Bill Text: NY S06770 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Excludes tenant-shareholders in cooperative housing corporations from certain housing provisions, fixing certain unintended effects of the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 10-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - REFERRED TO JUDICIARY [S06770 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S06770-Introduced.html



                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          6770

                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                     October 9, 2019
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen.  LIU  --  read  twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules

        AN ACT to amend the general obligations law, the real property law,  and
          the  real property actions and proceedings law, in relation to exclud-
          ing  tenant-shareholders  in  cooperative  housing  corporations  from
          certain housing provisions

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1-a of section  7-108  of  the
     2  general  obligations law, as added by section 25 of part M of chapter 36
     3  of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
     4    (a) No deposit or advance shall exceed the amount of one month's  rent
     5  under  such  contract,  except in dwelling units which are a cooperative
     6  housing corporation and where the tenant would become a  shareholder  of
     7  such dwelling unit.
     8    § 2. Section 227-f of the real property law is amended by adding a new
     9  subdivision 3 to read as follows:
    10    3.  This  section shall not apply to a prospective tenant of a cooper-
    11  ative housing corporation, where such prospective tenant would become  a
    12  shareholder of such cooperative housing corporation.
    13    §  3.  Subdivisions 1 and 2 of section 238-a of the real property law,
    14  as added by section 10 of part M of chapter 36 of the laws of 2019,  are
    15  amended to read as follows:
    16    1. (a) Except in instances where statutes or regulations provide for a
    17  payment,  fee  or charge, no landlord, lessor, sub-lessor or grantor may
    18  demand any payment, fee, or charge for the processing, review or accept-
    19  ance of an application, or demand  any  other  payment,  fee  or  charge
    20  before  or at the beginning of the tenancy, except background checks and
    21  credit checks as provided by paragraph (b) of this subdivision, provided
    22  that this subdivision shall  not  apply  to  entrance  fees  charged  by
    23  continuing  care  retirement  communities  licensed  pursuant to article

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD13690-04-9

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     1  forty-six or forty-six-A of  the  public  health  law,  assisted  living
     2  providers  licensed pursuant to article forty-six-B of the public health
     3  law, adult care facilities licensed pursuant to  article  seven  of  the
     4  social  services law, senior residential communities that have submitted
     5  an offering plan to the attorney general, or not-for-profit  independent
     6  retirement  communities  that  offer personal emergency response, house-
     7  keeping, transportation and meals to their residents.   Nothing in  this
     8  paragraph  shall prohibit a cooperative housing corporation from demand-
     9  ing from a prospective tenant any payment, fee or charge which is neces-
    10  sary to compensate a  managing  agent  for  the  processing,  review  or
    11  acceptance  of such prospective tenant's application where such prospec-
    12  tive tenant would become  a  shareholder  of  such  cooperative  housing
    13  corporation.
    14    (b) A landlord, lessor, sub-lessor or grantor may charge a fee or fees
    15  to  reimburse  costs  associated  with conducting a background check and
    16  credit check, provided the cumulative fee or fees for such checks is  no
    17  more  than  the  actual cost of the background check and credit check or
    18  twenty dollars, whichever is less, and the landlord, lessor,  sub-lessor
    19  or  grantor shall waive the fee or fees if the potential tenant provides
    20  a copy of a background check or credit check conducted within  the  past
    21  thirty days. The landlord, lessor, sub-lessor or grantor may not collect
    22  the  fee  or  fees  unless  the  landlord, lessor, sub-lessor or grantor
    23  provides the potential tenant with a copy of  the  background  check  or
    24  credit  check  and the receipt or invoice from the entity conducting the
    25  background check or credit check.   Notwithstanding  the  provisions  of
    26  this  paragraph, a cooperative housing corporation shall be permitted to
    27  charge a fee or fees to reimburse costs  associated  with  conducting  a
    28  background check and credit check in excess of twenty dollars, where the
    29  potential  tenant would become a shareholder of such cooperative housing
    30  corporation, provided the cumulative fee or fees for such checks  is  no
    31  more than the actual cost of such background check and/or credit check.
    32    2.  No landlord, lessor, sub-lessor or grantor may demand any payment,
    33  fee, or charge for the late payment of rent unless the payment  of  rent
    34  has  not  been  made  within  five days of the date it was due, and such
    35  payment, fee, or charge shall not exceed fifty dollars or  five  percent
    36  of  the  monthly  rent,  whichever is less, except that this subdivision
    37  shall not apply to a tenant of a cooperative housing corporation,  where
    38  such  tenant  is  also  a shareholder of such cooperative housing corpo-
    39  ration.
    40    § 4. Section 702 of the real property actions and proceedings law,  as
    41  added  by  section  11  of  part M of chapter 36 of the laws of 2019, is
    42  amended to read as follows:
    43    § 702. Rent in a residential dwelling. In a proceeding relating  to  a
    44  residential  dwelling  or  housing  accommodation, the term "rent" shall
    45  mean the monthly or weekly amount charged in consideration for  the  use
    46  and occupation of a dwelling pursuant to a written or oral rental agree-
    47  ment.  No  fees, charges or penalties other than rent may be sought in a
    48  summary  proceeding  pursuant  to  this  article,  notwithstanding   any
    49  language  to  the contrary in any lease or rental agreement, except that
    50  such additional fees, charges or penalties may be sought  in  a  summary
    51  proceeding brought by a cooperative housing corporation against a tenant
    52  who is a shareholder of such cooperative housing corporation.
    53    §  5. Section 234 of the real property law, as amended by section 8 of
    54  part M of chapter 36 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
    55    § 234.  Right  to  recover  attorneys'  fees  in  actions  or  summary
    56  proceedings  arising  out  of leases of residential property. Whenever a

