Corporation Can Be Primary Resident

Landlord sued to evict rent-stabilized tenant and apartment occupants, claiming that tenant was a licensee no longer entitled to occupy the premises after its lease expired. Tenant was an agency that provided "scattered site housing" to formerly homeless persons with mental health issues. Landlord claimed that because tenant was an institution and a corporation, the apartment couldn't be tenant's primary residence and landlord wasn't required to offer tenant a rent-stabilized renewal lease. Tenant signed a settlement agreement in court, agreeing to move out of the apartment. Landlord later appeared for an inquest against the apartment occupants, named as "John Doe" and "Jane Doe," who had failed to appear in court.  

The court ruled against landlord. First, landlord's termination notice was fatally defective. On the one hand it stated that the apartment was exempt from rent stabilization because tenant was an institution. On the other hand, the notice stated that the apartment was subject to the Rent Stabilization Law. And a corporate rent-stabilized tenant can meet the primary residence test for lease renewal of the apartment if the intended occupants primarily reside in the apartment. 

Citadel Estates, LLC v. Pathways to Housing, Inc.: Index No. L&T 55254/14, NYLJ No. 1202667242829 (Civ. Ct. Kings; 7/25/14; Avery, J)