Late Registration Law Helps Landlord

Facts: Landlord sued to evict rent-stabilized tenant for nonpayment of rent from June 1993 to December 1993. Landlord claimed that tenant owed rent of $398 per month. Tenant claimed she'd been overcharged because landlord hadn't filed annual rent registration forms from 1988–1990. So, tenant argued that landlord couldn't collect any rent increases, and that the rent should be frozen at $350 per month during that period. Landlord argued that since it filed the 1988-1990 registration forms in March 1994, the Rent Regulation Reform Act of 1993 excused landlord from an overcharge finding and triple damages. Landlord also claimed it could seek the full $398 from the tenant in the nonpayment proceeding. Court: The court agreed with landlord in part. The law says that a landlord filing a late registration won't be found guilty of a rent overcharge based on the lack of registration as long as it has collected lawful rent increases. The law also says that triple damages won't be imposed for overcharges that occur solely because a landlord didn't file a rent registration. Since landlord in this case filed a late registration, it won't be found guilty of a rent overcharge. But, landlord can't sue to collect more than $350 per month, which was the legal rent in effect during the period when the apartment wasn't registered.

17 East 101 St. Associates v. Huguenin: NYLJ, p. 26, col. 2 (8/3/94) (Civ. Ct. NY; Braun, J)