Participants in this survey will not receive further communication from the City with regards to this survey. With the housing justice movement advancing across the U.S., residents in one New York public housing project hope to serve as a model. Every room must have at least one window. The owner does not have any active housing, civil or criminal cases against them and has not been accused of a crime by a city agency. Most of the buildings also have numerous vacant apartments, part of a longtime pattern of warehousing, tenants said. That reduced the goal of assisting 40 homeowners down to just nine already approved. After an argument over the heat, Mifsud called Stewart the n-word repeatedly in the texts. I called the police, and theyre saying to me, Its not criminal, its not criminal, its not criminal, said Holness. The rule is as follows: a landlord may bring a holdover action to evict a tenant, even if there is someone living in an illegal basement. Tenants in buildings built before February 1, 1947 who moved in after June 30, 1971, are also covered by rent stabilization. Norma said they piled as many of their possessions as they could on their soaked furniture before rushing out. Members and sponsors make THE CITY possible. 0000058871 00000 n If you would like to know more about landlord-tenant issues, or need help with a case, contact the Law Office of Richard Kistnen, (718) 738-2324, or email [emailprotected]. By the time Lansden had ordered Holness be let back in, another Housing Court judge, Enedina Pilar Sanchez, had ordered Mifsud to allow HPD crews in to do emergency repairs correcting the heat violation. /Length 53886 %&'()*456789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz The NYPD made just 39 arrests for the crime of unlawful eviction in 2020 and 2021, when that crime was the top charge listed at arraignment, state court data shows. /Font << /F14 25 0 R /F18 29 0 R /F22 33 0 R >> Report past illegal conversion of a residential space. To avoid any potential defects, however, and to try and minimize a motion to dismiss that may be filed, it would be a best practice NOT to include any request for a money judgment. There are several reasons that a property could be illegal to rent. Report past illegal conversion of a manufacturing space. Im still staying at the shelter, trying to get permanent housing. BACPP provides eligible low- to middle-income homeowners living in one- to three-family homes in East New York and Cypress Hills, Brooklyn (Community District 5) with low or no-interest, or possible forgivable, loans to convert their basement or cellar into a safe, legal, and rentable apartment, based on altered building code legislation pass in February 2019, Intro. Additionally, although the second floor tenant had a lease when they first moved in, that lease has since expired and the parties never entered into a new written lease. Illegal occupancies abound here in NYC, especially in Queens and Brooklyn. /Pages 18 0 R Legislators say these apartments could be housing up to 100,000 people across the five boroughs and their unsafe conditions have put tenants at risk of death. The basement is occupied by one family and does not include boarders. A basement has at least one-half of its height above curb level, while a cellar has less than one-half of its height above curb level. A spokesperson for HPD, Jeremy House, told THE CITY that removing tenants from basement apartments and other illegal dwellings is done as a last resort. There are several issues for an owner to to consider prior to renting out an illegal unit, including: There is a penalty, likely a fine, for violating local zoning requirements for building without permits and for unlawfully renting the unit as a separate residence; The owner may be forced to evict the tenant of the illegal unit. Tenants in the New York City Housing Authority's Cooper Park Houses, a historically Black low-income housing complex in Brooklyn, are accustomed to making do and defying the odds, whether that means scrambling to secure last-minute holiday meals for . Mayor Eric Adams, Comptroller Brad Lander, the Regional Plan Association and the Pratt Center for Community Development are also behind the legislation. I was only picking them up outside. endobj View more property details, sales history and Zestimate data on Zillow. Shes now suing Mifsud in small claims court for what she alleges was thousands of dollars in lost property. Norma and Luis did not receive any federal stimulus and unemployment benefits because they are undocumented, and they did not apply to the states Excluded Workers Fund, which has stopped taking applications. 2022 NY Slip Op 51210(U) [77 Misc 3d 1214(A)] Decided on September 9, 2022 Civil Court Of The City Of New York, Queens County Sanchez, J. That meant she had to stay away from Mifsud except when entering or leaving the building. No defendant arrested in 2020 or 2021 has been convicted of unlawfully evicting a tenant when that charge was the top charge listed, according to the court data. In the scant instances landlords or property owners do end up in criminal court, state court data shows that punishment is virtually non-existent. Property owners will be liened any costs incurred by the agency and provide relocation services (which may include temporary housing) to any occupants who receive these services. When youre illegally locked out or evicted, getting back in is one of the hardest battles you could fight as a tenant, said Krishnan. Basements in one- and two-family homes can be lawfully occupied only if the following conditions are met: Basements in a one-family home can be lawfully rented only if the following conditions are met: Basements in a two-family home cannot be lawfully rented: Cellars in one- and two-family homes can