The Affordable New York Housing Program (formerly "421-a"): An Overview On April 10, 2017, Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law a renewal and extension of the critical property tax exemption program historically known as "421-a" which is to be re-named the...
Industry Updates
Governor Cuomo Issues 421-A Replacement Bill
"Affordable Housing New York Program" Set To Resolve Construction Wage Dispute And Incentize Mixed-Income Projects February 16, 2017 By Daniel M. Bernstein, Of Counsel, Rosenberg & Estis, P.C. On January 15, 2017, Governor Andrew Cuomo introduced a 421-a...
Proposed New §421-a Legislation Announcement
Dear Clients: As you may have heard, Governor Cuomo has introduced a bill to enact what he calls the "Affordable Housing New York Program". The bill proposes to extend tax exemption benefits to new residential developments which meet construction wage and...
New §421-a Policy at City Department of Finance
Dear Clients: The New York City Department of Finance ("DoF") has apparently begun auditing its records to determine whether a Final Certificate of Eligibility ("FCE") has been issued for all properties currently receiving Real Property Tax Law ("RPTL") §421-a tax...
N.Y. Governor Cuomo Signs Bill to Fine Illegal Airbnb Hosts
On Friday, October 21, 2016, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo signed into law a tough new anti-Airbnb measure which significantly alters the landscape of short-term apartment rentals in New York City. The new law makes it illegal for anyone to advertise the use of an...
Decision Involving a Yellowstone Injunction
In this decision involving a Yellowstone injunction, the Appellate Division, by its directed modification of the order appealed from, recognized that a claim for a declaratory judgment with respect to the lease violations at issue should be set forth in the complaint...
New Nonresidential Tenant Harassment Law
Effective September 26, 2016, a new law entitled "Nonresidential Tenant Harassment" became effective. This law protects tenants who can prove their Landlord's offensive act or omission (including improper use of force, repeated service interruptions, commencement of...
Update on Altman v 285 W. Fourth, LLC
Last year we reported on the Appellate Division, First Department's decision in Altman v 285 W. Fourth LLC. In that case, the AD held, for the first time that, in order for a rent stabilized apartment to have been high rent vacancy deregulated in 2005, the last legal...
Mayor De Blasio Signs “Commercial Tenant Harassment” Law
New York City landlords should take note that on June 28, 2016, Mayor de Blasio signed into law a bill passed by the City Council which outlaws "commercial tenant harassment," i.e. the "harassment" by landlords of small businesses and other non-residential tenants...
Mayor’s Affordable Housing Plan Approved by City Council
After two years of community planning and outreach by the Department of City Planning and the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) and several months of robust public review, on March 22, the New York City Council approved the most significant...