Rent Demand That Didn't Reflect Amounts Owed Was Defective

Landlord sued to evict tenant for nonpayment of rent. Tenant asked the court to dismiss the case, claiming that the rent demand was incorrect. The court ruled for tenant. The rent demand included monthly rent amounts that were less than the last rent registered with the DHCR. But landlord was charging tenant a monthly rent higher than the last registered rent and subtracting certain payments to arrive at the amounts in the demand. The court found that landlord failed to properly reflect the terms of an earlier court stipulation that not only discontinued the prior case but left tenant with a credit of $626 through September 2022. The credit along with additional payments made during the months in question created a significant disparity between the sums that were owed by tenant and the sums sought by landlord in the rent demand.

Garrison LLC v. Jimenez: 2025 NY Slip Op 31414(U)(Civ. Ct. Bronx; 4/11/25; Lach, J)