New York Codes, Rules and Regulations › Title 9 - EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT › Subtitle S - Division of Housing and Community Renewal › Chapter VII - Emergency Housing Rent Control › Subchapter D - Rent And Eviction Regulations-new York City › Part 2202 - Adjustments; Determination Of Rents And Services › Section 2202.4 - Increased services or facilities, substantial rehabilitation, major capital or other improvements

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 28, July 10, 2024
Except with regard to an adjustment pursuant to paragraph
						(a)(2) of this section, for which the approval of the administrator shall not
						be required, the administrator may grant an appropriate adjustment of a maximum
						rent where he finds that:
(a)
					 Individual Apartment Improvements.
(1)
					 Increase in space, new equipment, new furniture or furnishings; and other
					 adjustments.
(2) An owner is
					 entitled to a temporary rent increase where there has been a reasonable and
					 verifiable modification, other than an increase for which an adjustment may be
					 claimed pursuant to subdivision (b) of this section, of dwelling space,
					 installation of new equipment or improvements, or new furniture or furnishings,
					 provided in or to the tenant's housing accommodation, where the tenant has
					 agreed to such modification or increase and the owner has obtained written
					 informed tenant consent to such rent increase. In the case of vacant housing
					 accommodations, tenant consent shall not be required.
(i) For all work that commenced on or after
					 June 14, 2019, notification of all modifications must be submitted to DHCR for
					 verification. As a part of such verification, an owner shall:
(a) Provide a copy of the written informed
					 tenant consent on an approved DHCR form, when tenant consent is
					 required.
(b) Provide the DHCR with
					 an itemized list of work performed, including a description and/or explanation
					 of the reason or purpose for such work.
(c) Provide the DHCR with photographs of the
					 subject apartment where the work will be completed taken prior to such
					 modification or increase as well as photographs taken after, and showing, the
					 work has been completed. Such photographs must be kept as part of the owner's
					 permanent records such that the owner must at any future time produce such
					 photographs upon request by an agency with appropriate jurisdiction.
(d) Use a licensed contractor to complete
					 such work. The costs for an individual apartment improvement paid to a person
					 or organization contracted to do the improvement or installation work sharing a
					 common ownership with the owner or managing agent of the subject building or
					 apartment will be disallowed.
(e)
					 Resolve, within the dwelling space, all outstanding hazardous and immediately
					 hazardous violations. In no event shall an owner be permitted to begin
					 collection of any rent increase pursuant to this subdivision while there are
					 any hazardous or immediately hazardous violations of the Uniform Fire
					 Prevention and Building Code (Uniform Code), New York City Fire Code, or New
					 York City Building and Housing Maintenance Codes pending against the affected
					 housing accommodation.
(ii) For work commenced on or after June 14,
					 2019, the recoverable costs incurred by the owner pursuant to this subdivision
					 shall be limited to a total aggregate cost of fifteen thousand dollars
					 ($15,000) that may be expended on no more than three (3) separate individual
					 apartment improvements in any fifteen (15) year period.
(iii) An owner who is entitled to a rent
					 increase pursuant to this subdivision shall not be entitled to a further rent
					 increase based upon the installation of similar equipment, or new furniture or
					 furnishings within the useful life of such new equipment, or new furniture or
					 furnishings.
(iv) Any increases to
					 the maximum rent pursuant to this subdivision shall be temporary and shall be
					 removed from maximum rent thirty (30) years from the date the increase became
					 effective inclusive of any increases granted by the applicable Rent Guidelines
					 Board that had been calculated based upon such rent increase.
(v) For individual apartment improvements
					 pursuant to this subdivision, the DHCR shall maintain an itemized list of work
					 performed and a description or explanation of the reason or purpose of such
					 work, inclusive of photographic evidence documenting the condition prior to and
					 after the completion of the performed work. Such documentation and any other
					 supporting documentation shall be submitted to the DHCR by the owner within
					 ninety (90) days of the completion of the work, retained in a centralized
					 electronic retention system and made available in cases pertaining to the
					 adjustment of maximum rents.
(vi)
					 Where an owner seeks a temporary individual apartment improvement rent increase
					 pursuant to this subdivision while the unit is occupied, the DHCR shall provide
					 a form for use by the owner, to obtain written informed consent from the tenant
					 that shall include the estimated total cost of the improvement and the
					 estimated monthly rent increase. Such form shall be completed and submitted to
					 the DHCR by the owner within 90 days of the completion of the work and
					 preserved in a centralized electronic retention system. Nothing herein shall
					 relieve an owner, lessor, or agent thereof of his or her duty to retain proper
					 documentation of all improvements performed or any rent increases resulting
					 from said improvements.
(vii) For
					 rent increases pursuant to this subdivision that took effect prior to June 14,
					 2019, the increase in the monthly maximum rent for the affected housing
					 accommodations when authorized pursuant to this subdivision shall for buildings
					 and complexes containing 35 or fewer housing accommodations be 1/40th of the
					 total cost, including installation but excluding finance charges; and for
					 buildings and complexes containing more than 35 housing accommodations be
					 1/60th of the total cost, including installation but excluding finance
					 charges.
(viii) For temporary rent
					 increases pursuant to this subdivision effective as of or after June 14, 2019,
					 the temporary increase in the monthly maximum rent for the affected housing
					 accommodations when authorized pursuant to this subdivision shall for buildings
					 and complexes containing 35 or fewer housing accommodations be 1/168th of the
					 total cost, including the cost of installation but excluding finance charges;
					 and for buildings and complexes containing more than 35 housing accommodations
					 be 1/180th of the total cost, including the cost of installation but excluding
					 finance charges.