Management Basics

Check Whether Your J-51 Building Is on DHCR 'Problem' List

March 19, 2019    

The DHCR has recently posted a list of J-51 buildings with potentially problematic registration and deregulation issues.

The J-51 tax break program gives owners tax exemptions for carrying out rehabs and renovations of older, multi-dwelling buildings. Renovation work could include such...

Send Tenant 2019 DHCR Form If Rent Is $2,774.76 or More

February 22, 2019    

Rent-regulated apartments with a legal or maximum monthly rent that has reached or exceeded $2,774.76 may be petitioned for high-income rent deregulation. The Rent Act of 2015 amended the rent threshold for high-rent vacancy deregulation and high-income/high-rent deregulation by raising the...

File 2019 Fuel Cost Adjustment Forms Online by April 1

February 22, 2019    

On Jan. 22, the DHCR issued new fuel cost adjustment factors for rent-controlled apartments for the 2018 calendar year. The prices are based on a study of home heating oil prices provided by the NYC Rent Guidelines Board oil survey, a NYS Energy Research and Development Authority report, rate...

Provide Indoor Allergen Hazard Information to Prospective and Current Tenants

January 25, 2019    

Local Law 55 of 2018, the Asthma-Free Housing Act, became effective on Jan. 19. Under this law, an owner of multiple dwellings will be required to inspect units annually for indoor allergen hazards, such as mice, cockroaches, rats, and mold. And it requires owners to prevent and remove these...

DOF Publishes FY 2020 Tentative Assessment Roll

January 25, 2019    

On Jan. 15, the New York City Department of Finance (DOF) announced the publication of the tentative property assessment roll for fiscal year (FY) 2020, which shows the total market value of all New York City properties for the upcoming year at about $1.323 trillion, an increase of $72 billion,...

Complete Annual Bedbug Filing with HPD by Jan. 31

December 18, 2018    

HPD’s bedbug portal is now available and, for this current filing period, owners have until Jan. 31, 2019, to complete their annual bedbug filing. You can find the online application through HPD’s homepage under the Quick Links section at...

DHCR Increases Air-Conditioner Rent Surcharge for 2018–19

October 24, 2018    

The Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) recently announced an increase in this year’s air-conditioner rent surcharge for owners who pay for electricity. It set the monthly surcharge at $26.42, up 40 cents from $26.02 last year. This year’s decrease reflects a 1.5 percent...

Building Owner Heating Obligations as 'Heat Season' Begins

October 24, 2018    

During the previous “heat season,” the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) fielded 215,138 heat complaints, an increase of 7.8 percent as compared to the previous heat season. The current heat season begins on Oct. 1 and continues through May 31, 2019. During...

Start Compiling Bedbug Infestation History for HPD Reporting Requirement

September 20, 2018    

In 2017, Local Law 69 passed requiring all multifamily owners to attempt to obtain bedbug infestation history from tenants, including any remedial or eradication methods they used. By state law, owners were already required to notify prospective tenants about bedbug infestations within the last...

File 2018 Rent Registrations Online by July 31

June 20, 2018    

You must file an Annual Apartment Registration application with the DHCR for every rent-stabilized apartment you own by July 31, 2018, using the DHCR’s online Owner Rent Regulation Application system. As in past years, the penalty for...

Six Exceptions to the Four-Year Rule for Overcharge Claims

May 22, 2018    

In January 2014, the DHCR adopted amendments to the Rent Stabilization Code (RSC). Among the amendments were more exceptions made to the “four-year rule”—the four-year statute of limitations or time limit to initiate an overcharge complaint. Generally, the statute of...

Large Building Owners to Submit Benchmarking Data by May 1

April 19, 2018    

Local Law 84 (LL84) requires owners of large buildings to annually measure their energy and water consumption in a process called benchmarking. LL84 standardizes this process by requiring building owners to enter their annual energy and water use in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency...