What's happening
This bill prohibits rent increases for certain building improvements by limiting what qualifies as a major capital improvement under New York's rent laws.
Why it matters
Narrows the definition of “major capital improvements” (MCIs). The bill specifically lists several types of building upgrades—such as aluminum siding, boiler room expansions, certain masonry, and new security systems—that will no longer justify permanent rent increases for tenants in regulated apartments, reducing landlord incentives to pass on costs from these upgrades.
Directly addresses tenant rent burden. By blocking rent increases for these commonly performed improvements, the bill aims to prevent significant rent hikes that can lead to tenant displacement or financial strain, especially in older buildings where such work is routine maintenance rather than true upgrades.
Shifts responsibility for basic upkeep to landlords. The legislation clarifies that regular or necessary repairs and upgrades should be considered part of normal property maintenance, not a basis for raising rents, which could improve housing quality without shifting costs to tenants.
Could influence investment and maintenance decisions. By limiting the financial return on specific improvements, the bill may alter how landlords prioritize repairs and upgrades, potentially affecting the pace or extent of certain capital projects in rent-regulated buildings.
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Who cares
Rent-regulated tenants
The bill would bar major capital improvement rent increases for listed work, including fire escape replacement, exterior waterproofing and new water tanks.
Owners of rent-regulated buildings
The bill would prevent owners from obtaining major capital improvement rent increases for specified projects, including structural steel replacement, boiler room construction and new solar heating systems.
Division of Housing and Community Renewal
The bill would require the agency to deny major capital improvement rent increases for the listed improvements under the rent control and rent stabilization laws it amends.
Headline styles
Limit Rent Hike Improvements
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to housing
- Referred to housing
Full text
4 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
7370
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
April 26, 2019
Introduced by M. of A. EPSTEIN -- read once and referred to the Committee on Housing
AN ACT to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four and the emergency housing rent control law, in relation to limiting the improvements that are eligible for a major capital improvement rent increase
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subparagraph (g) of paragraph 1 of subdivision g of section 26-405 of the administrative code of the city of New York, as amended by section 31 of part A of chapter 20 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
(g) There has been since July first, nineteen hundred seventy, a major capital improvement required for the operation, preservation or maintenance of the structure. An adjustment under this subparagraph (g) for any order of the commissioner issued after the effective date of the rent act of 2015 shall be in an amount sufficient to amortize the cost of the improvements pursuant to this subparagraph (g) over an eight-year period for buildings with thirty-five or fewer units or a nine year period for buildings with more than [thiry-five] thirty-five units, provided, however, a major capital improvement rent increase shall not be approved by the division of housing and community renewal for the following improvements: installation of aluminum siding, enlargement or construction of a boiler room, replacement of a catwalk, installation or replacement of a chimney, replacement of fire escapes including landings, replacement of parapets, pointing and waterproofing on exposed sides of a building, resurfacing of exterior walls including brick or masonry work, installation of new solar heating systems, replacement of structural steel beams including footing and foundation, installation of new security monitoring systems, installation of waste compactor serving
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10535-01-9
A. 7370 2
an entire building, construction of a waste compactor room or installation of new water tanks; or
§ 2. Paragraph 6 of subdivision c of section 26-511 of the administrative code of the city of New York, as amended by section 29 of part A of chapter 20 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
(6) provides criteria whereby the commissioner may act upon applications by owners for increases in excess of the level of fair rent increase established under this law provided, however, that such criteria shall provide (a) as to hardship applications, for a finding that the level of fair rent increase is not sufficient to enable the owner to maintain approximately the same average annual net income (which shall be computed without regard to debt service, financing costs or management fees) for the three year period ending on or within six months of the date of an application pursuant to such criteria as compared with annual net income, which prevailed on the average over the period nineteen hundred sixty-eight through nineteen hundred seventy, or for the first three years of operation if the building was completed since nineteen hundred sixty-eight or for the first three fiscal years after a transfer of title to a new owner provided the new owner can establish to the satisfaction of the commissioner that he or she acquired title to the building as a result of a bona fide sale of the entire building and that the new owner is unable to obtain requisite records for the fiscal years nineteen hundred sixty-eight through nineteen hundred seventy despite diligent efforts to obtain same from predecessors in title and further provided that the new owner can provide financial data covering a minimum of six years under his or her continuous and uninterrupted operation of the building to meet the three year to three year comparative test periods herein provided; and (b) as to completed buildingwide major capital improvements, for a finding that such improvements are deemed depreciable under the Internal Revenue Code and that the cost is to be amortized over an eight-year period for a building with thirty-five or fewer housing accommodations, or a nine-year period for a building with more than thirty-five housing accommodations, for any determination issued by the division of housing and community renewal after the effective date of the rent act of 2015, based upon cash purchase price exclusive of interest or service charges. A major capital improvement rent increase shall not be approved by the division of housing and community renewal for the following improvements: installation of aluminum siding, enlargement or construction of a boiler room, replacement of a catwalk, installation or replacement of a chimney, replacement of fire escapes including landings, replacement of parapets, pointing and waterproofing on exposed sides of a building, resurfacing of exterior walls including brick or masonry work, installation of new solar heating systems, replacement of structural steel beams including footing and foundation, installation of new security monitoring systems, installation of waste compactor serving an entire building, construction of a waste compactor room or installation of new water tanks. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained herein, no hardship increase granted pursuant to this paragraph shall, when added to the annual gross rents, as determined by the commissioner, exceed the sum of, (i) the annual operating expenses, (ii) an allowance for management services as determined by the commissioner, (iii) actual annual mortgage debt service (interest and amortization) on its indebtedness to a lending institution, an insurance company, a retirement fund or welfare fund which is operated under the supervision of the banking or insurance laws of the state of New York or the United States, and (iv) eight and one-
A. 7370 3
half percent of that portion of the fair market value of the property which exceeds the unpaid principal amount of the mortgage indebtedness referred to in subparagraph (iii) of this paragraph. Fair market value for the purposes of this paragraph shall be six times the annual gross rent. The collection of any increase in the stabilized rent for any apartment pursuant to this paragraph shall not exceed six percent in any year from the effective date of the order granting the increase over the rent set forth in the schedule of gross rents, with collectability of any dollar excess above said sum to be spread forward in similar increments and added to the stabilized rent as established or set in future years;
§ 3. Paragraph 3 of subdivision d of section 6 of section 4 of chapter 576 of the laws of 1974, constituting the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four, as amended by section 30 of part A of chapter 20 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
(3) there has been since January first, nineteen hundred seventy-four a major capital improvement required for the operation, preservation or maintenance of the structure. An adjustment under this paragraph shall be in an amount sufficient to amortize the cost of the improvements pursuant to this paragraph over an eight-year period for a building with thirty-five or fewer housing accommodations, or a nine-year period for a building with more than thirty-five housing accommodations, for any determination issued by the division of housing and community renewal after the effective date of the rent act of 2015, provided, however, a major capital improvement rent increase shall not be approved by the division of housing and community renewal for the following improvements: installation of aluminum siding, enlargement or construction of a boiler room, replacement of a catwalk, installation or replacement of a chimney, replacement of fire escapes including landings, replacement of parapets, pointing and waterproofing on exposed sides of a building, resurfacing of exterior walls including brick or masonry work, installation of new solar heating systems, replacement of structural steel beams including footing and foundation, installation of new security monitoring systems, installation of waste compactor serving an entire building, construction of a waste compactor room or installation of new water tanks, or
§ 4. Subparagraph 7 of the second undesignated paragraph of paragraph (a) of subdivision 4 of section 4 of chapter 274 of the laws of 1946, constituting the emergency housing rent control law, as amended by section 32 of part A of chapter 20 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
(7) there has been since March first, nineteen hundred fifty, a major capital improvement required for the operation, preservation or maintenance of the structure; which for any order of the commissioner issued after the effective date of the rent act of 2015 the cost of such improvement shall be amortized over an eight-year period for buildings with thirty-five or fewer units or a nine year period for buildings with more than [thiry-five] thirty-five units, provided, however, a major capital improvement rent increase shall not be approved by the division of housing and community renewal for the following improvements: installation of aluminum siding, enlargement or construction of a boiler room, replacement of a catwalk, installation or replacement of a chimney, replacement of fire escapes including landings, replacement of parapets, pointing and waterproofing on exposed sides of a building, resurfacing of exterior walls including brick or masonry work, installation of new solar heating systems, replacement of structural steel beams including
A. 7370 4
footing and foundation, installation of new security monitoring systems, installation of waste compactor serving an entire building, construction of a waste compactor room or installation of new water tanks, or
§ 5. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that:
(a) the amendments to section 26-405 of the city rent and rehabilitation law made by section one of this act shall remain in full force and effect only as long as the public emergency requiring the regulation and control of residential rents and evictions continues, as provided in subdivision 3 of section 1 of the local emergency housing rent control act;
(b) the amendments to section 26-511 of the rent stabilization law of nineteen hundred sixty-nine made by section two of this act shall expire on the same date as such law expires and shall not affect the expiration of such law as provided under section 26-520 of such law, as from time to time amended;
(c) the amendments to section 6 of the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four made by section three of this act shall expire on the same date as such act expires and shall not affect the expiration of such act as provided in section 17 of chapter 576 of the laws of 1974, as from time to time amended; and
(d) the amendments to section 4 of the emergency housing rent control law made by section four of this act shall expire on the same date as such law expires and shall not affect the expiration of such law as provided in subdivision 2 of section 1 of chapter 274 of the laws of 1946.
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