        S. 6770                             3

     1  lease of residential property shall provide that in any action or summa-
     2  ry proceeding the landlord may recover attorneys' fees  and/or  expenses
     3  incurred  as  the  result  of  the  failure of the tenant to perform any
     4  covenant  or  agreement contained in such lease, or that amounts paid by
     5  the landlord therefor shall be paid by the tenant  as  additional  rent,
     6  there  shall  be implied in such lease a covenant by the landlord to pay
     7  to the tenant the reasonable attorneys' fees and/or expenses incurred by
     8  the tenant as the result of the failure of the landlord to  perform  any
     9  covenant  or agreement on its part to be performed under the lease or in
    10  the successful defense of any action or summary proceeding commenced  by
    11  the  landlord against the tenant arising out of the lease, and an agree-
    12  ment that such fees and expenses may be recovered as provided by law  in
    13  an  action  commenced  against the landlord or by way of counterclaim in
    14  any action or summary proceeding commenced by the landlord  against  the
    15  tenant.  A landlord may not recover attorneys' fees upon a default judg-
    16  ment. Any waiver of this section shall be void as against public policy.
    17  Nothing in this section shall prohibit a cooperative housing corporation
    18  from recovering attorneys' fees in an action against a tenant where such
    19  tenant is also a shareholder of such cooperative housing corporation.
    20    § 6. Subdivision (d) of section 235-e of the  real  property  law,  as
    21  added  by  section  9  of  part  M of chapter 36 of the laws of 2019, is
    22  amended to read as follows:
    23    (d) If a lessor, or an agent of a lessor authorized to  receive  rent,
    24  fails to receive payment for rent within five days of the date specified
    25  in  a  lease  agreement,  such lessor or agent shall send the lessee, by
    26  certified mail, a written notice stating the  failure  to  receive  such
    27  rent  payment.  The  failure  of  a  lessor,  or any agent of the lessor
    28  authorized to receive rent, to provide a lessee with a written notice of
    29  the non-payment of rent may be used as an affirmative  defense  by  such
    30  lessee  in  an  eviction  proceeding  based  on the non-payment of rent.
    31  Notwithstanding the provisions of this subdivision, a lessor which is  a
    32  cooperative  housing corporation may provide for a deadline in excess of
    33  five days and a method of sending notice other than by  certified  mail,
    34  as long as such deadline and method of sending notice is provided for in
    35  the  proprietary  lease, and the lessee is a shareholder of such cooper-
    36  ative housing corporation.
    37    § 7. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to actions
    38  and proceedings commenced on or after such effective date.
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