What's happening
This bill prohibits landlords from leasing regulated apartments to businesses or non-primary residents, with exceptions for certain not-for-profits and employees.
Why it matters
Aims to close loopholes that allow landlords to lease regulated apartments to businesses, corporate entities, or as pieds-à-terre for non-primary residents, which can reduce the stock of affordable, stable housing available to individuals and families.
Includes targeted exceptions for not-for-profit organizations that provide housing and services to low-income or vulnerable populations, and for companies renting on behalf of employees who will use the apartment as their primary residence, balancing tenant protections with certain organizational needs.
Establishes monetary penalties ($1,000–$3,000 per offense) for landlords who violate these provisions, adding an enforcement mechanism that could deter circumvention of rent regulation laws.
Could impact the dynamics of the rental market by encouraging more apartments to be leased to individuals as primary residences, potentially improving neighborhood stability and addressing concerns over the commercial use of regulated housing.
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Who cares
Owners and rental agents of rent-regulated apartments
The bill would bar leasing vacant covered apartments to tenants they have reason to know will not use them as primary residences or to entities outside specified exceptions, with civil penalties for violations.
Businesses providing employee housing
The bill would allow business leases when an officer, partner, employee or other person participating in day-to-day operations would use the apartment as a primary residence.
Nonprofit housing providers
The bill would preserve an exception for nonprofit corporations solely engaged in providing housing and any additional support services to low-income or vulnerable people, as determined by the housing commissioner.
New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal
The bill would authorize the commissioner to impose penalties after a hearing of $1,000–$2,000 for a first violation and $2,000–$3,000 for each subsequent violation.
Headline styles
Ban Corporate Apartment Rentals
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
History
- Referred to housing, construction and community development
- Referred to housing, construction and community development
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Ban Corporate Apartment Rentals
In Assembly Committee · Housing · Sponsor Linda Rosenthal
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
1918
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 17, 2019
Introduced by Sens. KRUEGER, HOYLMAN, MONTGOMERY, SERRANO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Housing, Construction and Community Development
AN ACT to amend the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four and the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to leasing to business and other entities
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 4 of chapter 576 of the laws of 1974 constituting the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four is amended by adding a new section 5-b to read as follows:
§ 5-b. Tenancy. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of this act or the provisions of any contract, lease or rental agreement, no owner or any agent thereof shall enter into a lease, or other rental agreement for occupancy of a vacant housing accommodation subject to this act if the owner or any agent thereof has reason to know that the tenant will not occupy the housing accommodation as his or her primary residence, or the tenant is a corporation, partnership, or other business or not-forprofit entity, provided, however, if the tenant (i) is a not-for-profit corporation, pursuant to the not-for-profit corporation law, that is solely engaged in activities to provide housing and additional support services, if any, to low-income or vulnerable members of the population, as determined by the commissioner of the division of housing and community renewal, or (ii) is a corporation, partnership or other business that is providing an officer, partner, employee or other natural person participating in the day-to-day operations with a dwelling unit, which shall be occupied as the individual's primary residence, an owner or agent thereof may enter into a lease, or other rental agreement for occupancy of a vacant housing accommodation subject to this act.
§ 2. Clause (i) of paragraph 3 of subdivision a of section 12 of section 4 of chapter 576 of the laws of 1974 constituting the emergency
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03347-01-9
S. 1918 2
tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four, as amended by section 27 of part A of chapter 20 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
(i) to have violated an order of the division or section five-b of this act the commissioner may impose by administrative order after hearing, a civil penalty at minimum in the amount of one thousand but not to exceed two thousand dollars for the first such offense, and at minimum in the amount of two thousand but not to exceed three thousand dollars for each subsequent offense; or
§ 3. Section 26-512 of the administrative code of the city of New York is amended by adding a new subdivision g to read as follows:
g. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of law or the provisions of any contract, lease or rental agreement, no owner or any agent thereof shall enter into a lease, or other rental agreement for occupancy of a vacant housing accommodation subject to this chapter if the owner or any agent thereof has reason to know that the tenant will not occupy the housing accommodation as his or her primary residence, or the tenant is a corporation, partnership, or other business or not-for-profit entity, provided, however, if the tenant (i) is a not-for-profit corporation, pursuant to the not-for-profit corporation law, that is solely engaged in activities to provide housing and additional support services, if any, to low-income or vulnerable members of the population, as determined by the commissioner of the division of housing and community renewal, or (ii) is a corporation, partnership or other business that is providing an officer, partner, employee or other natural person participating in the day-to-day operations with a dwelling unit, which shall be occupied as the individual's primary residence, an owner or agent thereof may enter into a lease, or other rental agreement for occupancy of a vacant housing accommodation subject to this chapter.
§ 4. Paragraph 1 of subdivision c of section 26-516 of the administrative code of the city of New York, as amended by section 23 of part A of chapter 20 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
(1) to have violated an order of the division or subdivision g of section 26-512 of this chapter the commissioner may impose by administrative order after hearing, a civil penalty at minimum in the amount of one thousand but not to exceed two thousand dollars for the first such offense, and at a minimum in the amount of two thousand but not to exceed three thousand dollars for each subsequent offense; or
§ 5. Severability. If any provision of this act, or any application of any provision of this act, is held to be invalid, that shall not affect the validity or effectiveness of any other provision of this act, any other application of any provision of this act, or any other provision of any law or code amended by this act.
§ 6. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall have become a law; provided that:
(a) the amendments to the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four made by sections one and two 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; and
(b) the amendments to sections 26-512 and 26-516 of the administrative code of the city of New York made by sections three and four of this act shall expire on the same date as such sections expire and shall not affect the expiration of such sections as provided in section 26-520 of such code.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seven- ty-four and the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to leasing to business and other entities
Purpose or general idea of bill
To require that the primary resident of a rent-regulated unit be a natural person.
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1 amends the Emergency Tenant Protection Act of 1974, adding a new section 5-b, requiring that a Rent Stabilized unit be occupied as a primary residence by a natural person. If the tenant is a corporate or other entity, the occupant must be a natural person who is a current or retired employee of the entity.
Section 2 amends the Emergency Tenant Protection Act of 1974 § 12 (a) (3) (i), authorizing the commissioner to impose civil penalties on Parties that violate section 1 of this act.
Section 3 amends the Administrative Code of the City of New York § 26-512, adding a new subdivision g, prohibiting a landlord from knowing- ly renting a rent-regulated unit to a person or entity that is not using the accommodation as a primary residence.
Section 4 amends the Administrative Code of the City of New York 26-516 Subdivision g authorizing the commissioner to impose civil penalties on parties that violate section 3 of this act.
Section 5 is a severability clause Section 6 is the effective date
Justification
There is a growing problem of landlords renting apartments to companies that in turn rent them out to transients (tourists, short-stay occu- pants) as illegal hotel rooms. This bill would require that rent regu- lated apartments be used for residential purposes.
The purpose of rent regulation is to protect the stock of affordable housing for permanent residential purposes. The practices this bill would undermine the affordable housing market. Current law allows a landlord to evict a tenant from a rent-regulated apartment if it is not the tenant's primary residence. But a landlord is currently not barred from renting a rent-regulated apartment for non-primary residence.
Prior legislative history
2017-2018: S3186/A4803
2015-2016: S2829A
2013-2014: S1774
2011-2012: S.406
2010: S.8283/A.9832-43 The provisions of this bill were part of A.6013 of 2009.
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect after sixty days.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.