New NYC Tenant Protection Laws: What They Mean For You

EAST VILLAGE, NY — New York City tenants now have a host of new protections and rights against unscrupulous landlords thanks to 18 bills that Mayor Bill de Blasio signed into law.

De Blasio signed most of the laws Wednesday morning to rein in tenant harassment aimed at pushing out rent-controlled or stabilized tenants so landlords can rent an apartment at market price.

"Tenant harassment is among the most malicious side effect of New York City’s economic boom," de Blasio said in a statement. "As we continue to work to protect tenants and to preserve and build affordable housing, we will not hesitate to crack down on abusive landlords."

The slew of bills was introduced by a number of council members as part of the broad Stand for Tenant Safety Coalition package. Council Member Margaret Chin, who represents District 1 in City Council, sponsored a bill addressing landlords who use constant, disruptive and illegal construction as a means to push long-standing tenants out of their homes.

Council Member Rosie Mendez, who represents the East Village in City Council, sponsored a related bill.

"For far too long some of the city’s worst property owners have used devious, despicable tactics, as well as construction renovations, to harass and intimidate tenants. Tenants living in buildings that are undergoing substantial construction usually do not know where to turn," Mendez said in a statement.

"Therefore, the passage of the 'Safe Construction Bill of Rights' legislation would require landlords to provide tenants prior notice of significant construction projects and periodic updates about the status of such construction projects." (For more information on this and other neighborhood stories, subscribe to Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts.)

Patch has compiled a rundown of what the most important laws will mean for you. The laws:

• Allow you to pursue legal action if your building owner repeatedly interrupts your building's essential services, like turning off the water.
• Give tenants who win harassment cases the option to collect compensation from their landlord, in addition to attorneys' fees and costs.
• Expand the definition of tenant harassment to include cases where a landlord frequently visits a tenant or visits at odd hours without the tenant's consent.
• Increase the minimum penalty for bad landlords, so that any building owners found to have harassed their tenants have to pay $2,000 instead of $1,000.
• Create a task force to evaluate construction and renovation practices by landlords.
• Mandate that more information be included in tenant protection plans.
• Create a watch list of contractors who have worked without proper permits.
• Increase the fines for contractors who violate a stop work order.
• Add more penalties and increase the penalties for construction work performed without proper permits.
• Mandate that a “Safe Construction Bill of Rights” be posted in buildings where construction work is happening.
• Create an Office of the Tenant Advocate within the Department of Buildings.
• Require the city to withhold permits for properties with $25,000 or more in unpaid fines.

The Cooper Square Committee, a local activist group based in the East Village, has long advocated for better protections for tenants, and in particular for an end to construction harassment.

See also: The Flipper's Playbook: How NYC Slumlords Terrorize Tenants And Get Away With It

Brandon Kielbasa, the committee's director of organizing and policy, explained that construction harassment is one of the most common tactics a tenant may face. Kielbasa described the laws signed today as "game changers" in the long-standing fight for tenants' rights.

“Tenants have fought hard for these laws and construction-as-harassment continues to be one of the most violent and psychologically tormenting forms of tenant harassment they face," Kielbasa said in a statement. "Tenants facing this form of harassment have ceiling collapsing on them, staircase removed in the buildings with no warning, and essential services, like heat, hot water, and electricity, shut off constantly."

One final bill that was initially part of the Stand for Tenant Safety package remains in the City Council. That bill would create a city office that could provide real-time enforcement against rule-breaking landlords .

This post has been updated with additional information.

Image credit: Drew Angerer / Staff / Getty Images News