MCI Rent Hike Granted for Building-Wide Carpet Installation

Landlord applied for MCI rent hikes based on building-wide carpet installation. The DRA ruled for landlord, and tenants appealed. Tenants argued that carpet was previously installed in 1995 and that the replaced carpet hadn’t outlived its useful life. But landlord had received no prior MCI rent hike for building-wide carpet installation. So the useful life of the pre-existing carpet didn’t matter. Tenants also argued that landlord replaced the carpet only as the result of a rent reduction order. But tenants didn’t raise this issue before the Rent Administrator.

166 Second Avenue Tenants’ Assoc.: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket No. CX430042RT (5/27/16) [1-pg. doc.]