Page 5 - CooperatorNews July 2021

COOPERATORNEWS.COM
COOPERATORNEWS —
JULY 2021
5
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
Legal
Q
A&
Disclaimer: Th e answers provided in this Q&A
column are of a general nature and cannot
substitute for professional advice regarding your
specifi c circumstances. Always seek the advice of
competent legal counsel or other qualifi ed profes-
sionals with any questions you may have regard-
ing technical or legal issues.
Bi-Coastal Blues
Q
I have a two-bedroom co-op in
Manhattan. I also have a town-
house in Los Angeles because
that is where I pursue acting for TV and apartment passed away. Will her apartment
fi lm mostly. I have had roommates in my remain rent stabilized, or can the owner
New York apartment as I come in 1-2 times transfer it to market value?
a year. My current roommate is leaving at
the end of June, and I have a new roommate
who wants to move in the fi rst week of Au-
gust. Th e management company is trying
to tell me that it constitutes a sublet. I told
them no, he is a roommate. My bedroom
is mine and my clothes and furniture are Manhattan-based Schwartz Sladkus Reich
there. Plus I pay the utilities. Th ey are say-
ing that I should be there more than I am in Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019
Los Angeles. What are the legalities of this?
—I Only Play a Landlord on TV
A
Lucas A. Ferrara, a partner more easily and usually under one of two
at Newman Ferrara LLP and processes; that is, either a high rent regu-
an adjunct professor at New lation (e.g., the rent exceeded the then rate
York Law School, says: “Th e distinction be-
tween a roommate and a subtenant is sim-
ply this: If you are residing in an apartment legally permitted).
with another person, then that other indi-
vidual can be characterized as a roommate. hibition against deregulation is when the
If you are allowing someone to live in your apartment is located in a building receiv-
unit, in your place and stead, or in your ab-
sence, you probably have a sublet (or an as-
signment).
“According to New York State’s Unlaw-
ful Restrictions on Occupancy Law—popu-
larly called the ‘Roommate Law’—you are the 421a tax benefi ts, one can check with
usually permitted to take on a roommate the New York City Department of Finance,
without a landlord’s or co-op board’s ap-
proval. But, for that law to apply, there are a owner of the apartment (here, the Holder of
few restrictions, including a ‘simultaneous Unsold Shares) as well.
occupancy’ requirement.
“In 2019, a New York City Civil Court to her death, had a family member (as de-
judge defi ned a ‘roommate’ as ‘a long-term fi ned by the law) or those in a family like
co-occupant of an apartment with the lease-
holder, with whom the entire living area is in the apartment prior to the death of the
shared,’ further noting, ‘[Th e Roommate tenant of record, they may be permitted to
Law] contemplates that the occupant reside become the tenant of record. Th ere are vari-
in the apartment
together with the tenant.
’ ous tests to determine whether the party
(Emphasis added.)
“Th us, even if clothes, furniture, or other ly become the new tenant of record of the
personal belongings remain, the arrange-
ment the letter writer describes may be con-
strued as a sublet (or assignment), which—
depending on the co-op’s bylaws and other ment to inquire, presumably as an inquiry
governing documents—may have required to rent the apartment.”
prior board approval. Any failure to abide
by those strictures would arguably be viola-
tive of the governing proprietary lease and
could potentially subject the letter writer to
a termination, and possible eviction, if the
unauthorized occupancy is not remedied.”
The Instability of Rent Stabilization
Q
I live in a co-op with some unsold
share apartments. Th is month
a woman in a rent stabilized
—Wondering
A
“Th e question is not as sim-
ple as it would appear,” says
attorney Mark Hakim of
Greenberg Atlas LLP. “First, the Housing
(the ‘Act’) eliminated, with a few exceptions,
the majority of the deregulation protection
for those who own rent stabilized apart-
ments. Before the Act, one could deregulate
permitted by law) or high income deregula-
tion (e.g., the tenant’s income exceeded that
“Now, the main exception to the pro-
ing Section 421a tax abatements, which are
abatement/exemptions granted to develop-
ers of properties considered to be under-
utilized or unused. To know if the building
where the apartment is located is receiving
and then you would have to check with the
“If, however, the tenant of record, prior
situation (again, defi ned by law) living
seeking these succession rights may lawful-
apartment when the tenant of record dies.
Regardless, the best way to fi nd out the sta-
tus is to reach out to the owner of the apart-
n
continued on page 5
“FirstService Residential has been our
managing agent for decades. Whether finance,
day-to-day problems or getting through a
big capital project, the team shows up with
great ideas and solutions. Our property
manager’s leadership, coupled with the rest
of our FirstService Residential team, makes
our staff and our board function better. The
email I just received from FirstService Energy
double assured me that being under the big
FirstService Residential umbrella is the only
way to go. I sent it out to everyone on the board
telling them the same.”
>> Stephanie G., Board President
200+ unit cooperative
Upper East Side
www.fsresidential.com/new-york
LetsTalk.NY@fsresidential.com
212.324.9944
New York’s Property
Management Leader
Making a Difference.
Every Day.