New York Landlord-Tenant Laws: Rent Rules, Eviction, and Notice

New York landlord-tenant laws combine state statutes, New York City codes, and federal rules to give residential renters some of the strongest protections in the country, while setting clear obligations on landlords for deposits, habitability, notice, and eviction. Many of these rules cannot be waived by a lease, even one both parties signed.

What Has to Be in the Lease

A lease intended to last longer than one year must be in writing to be enforceable. That comes from New York’s Statute of Frauds, which treats oral agreements for long-term property use as void unless reduced to a signed document.¹ Month-to-month arrangements can be oral, though a written agreement heads off predictable disputes about what was actually promised.

Several disclosures must accompany a residential lease:

For any building constructed before 1978, federal law requires disclosure of known lead-based paint hazards along with an approved informational pamphlet.²
Every residential lease must include a conspicuous notice, in bold type, stating whether the building has a maintained and working sprinkler system.³
In New York City, landlords of multiple dwellings must give each new tenant a form showing the building’s bedbug infestation history for the previous year, including which units were affected and whether eradication measures were taken.⁴

For rent-stabilized apartments, the landlord must return a signed copy of a renewal lease to the tenant within 30 days of receiving it. There is no equivalent statewide rule for non-regulated units, so tenants there should insist on a signed copy at or shortly after signing.

Security Deposit Rules

Security deposits are capped at one month’s rent for most residential units. A landlord cannot demand a larger deposit, last month’s rent, or any other upfront payment beyond that single month.⁵ Seasonal-use units and owner-occupied co-ops are exceptions, but for the vast majority of renters, one month is the hard ceiling.

The deposit remains the tenant’s money. The landlord holds it in trust and cannot mix it with personal funds. If the deposit is placed in a bank, the landlord must notify the tenant in writing with the bank’s name, address, and the amount. Buildings with six or more residential units require an interest-bearing account. The landlord may retain one percent of the interest annually as an administrative fee; the rest belongs to the tenant and must either be held in trust or paid out annually.⁶

After a tenant moves out, the landlord has 14 days to return the deposit along with an itemized statement of any deductions. Deductions are permitted only for damage beyond normal wear and tear. Miss the 14-day deadline, or fail to itemize, and the landlord forfeits the right to keep any portion of the deposit.⁵

Late Fees and the Five-Day Grace Period

Under Real Property Law § 238-a, tenants get a five-day grace period before any late fee can be charged. Once rent is more than five days overdue, the maximum late fee is $50 or five percent of the monthly rent, whichever is less. Lease clauses that impose a larger fee are unenforceable. Landlords violate this rule regularly, and tenants often don’t push back.

The Warranty of Habitability

Every residential landlord in New York, whether the lease is written or oral, is bound by a warranty of habitability. The apartment must be fit for human habitation, suitable for the uses the parties intended, and free from conditions that endanger the occupants’ life, health, or safety.⁷ Any lease provision attempting to waive this warranty is void.

A breach happens when a landlord allows conditions to persist that materially affect livability: no heat during winter, no hot water, persistent pest infestations, mold from unaddressed water intrusion, structural defects, lead paint hazards. When conditions go unrepaired, a tenant can seek a rent abatement (a court-ordered reduction in rent proportional to the diminished value of the apartment) or a court order forcing repairs.

The standard is not perfection. A dripping faucet or cosmetic scuff does not qualify. But a landlord cannot avoid responsibility by pointing out that the tenant knew about a problem before moving in. A defect that existed at move-in does not become the tenant’s burden.

Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detectors

Landlords must install and maintain both smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors. Smoke alarms are required inside each sleeping area and on every level of the unit. Carbon monoxide alarms are required in units with fuel-burning appliances or fireplaces, or where combustion gases could migrate into living spaces. New construction requires hardwired alarms with battery backup; existing buildings may use sealed 10-year battery units. Missing or non-functional detectors are a habitability issue, and tenants should document them in writing when they report the problem.

When a Landlord Can Enter

There is no single statewide statute setting notice for landlord entry. Rules diverge sharply between New York City and the rest of the state.

