Four-Year Occupancy Limit May Discriminate Based on Age

LVT Number: 8048

Facts: Landlord St. Mary's Home for Working Girls provided temporary homes for working women between the ages of 18 and 45 at a not-for-profit rooming house it operated. Landlord limited tenants' stay to four years. In the past, landlord didn't strictly enforce the four-year limit. Most tenants would move out by that point voluntarily or by request. In 1982, landlord got stricter and told those living there for over four years that they had two years to move out. Seven tenants sued landlord, claiming age discrimination.

Facts: Landlord St. Mary's Home for Working Girls provided temporary homes for working women between the ages of 18 and 45 at a not-for-profit rooming house it operated. Landlord limited tenants' stay to four years. In the past, landlord didn't strictly enforce the four-year limit. Most tenants would move out by that point voluntarily or by request. In 1982, landlord got stricter and told those living there for over four years that they had two years to move out. Seven tenants sued landlord, claiming age discrimination. They said the four-year limit was an excuse to evict older women from the residence. Landlord claimed the home was exempt from age discrimination laws. Court: Landlord can't discriminate based on age, and tenants can proceed with their case. Age discrimination violates equal opportunity, and landlord can achieve its goals without discriminating. The four-year residency limit in and of itself may be perfectly legitimate to further landlord's mission of providing a safe haven for women of limited means starting a new life in the city. All tenants had signed application forms clearly agreeing to this. Tenants will have to prove that because landlord didn't previously enforce the residence limits, it couldn't do so at this point.

Priolo v. St. Mary's Home for Working Girls: 597 NYS2d 890 (3/26/93) (Sup. Ct. NY; Cohen, J)