place. If the LL wants the tenant out, he can bring a holdover proceeding. In many cases, especially if the tenant has a good attorney, they can negotiate additional time to move. I've seen up to a year, but 6 months is more common.
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Re: Lease Expires Soon, Building Sold, Yikes

Postby AmericanCafe » Mon Aug 28, 2017 9:47 am

Assuming that an attorney will charge several hundreds of dollars per hour, how cost-effective is it to hire one to negotiate a graceful exit? (Of course I understand that the graceful part has a certain worth...)

Also, how would one find a good attorney, especially one with the time or inclination to take such a relatively small job?
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Re: Lease Expires Soon, Building Sold, Yikes

Postby TenantNet » Mon Aug 28, 2017 10:12 am

Tenant attorneys advertise on this site (open your eyes!). But I'm not sure you need one. Depends on if the LL wants to penalize you in any significant way for vacating early.

But how long do you have until the lease expires on its own? Consider just moving, but continuing to pay rent until the end of the lease. LL can't penalize you for that. Consider the additional cost for paying on 2 units for X months vs. any penalty the LL might wish to impose. In the end, the only thing the lease can really require is the payment of rent.

Look to see if the lease says anything about assignment, or sublet (although any restrictive clause on subletting is probably deemed unenforceable). See http://www.nyshcr.org/Rent/FactSheets/orafac7.pdf

And again, perhaps the unit should be rent regulated, and therefore under stronger laws. RS has provisions on sublets and assignment.

And if moving, pay attention to getting your deposit back. Some (many) LLs invent fake damages or false reasons for not returning the deposit. That's why many tenants let the deposit cover the last month's rent. They will say that's not supposed to happen, but then the deposit is supposed to be returned. Take many photos of the condition of the unit, have witnesses and ask the LL (in writing) for a walk-through. Make sure the keys are returned to the LL and NOT the super or broker, and the LL give you an acknowledgment of receiving the keys.
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Re: Lease Expires Soon, Building Sold, Yikes

Postby AmericanCafe » Mon Aug 28, 2017 12:25 pm

My lease is up at the end of this month, and I was told I should go month-to-month while they 'evaluate', so no problems with leaving early. While I think there may be a small chance that they will decide to renew me for a year (I'm not regulated and I pay a pretty reasonable rent) I think it's more likely that they want my rent money until it's time to give me notice and renovate my place; they're already working on the vacant places, chopping up lovely big old art deco n-bedroom apartments into sad n+1 or n+2 (much smaller) bedroom places.

I have the DHCR rent history (PM-ed it to you a while ago) and maybe I should be regulated, but I'm not counting on it.
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Re: Lease Expires Soon, Building Sold, Yikes

Postby AmericanCafe » Fri Sep 15, 2017 10:56 am

Epilogue: happily, and contrary to my expectations, I have been offered a 1 year lease (no more than that) at a very reasonable rate. This gives me a year to find a new home, which I believe will be a purchase this time, even if it's a shack upstate :-) Never to be rousted out of my home again. Thanks for the advice and the discussion!
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