In New York City, an administrative rule governs the process. Routine inspections require at least 24 hours’ written notice. Non-emergency repairs or improvements require at least one week of written advance notice. Emergency repairs, such as a gas leak or burst pipe, require no advance notice. Entry is limited to 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays, and weekend or holiday access requires either tenant agreement or an emergency.⁸

Outside the city, entry protections come mostly from the lease itself and the common-law right to quiet enjoyment. For apartments covered by the good cause eviction law, the statute requires reasonable notice of at least one week before entry to show the apartment or make repairs.⁹ A landlord who enters without notice or uses access to harass a tenant can face legal liability.

Retaliation Is Prohibited

Under Real Property Law § 223-b, a landlord cannot evict, refuse to renew a lease, or substantially change the terms of a tenancy because the tenant exercised specific legal rights.¹⁰ The three protected triggers are:

Filing a good-faith complaint with the landlord or a government agency about violations of health, safety, or housing codes.
Taking action to secure rights under the lease, the warranty of habitability, or any housing-related law.
Participating in or forming a tenants’ association.

“Substantial alteration” is defined broadly and includes refusing to renew a lease, offering a renewal with an unreasonable rent increase, or cutting services. When a court finds retaliation, it must rule in the tenant’s favor and can award damages, attorney’s fees, and injunctive relief.¹⁰ The law applies to all residential rentals except owner-occupied buildings with fewer than four units.

Fair Housing and Discrimination

Federal and state law both prohibit housing discrimination, and New York’s protections go well beyond the federal floor. The federal Fair Housing Act bars discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, and familial status. The New York State Human Rights Law adds age, marital status, sexual orientation, and military status. New York City adds more still, including lawful source of income, so a landlord generally cannot refuse a tenant solely because they plan to pay with a housing voucher.

Discrimination is not always overt. A landlord who advertises an apartment as “no kids,” quotes a higher rent to applicants of a particular national origin, or refuses a reasonable accommodation for a disability violates the law even without stating a discriminatory motive. Federal rules also require landlords to make reasonable accommodations for assistance animals, including emotional support animals, regardless of a no-pet policy. The animal must serve a disability-related need, and the landlord may request documentation of the disability if the need is not apparent.¹¹

Rent Control and Rent Stabilization

New York operates two distinct systems of rent regulation, and confusing the two is one of the most common tenant mistakes.

Rent Control

Rent control is the older, more restrictive system. It applies to residential buildings built before February 1, 1947, in municipalities that have not declared an end to the postwar housing emergency. In New York City, a tenant generally qualifies only if they (or a qualifying successor) have been in continuous occupancy since before July 1, 1971.¹² Because of these stringent requirements, the pool of rent-controlled units has been shrinking for decades. When a rent-controlled apartment is vacated, it typically transitions to rent stabilization or becomes deregulated.

Rent Stabilization

Rent stabilization covers far more apartments and is the system most regulated tenants actually live under. In New York City, it generally applies to buildings with six or more units built between February 1, 1947, and January 1, 1974. Newer buildings can be covered if the owner received tax benefits through programs like 421-a or J-51.¹³ Outside the city, stabilization extends to buildings with six or more units in certain municipalities under the Emergency Tenant Protection Act.

Each year, the local Rent Guidelines Board sets the maximum percentage by which landlords can raise rent on one-year and two-year renewals, after considering property taxes, fuel costs, and labor expenses. Tenants in stabilized apartments have the right to renew their lease automatically, and landlords can refuse renewal only under narrow circumstances defined by the Division of Housing and Community Renewal.

What Changed in 2019

The Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019 reshaped rent regulation. It eliminated high-rent vacancy decontrol, so apartments can no longer be removed from stabilization simply because rent exceeds a threshold or the tenant’s income rises above a set level. It abolished the 20 percent vacancy bonus landlords previously collected when a stabilized tenant moved out. Major Capital Improvement increases are now temporary rather than permanent, expiring after 30 years, and are capped at two percent of the tenant’s current rent annually. Individual Apartment Improvement increases are limited to $15,000 in improvements over a 15-year period and also expire after 30 years. Tenants now have six years to file a rent overcharge complaint.¹⁴

Succession Rights

When a tenant in a rent-regulated apartment dies or permanently moves out, a qualifying family member who lived in the apartment may take over the lease. The family member must have used the unit as their primary home for at least two years immediately before the tenant’s departure. That drops to one year if the successor is a senior citizen or a person with a disability.¹⁵ “Family member” is defined broadly and includes unmarried partners who can show the emotional and financial interdependence that characterizes a family.

