Combined Apartments Deregulated

Landlord applied for high-rent/high-income deregulation of Apartment 7B/G. Tenants claimed that the apartments were separate units and that, separately, neither rent was over $2,000 per month. Tenants otherwise admitted that the household income in each of the two units was over $175,000 in each of two prior years. The DRA ruled for landlord, and tenants appealed. Tenants pointed out that each apartment had a separate lease and was registered separately. Tenants claimed that one of them lived in each apartment. Their two children stayed in only one of the apartments when they came home from college. The DHCR ruled against tenants. For purposes of high-rent deregulation, the question is how fully integrated the use of the apartments is. Separate leases or registration doesn't matter. The DHCR inspection showed that the two apartments were connected by two different internal doors, that Apartment 7G had no kitchen and no full bathroom, that the apartment entry door for Apartment 7G wasn't being used, and that there was a high degree of integration between the two units.

Fierman/Lieberman: DHCR Adm. Rev. Dckt. Nos. SB410023RT & SB410027RT (2/17/05) [5-pg. doc.]