never be lawfully rented. To recap our example, we have a two family house where the tenant lives month to month with no lease on the second floor; the landlord lives on the first floor; and there is someone living in the basement which is not designated for dwelling purposes. Lawmakers say basement tenants were reluctant to report unsafe and dangerous conditions because they lived in unauthorized housing. Your use of this website constitutes acceptance of the Terms of Use, Supplemental Terms, Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy. Perhaps there are no standard size windows in a basement or no exit in case of fire. Even if Lynch doesn't show up having the violation will work in your favor for eviction. /Size 38 DOB also posts Tips for Renters to help identify when an apartment is illegal. Common browsers are included in this page; mention of a specific browser does not imply endorsement or recommendation. Copyright 2023 Law Office of Richard Kistnen. According to Housing and Preservation Development, basement apartments cannot be rented legally unless they meet specific requirements for air, light, sanitation, and means of egress. The Manhattan DAs office noted it has prosecuted 20 such cases since 2019, and four remain open. In NYC, you can search for a propertys Certificate of Occupancy by searching the Department of Buildings Building Information Search System. The city has at various times tried to create programs to legalize that situation, grant amnesty to property tenants and make sure safety features are in place, Kavanagh explained. /TrimBox [0 0 612 792] << Mifsud said Stewart threatened and endangered her life, which Stewart denied in the text messages. /ColorSpace /DeviceRGB 0000063195 00000 n However, if the problems could not be solved then it would become a vacate or evict. 2022 All Rights Reserved, NYC is a trademark and service mark of the City of New York. 21 0 obj endobj Survey participation is voluntary. It would allow the city to grant amnesty to property owners who come forward and show they manage accessory dwelling units: underground basement spaces that have been illegally converted into apartments. LISTEN: A State of the State for an Unsettled State, How These NYC Public Housing Residents Became Models for Tenant Rights Activism, In State of the State Speech, Hochul Backs Adams Housing Agenda. According to him, police alleged he hit Mifsud in November 2020 and kicked her down the stairs in December. The number of vacate orders was even higher during the same March through October period in 2019, with 156 orders issued in that period, according to HPD data. Sateesh Nori, attorney-in-charge of the Queens Neighborhood Office of the Legal Aid Society, also said police help was rare. In general, rent stabilization in New York City applies to buildings of six or more units built between February 1, 1947 and December 31, 1973. Cutting the red tape to ensure the citys basement apartments are livable is the bare minimum we should do, said Beth Finkel, the organization's state director. Eviction cases are not handled by the small claims court system. In the report, Officer Christopher Sokol of the 101st Precinct reported Mifsud for the misdemeanor of ILLEGAL EVICT. The report states that officers personally observed Holnesss apartment had no heat or electricity. A Housing Court judge found Holness landlord had failed to provide heat, hot water and electricity for weeks. Perhaps it is a basement apartment in a single family home that is not cleared to be an apartment. As is often the case, a tenant is renting the second floor apartment, while the landlord lives in the first floor apartment. Between April and October 2021, HPD sued Mifsud five times in Housing Court, seeking building access for HPD repair crews and court orders directing Mifsud to provide heat, hot water and electricity, as well as civil penalties, according to petitions. If you are the owner of an illegal basement apartment in NYC, the Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island, Manhattan, you may be in for some serious fines. /Type /XObject 20 0 obj Thus, renting a basement designated for storage or accessory use creates an illegal occupancy in the building. If a Vacate Order is issued by either agency, the occupant is advised that they can receive relocation services through HPD. Now Im in a bind here, said the Queens resident, a freelance writing consultant who wished to remain anonymous. For assistance with your ECB/OATH violations, illegal basement violations, gas company violations, gas boiler violations, or any plumbing building violations in NYC, call John Farr at 917-324-2535. Free viewers are required for some of the attached documents. Because I was in the cold, and I was in the dark.. Manhattan Sen. Brian Kavanagh, who chairs the Senate Housing Committee, said his top priority before the legislative session ends early next month is to pass this bill. Legalizing basements cant happen at the city level alone which is why I am grateful for Assembly member Epstein andSen. Kavanaghfor their leadership and partnership in finally creating a pathway to helping more New Yorkers access safe and legal homes, said Jessica Katz, the city's chief housing officer. Hotels are not SROs. The answer is usually pretty simple. This type of activity violates zoning regulations. In a Brooklyn case, on two occasions a landlord allegedly entered a tenants apartment, hit the tenant, took the keys and threw the tenant down the outside apartment steps. This is a change from the previous minimum of 8 feet, thanks to the recent revision of the city's building codes. New Jersey, for instance, makes it very clear to landlords that they may not profit from illegal activity. 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