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| In summary | |
| Posted by: aleck 08:07 am EDT 07/05/17 | |
| In reply to: Tenants Rights Guide - wizrdofoz27 12:07 am EDT 07/05/17 | |
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| Having done this several times, wading through all that extensive (albeit helpful) material can be confusing. Here are the salient points to keep in mind to avoid possibility of an eviction proceeding by your landlord (if your landlord is watching you, as in most cases they are): 1. As a rent-stabilized tenant you must actually be in residence in your apartment for 6 months of the year. If you are flirting with a timetable of that six month residency requirement, make sure you have proof of your actual occupation of the apartment. (That said, I know of people who have not been in residence for years and never got caught. I prefer not to risk the potential of losing such a valuable asset as a rent-stabilized apartment.) 2. That six-month occupation of the apartment is waived if you do a legal sublet of the apartment. That means getting a sublet lease that is approved by the landlord. The landlord is permitted to add 10 percent of the rent to the sublet tenant. The monthly rent would be paid by the sublet tenant directly to the landlord. You keep your status as the original lease holder as long as you maintain New York City as your primary residence -- meaning you pay local and state income taxes. To get a legal sublet, your landlord can demand all the personal information from the person subletting (like financial responsibility, proof of job, etc). You are permitted to sublet your apartment for 24 months out of every 48 months. Rent control apartments, as opposed to rent stabilized, cannot be subletted. (Some people sublet their apartments every winter when they want to go to Florida for a few months. The reason for your absence is of no importance -- as long as you are not setting up a permanent primary residence elsewhere.) 3. Do not try to sublet your apartment "off the books" while you are gone. Do not try to collect money from someone who might stay in the apartment while you are gone. While there are many people who do this routinely and for many years, it is illegal and if you are caught it can be grounds for eviction. Also, do not "swap" your apartment for ANY period of time with someone in another city. Home exchanges are illegal under rent stabilization laws as illegal sublets. Again, people do this all the time, but if you get caught . . . 4. You can get a sublet lease form off the internet. I always add a clause that says I can reclaim the apartment on a short notice during the sublet period if I needed to return for some unforeseen reason (like a health issue). I never rent to strangers. Rather I rent to people I know who are looking for a chance to have a New York apartment for a few months -- or out-of-towners who are looking for a NYC weekend place -- like a temporary pied-a-terre. Then I don't have to worry about moving all my stuff out of here. Also, rather than changing all the utility service -- phone, TV, electricity -- to the sublet tenant, I just bill the tenant the amount. This can be included in the lease. 5. Since I consider my rent-stabilized apartment my greatest financial asset, I would do nothing to jeopardize losing it and I follow the rules exactly. |
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| re: In summary | |
| Posted by: StageDoorEddie 09:04 am EDT 07/05/17 | |
| In reply to: In summary - aleck 08:07 am EDT 07/05/17 | |
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| aleck's post contains excellent advice and information. However, as a property manager I need to point out two errors. You do not need to be in actual residence for 6 months if you are temporarily away from the apartment for work -- provided you maintain it as your primary residence, use the address for your taxes and, most importantly, pay New York City and State income taxes. Since you say you will be with a bus and truck tour, you wouldn't have any other residence. If you sublet, the subtenant should pay you and you should pay the rent to the landlord. You remain liable for all obligations under the lease. It's possible some subtenants have paid the rent directly to the landlord, but the only way for you to know it is being paid and that you won't suddenly find yourself in court for non-payment of rent, is to pay it to the landlord yourself. If you decide to sublet, reread Item 3 in aleck's response. In addition to the handbook referenced in another post, the DHCR has Fact Sheets that should cover most of your concerns as a rent stabilized tenant. Good luck and enjoy the tour. |
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| Link | http://www.nyshcr.org/Rent/FactSheets/ |
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| re: In summary | |
| Posted by: aleck 02:07 pm EDT 07/05/17 | |
| In reply to: re: In summary - StageDoorEddie 09:04 am EDT 07/05/17 | |
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| It was explained to me by a real estate lawyer that the six-month residency requirement meant six months of occupancy of the premises, otherwise it's considered that you've abandoned the property. Perhaps proof of a time-limited work contract might be enough proof that there has not be abandonment, but I think that could be grey. With some landlords tracking tenants every movement, you better have some really hard evidence and not something with an open-end contract. When I have done sublets, the landlord required that the subtenant pay directly -- because there was a 10% premium added to the basic rent -- and that the sublet lease be approved and signed by all the parties. |
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| re: In summary | |
| Posted by: toros 08:51 am EDT 07/05/17 | |
| In reply to: In summary - aleck 08:07 am EDT 07/05/17 | |
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| I really appreciate this information. Like you, I consider my rent-stabilized apartment a great asset. That said, I can't find a lot of the information you include here anywhere in the Tenants Right Guide, or elsewhere. Where, for example, did you find the information about "apartment swapping" being illegal? I guess I don't understand the difference between that, and what you describe as renting "to people I know who are looking for a chance to have a New York apartment for a few months," unless you mean swapping with someone you don't know. That's what I don't understand. Is swapping with someone you know legal, and swapping with someone you don't know illegal? And are you saying it's legal to rent to someone you know, but illegal to swap with someone you know? I'm confused. Thanks for the tip about adding a clause to reclaim the apartment. Very helpful. | |
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| re: In summary | |
| Posted by: aleck 02:14 pm EDT 07/05/17 | |
| In reply to: re: In summary - toros 08:51 am EDT 07/05/17 | |
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| Exchanging residences is viewed as receiving a monetized consideration for the use of your apartment -- even if the "value" of the other residence is lower in value than your apartment. Remember that the landlord wants you OUT of that apartment so that the apartment could be converted into a market rate apartment. What's of interest here is not the value of the rent you pay now as a rent stabilized tenant, but what the landlord could get as a market rate apartment if you can be evicted. The landlord is motivated to find a way to evict you, you know. That said, people swap apartments all the time and for long periods of time. But, of course, it's a risk and housing court can be ugly and costly. |
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