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Landlord lying to kick me out

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Landlord lying to kick me out

Postby mostra » Wed Nov 12, 2014 2:57 pm

Dear all,
My building just got sold. I've lived there for more than 12-years. We became month-to-month tenants while the building was getting sold. The building only has 4 units. So I guess is a non-regulated type.
So this is what happened:
When I called the company that bought it to ask if we were going to sign a lease, the manager said no! because his boss (the owner of the company that bought the building) wants to move to my apartment. Which is clearly a lie!
A guy that has a company in 5th Ave. will never move to a very small, very old, very little apt in Brooklyn!

So my questions are:

1. does NY has any regulation regarding that? or landlords can just go around saying that lie anytime they want someone to move out? Is clear that they want me out because they have plans to fix it and rent it for a lot more to a new tenant?

2. Also I still haven't received a written notice, it all happen on the phone and there was some email exchange about dates. But I know that I'm supposed to get an actual written notice from them, or does email count as "written notice" and does the notice has to say "why" do they want me out?

3. I'll be going on a trip for 2 weeks and they want access to my apartment when I'm not there. Can I answered I don't want to give them access at all?

Thank you in advance for any advice you could give regarding the 3 questions above!
mostra
 
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Re: Landlord lying to kick me out

Postby BubbaJoe123 » Wed Nov 12, 2014 3:38 pm

Are you sure your unit isn't rent-stabilized for some reason? If it's not, then the building owner saying he wants to live there makes no sense, unless he actually wants to live there. He can just refuse to renew your lease, and bring in a new tenant.

If the unit IS rent-stabilized, though, then the claim that he wants to move in makes more sense, since owner-occupancy is one of the very few ways to push out a rent-stabilized tenant.

That said, the owner-occupancy exception only applies if the building is actually owned by an individual - if it's owned by a corporation (as it sounds like it is, from your post), the exception doesn't apply.
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Re: Landlord lying to kick me out

Postby TenantNet » Wed Nov 12, 2014 4:13 pm

If the building has less than 6 units, the units then would not be stabilized. But you can check with DHCR to see if they might have combined a few units to reduce the total below 6 units.

Without a lease, you have little protections, and the owner can not renew the lease, forcing you out eventually. That the owner wants it is irrelevant. But if RS, the owner occupancy calls for certain protections.

If you are indeed a M2M tenant in NYC, then you must receive a 30-day written notice. See the forum's Reference Section. No reason is needed.

As for access, two weeks is a short enough time where you can ignore it (make sure they don't have keys). Just forget to answer their request. Look at the access rules in the reference section.
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Re: Landlord lying to kick me out

Postby mostra » Wed Dec 03, 2014 6:49 pm

Dear all,
Thank you fro your responses. I checked in the DHCR and as I thought the building is not rent-stabilized :(
So I guess we have no rights :( event hough we lived there for so long...
Thank you again,
mostra
 
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Re: Landlord lying to kick me out

Postby TenantNet » Wed Dec 03, 2014 7:06 pm

First, no buildings are ever RS. Only individual units are. DHCR cannot - over the pohone or even in a short time - tell you that the unit is or is not RS. Remember whether or not a unit is RS is a legal conclusion, not some checkbox at the end of DHCR's phone line.

An analysis must be done. That starts with the rent history. That information must be considered with what you and others in the building can discover what really happened. Landlords will often lie to tenants, plus you don't whan the LL to know you're looking into this.

You need to apply the proper RGB increases, look at who really occupied the unit and any vacancy increases that resulted, and if they were legal.

Then you need to look at any IAI increases.
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Re: Landlord lying to kick me out

Postby mostra » Mon Jan 26, 2015 1:36 am

Hi. Thank you for your response.
So who makes that analysis? the DHCR?
If it's helpful to know: my rent has been almost the same for the 12 years I've been here. We started at $1250 in 2002, and in 12 years it went up only once to $1525. I've been living here for the full 12 years.

Also as I thought the landlord for sure lied to kick us out. They just bought the building in November. They asked us to leave because supposedly the new owner wants to live here. But today I discovered that our building is posted all over the internet for sale!!!
The most criminal thing is that they are even announcing they are kicking us out!!!
These are the exact words in the ad: "...The property has 4 FREE MARKET rentals and units can be delivered vacant. 2 units are vacating in January. "

Our is one of those 2 units they are talking about in the ad!!
Can I do anything to stop them from kicking me out? I mean the ad is the proof that they lied to us to kick us out. Do you know if NYC law protects month to month tenants somehow.

This is really crazy criminal! Any tips or help would be greatly appreciated.
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Re: Landlord lying to kick me out

Postby TenantNet » Mon Jan 26, 2015 2:25 am

There are many buildings where LLs combine units to get the total less than 6 units. That's why an analysis can be important. But it's really up to the tenant to come up with evidence that the building once had six units (in the past) or if they made it 6 units from a smaller amount. Either the DHCR or the court can make such a decision, but it won't be the DHCR clerk you get on the phone. While they can be helpful, they are not the decision makers.

If you have any evidence the building had six units or more, then you should file a complaint with DHCR. But don't make things up.

If unregulated, the LL can simply raise the rent. No need to play games to get you out.

This sounds like a flip where they think they can make a killing. Buildings are worth more empty. Can you send us the URL of what you saw on the web - send it by Private Mail (PM), do not post it on this public part of this forum.

So what happened to your situation since November? Are you vacating in January?

They can only kick you out by a court order. So that will take some time -- how much depends on many factors. If they try to get you out by any other means, go to the police. See the section on illegal evictions in this forum's Reference section.

You can delay any eviction by not moving and being taken to court. But there are risks to that with the blacklist. So weigh your options and I would suggest you get some legal advice from a real tenant attorney (not some guy on the corner).

It does not matter that they lied. They are landlords. So what. It's not criminal. It's how things work.

See the reference section on M2M tenants. We told you to do this before (above). Did you?

Look, unless you can prove it should be RS, then the LL will get you out. It's just a matter of time. I would start looking for a new place. You can delay things in court, or you can negotiate possibly several months to vacate. I've seen up to a year, although 6 months is more normal.
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