Illegal Basement Apartment Is Rent Stabilized

Landlord sued to evict tenant from illegal basement apartment. Landlord claimed that the apartment was unregulated. Tenant claimed that he was rent stabilized. The court ruled for tenant and dismissed the case. Landlord had never registered the apartment with the DHCR. But the building was rent stabilized. If tenant's apartment was illegal, this didn't make the apartment exempt from rent stabilization. Since landlord's petition incorrectly designated the apartment as unregulated, the papers were defective and the case had to be dismissed. Also, the illegal status of an apartment isn't grounds to terminate a rent-stabilized tenancy unless the apartment can't be legalized. Notably, in this case, a DOB violation issued to landlord didn't state that the unit was illegal. Instead, the violation stated that the three-room apartment was constructed without obtaining the necessary permits.

C&E Associates LLC v. Hernandez: NYLJ, 5/21/08, p. 27, col. 1 (Civ. Ct. NY; Schneider, J)