No Proof Apartment Was Fraudulently Deregulated

Tenant complained of rent overcharge and claimed that her apartment had been improperly deregulated. The DRA ruled against tenant, who appealed and lost. Tenant claimed that landlord had fraudulently deregulated the apartment before the base rent date. But the DHCR found that there was no fraud. Although a prior court decision involving landlord and tenant said that there were issues of fact concerning individual apartment improvements (IAIs) to the apartment that could be investigated by the DHCR, there was no finding of fraud by the court. A pre-base date increase in rent alone didn't indicate fraud. So the 2005-2006 pre-base date rent increase from $749 to over $2,000 wasn't, by itself, fraudulent. Landlord submitted sufficient proof of IAIs. There was also insufficient difference between registered rents and lease rents to warrant a finding of fraud. And omission of annual registrations in 2007 and 2008 didn't prove fraud. Landlord produced a rent-stabilized lease covering 2007, and the apartment was vacant in 2008. By 2009, the apartment was deregulated. 

Simmers: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket No. EO410050RT (3/27/17) [11-pg. doc.]