Q: My husband and I moved right into a seventh-floor rental condominium in a prewar constructing in Riverdale final fall. The constructing has one elevator, which was changed just some years in the past, nevertheless it has been breaking down at the very least as soon as per week since December. We’re ageing up towards 70, and with an older canine within the condominium, seven flights up and down just a few instances a day is taking a toll. Can we break our two-year lease and never be held to the settlement primarily based on this ongoing situation?
A: You may have a number of choices value exploring. In New York State, seniors have sure “special rights” in relation to renting residences. For instance, relying on the place you see your self dwelling subsequent, tenants who’re at the very least 62 years outdated could terminate their lease with out penalty in the event that they’re shifting right into a well being care facility, senior housing complicated or authorities sponsored housing, mentioned Andrew Scherer, a professor of legislation at New York Legislation Faculty and the writer of “Residential Landlord-Tenant Legislation in New York.”
As a result of the defective elevator has created a well being hazard, you additionally might probably break your lease and declare that you’ve got been “constructively evicted,” Mr. Scherer mentioned. In response to Cornell Legislation Faculty’s Authorized Data Institute, constructive eviction might be claimed in courtroom when a tenant has moved out of a rental unit over a difficulty that brought about the unit to turn into unlivable, and the owner has did not resolve the issue regardless of being notified.
Mr. Scherer famous that the owner is legally obligated to to relet the condominium if you happen to depart earlier than the lease ends. “The tenant won’t be responsible for lease for the rest of the lease if the owner both relets the condominium or fails to take affordable steps to relet,” he mentioned, although he urged consulting an legal professional earlier than pursuing any authorized choice.
When you select to remain, there are different routes you could possibly take. Failure to maintain the elevator functioning “is a breach of the owner’s obligation to take care of the residence,” Mr. Scherer mentioned. So you could possibly be entitled to a discount of lease for the months you’ve gone with out it working correctly. You additionally might band along with your neighbors and kind a tenants’ affiliation to “begin a authorized continuing to acquire a courtroom order to pressure the owner to repair the issue,” he mentioned. You would do that alone, too, however having extra folks on board will solely assist your probabilities.
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