No Overcharge Collected from Tenant of Improperly Deregulated Apartment

Tenant sued landlord, claiming improper apartment deregulation and rent overcharge. Landlord asked the court to dismiss the case without trial. The court ruled for landlord. The building received J-51 tax benefits from 1999 to 2010. Prior rent-controlled tenant moved out of the apartment in 2009 and landlord then gave the complaining tenant an unregulated lease based on high-rent vacancy deregulation. In a prior court action, a court ruled that tenant was rent stabilized, and landlord gave tenant a rent-stabilized lease at $5,200 per month. Landlord should have registered the apartment as rent stabilized after rent-controlled tenant moved out. But tenant's initial rent was lawful and later rent increases were in line with legal rent-stabilized rent increases. So there was no overcharge.

Goldfeder v. Cenpark Realty: Index No. 155687/16, NYLJ No. 1555898403 (Sup. Ct. NY; 4/5/19; Kennedy, J)