Hi,
I'm trying to determine if my apartment is still rent stabilized. Since 2016 I've lived in a 6 unit building built in the 30s. On the rental history paperwork, my unit is listed as RS from 1990 til 2005, at which point it lists "PE" - permanently exempt, with a note saying "1st Rent-Vac 4 Years." The history indicates that the apartment was vacant from 2001 to 2005. From 2006 to 2017, the form lists "EXEMPT APARTMENT - REG NOT REQUIRED." However, it gets weird from this point: 2018 and 2019, the apartment is listed as RS but registered to my next door neighbor (for rent that is about $600 less than mine was at the time). Then in 2020, it's listed as RS again to a name I don't recognize, and the rent is listed at a fraction of the previous two years.
Is it that my landlord mis-registered my apartment to my neighbor in 2018 for some reason, and that I'm still actually not RS? Seems messy, but I'm just curious if I'm entitled to any money from being overcharged. In addition to this, the building is being sold so I'm curious if there is any possibility I'll be bought out.
--EDIT--
It's worth mentioning that when I moved in, my rent was $1995. Now I'm paying $2025. It's only increased $30 in the time that I've lived here. At some point, this unit was converted from a railroad into a regular 3-bed with a hallway. The kitchen had a slight upgrade too. However none of the work looks like it could have cost more than $5000. I know that upgrades play a factor in de-regulation.