Landlord Claims He Needs Tenant's Apartment for His Own Use

Landlord sued to evict rent-stabilized tenant from apartment for owner occupancy. Tenant claimed that landlord’s lease nonrenewal notice didn’t state sufficient facts to support landlord’s claim. The court denied tenant’s request to dismiss the case. Tenant appealed and lost. The nonrenewal notice stated that the 78-year-old landlord had been sleeping on his daughter’s living room couch in Manhattan for the past year. It further stated that landlord needed tenant’s Queens apartment for his own use because he did all the maintenance work in tenant’s building and his current living situation and almost daily travel had become untenable. Whether the case had merit would be established at trial.

Nowillo v. Leon: 48 Misc.3d 134(A), 2015 NY Slip Op 51082(U) (App. T. 2 Dept.; 7/14/15; Elliot, JP, Pesce, Solomon, JJ)