According to data from the Rent Guidelines Board, in 2023 (the most recent year data is available), 583 buildings containing rent-stabilized units were sold citywide. The previous year, that number had been even higher at 889 buildings.
We connected with tenant attorney William Gribben from Himmelstein McConnell Gribben & Joseph LLP, to learn what to expect if your rent-stabilized building is sold and how to protect yourself if the new owner tries to evict you.
He says the most important thing people should know is that new ownership doesn’t affect their rights.
“If the building is sold and you ever get any kind of a notice or anything from a new owner in any way, shape or form, putting into jeopardy your status as a rent-stabilized tenant or rent control tenant, you should push back,” Gribben explains.
Tactics that landlords may use to push you out
While your rights are the same, some new owners will try to use various tactics to push you out.
- Aggressive enforcement of lease: The new owner may look for minor violations in your lease that they can then enforce on you, such as clutter. Another example would be allegations that you are running a business from the apartment (we will get into the rights of working from home later).
- Surveillance: Landlords may install cameras in common areas. This allows them to look for evidence of potential lease violations, like the apartment not being your primary residence.
- Construction as a tool of harassment: Landlords may begin construction projects to make the conditions uninhabitable to force people out.
- Leaving legal notices that aren’t legal: Owners may serve eviction notices or file lawsuits that are baseless because they are hoping tenants leave without fighting it.
When your lease is used against you
Gribben says while leases are full of restrictions, they’re also full of things that are not enforceable under the law. “The fact that the tenant signed the lease doesn’t mean that they’re bound by everything that’s in it, ” he says. For example, a rent-stabilized lease might contain a clause saying no one could be added to it. But legally, a tenant’s spouse or domestic partner can be added to the lease at any time.
Another important point to consider regarding lease violations that may be used to evict tenants is that most issues are deemed “curable” under the law. While there are several steps involved, in short, he says that the court provides tenants with a reasonable timeframe to “cure” the issue.
Can I work from home?
While many rent-stabilized leases say you can’t run a business from your home, Gribben says that doesn’t mean a new owner can kick you out for working from home.
“What I always say to people is if it looks like just a normal activity in your apartment, it’s a home occupation, and you’re not gonna get evicted,” he explains.
For example, if you are sitting on your couch working on your laptop, that is not a lease violation. “You can’t turn into a manufacturer. You can’t do anything that calls for heavy-duty equipment or puts a burden on the building in terms of electricity or plumbing. It’s really a common-sense way of looking at what’s going on in the apartment,” adds Gribben.
He says you can use up to 25% of the space for a home office. He warns that if a landlord brings a claim that you are running a business, the tenant should let them know they will fight it because they have the right to work from home.
Ways to protect yourself
One of the first things you should do to protect yourself is to verify that payments being made to a new management company are going to the right person. He says tenants can go to the Department of Housing, Preservation and Development to check for a new owner or management company. They can also go to the city’s Automated City Register Information System website to find a recent deed. “They need to get something that gives them a good level of assurance that whomever they’re paying their next rent to is, in fact, somebody who they should be paying their rent to,” he says.
Some other tips are:
- Create a tenant’s union: There is strength in numbers. Tenant associations will allow renters to collectively deal with programs. If you need help forming a union, these organizations can help.
- Document everything: Keep detailed records of every conversation with your landlord, superintendent and management office workers. This includes repairs, notices and inspections. These records will be helpful if legal action is necessary.
- Get a lawyer: While hiring a lawyer can be expensive, it is likely cheaper than finding a new place to live. There are also low-cost or free legal services such as:
- New York City Bar: Free and low-cost legal services
- The Legal Aid Society
- Legal Services NYC
Lastly, he also says to be mindful of eviction papers. If the landlord sends documents saying you have to be out by a certain date, that doesn’t mean police are going to throw your furniture out of the street. “In New York, no matter what it is that the landlord’s claiming, they have to go to court. They present their case to a judge. And a judge will ultimately make a decision one way or the other,” he says.
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