Good Cause Eviction

The good cause eviction law, Real Property Law Article 6A, applies to covered apartments in New York City and a growing list of municipalities that have opted in, including Albany, Rochester, Ithaca, Kingston, and Poughkeepsie.⁹

Where the law applies, a landlord cannot evict a tenant or refuse to renew a lease without proving a specific good cause. Recognized grounds include nonpayment of rent, lease violations (after a written 10-day notice to cure), nuisance behavior, illegal use of the apartment, refusal to grant reasonable access for repairs, and the landlord’s own-use recovery. The law also caps rent increases: an increase above five percent (or a locally set standard, whichever applies) is presumed unreasonable unless the landlord can justify it with evidence of increased operating costs.⁹

The law does not cover every apartment. Key exemptions:

Small landlords who own 10 or fewer total units statewide in New York City (other localities may define this differently).
Owner-occupied buildings with 10 or fewer units (four or fewer in Albany).
Rent-regulated apartments, which are covered by separate systems.
Buildings issued a certificate of occupancy on or after January 1, 2009.
High-rent apartments, co-ops, condos, and income-restricted housing.

Tenants in covered apartments get extra protection against personal-use evictions: a landlord cannot recover an apartment for their own use if the tenant is 65 or older or has a disability.⁹

How Eviction Works

Eviction in New York is a court process. No landlord can remove a tenant through self-help: no lock changes, no shutting off utilities, no removing belongings. Every eviction goes through a summary proceeding under Article 7 of the Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law.

Nonpayment

Before filing a nonpayment case, the landlord must serve a written demand for rent giving at least 14 days to pay or vacate.¹⁶ This notice is a prerequisite, not a formality. If the tenant pays the full amount owed during the 14-day window, the landlord cannot proceed. Even after a case is filed, paying what’s owed stops the eviction, up until the warrant of eviction is executed.

Holdover

A holdover case is brought when a tenant stays past the end of a lease or violates a substantial term. Common grounds include creating a persistent nuisance affecting other residents, using the apartment for illegal activity, or remaining after a lease expires without renewal. For lease violations, the landlord usually must first serve a notice to cure giving the tenant time to fix the problem. If the violation continues, the landlord serves a notice of termination before filing in court. In some regulated apartments, a landlord can seek to recover the unit for personal or immediate family use, but this requires court approval and is subject to further restrictions under the good cause eviction law.

Ending a Tenancy: Notice Rules

The notice required to end a tenancy depends on the type of tenancy and, sometimes, how long the tenant has lived there.

For a month-to-month tenancy outside New York City, the tenant must give at least one month’s notice before the end of a rental period. The statute does not give the landlord a parallel one-month termination right for residential tenancies; landlords of covered units must rely on good cause or another legal ground. Inside New York City, similar notice periods apply, and rent-stabilized tenants get an added protection: the landlord must offer a renewal lease between 90 and 150 days before the current lease expires.

For tenants on a fixed-term lease that is expiring, the obligations vary. In apartments covered by good cause eviction, the landlord must give written notice if they intend not to renew or plan to raise the rent above the applicable threshold, and the notice must state the reason and legal basis. In non-regulated apartments not covered by good cause, the lease terms and any applicable local rules govern.

Early Termination for Seniors, Disability, and Military

Seniors and Individuals With Disabilities

Tenants who are 62 or older, or who have a qualifying disability, can break a residential lease early if they are moving to an adult care facility, a residential health care facility, a senior housing project, or subsidized housing. The tenant delivers written notice, and the termination takes effect no earlier than 30 days after the next rent payment following delivery. The notice must include documentation of the qualifying move, such as proof of admission to a facility.¹⁷ A senior moving in with a family member for at least six months also qualifies, provided a physician’s certification and a notarized statement from the family member accompany the notice.

Active-Duty Servicemembers

The federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act lets active-duty military personnel, reservists, and National Guard members terminate a residential lease early without penalty when they receive qualifying orders. Qualifying events include entering active duty during the lease term, receiving deployment orders for at least 90 days, getting permanent change of station orders, or being ordered into military housing.¹⁸

The servicemember delivers written notice along with a copy of the orders. Termination takes effect 30 days after the next rent payment due date following delivery. The landlord cannot impose an early termination penalty, must refund any prepaid rent for the period after termination, and must return the security deposit (minus legitimate damage deductions) within the timeframes required by state law.

1
New York State Senate. New York General Obligations Law GOB 5-703 – Conveyances and Contracts Concerning Real Property Required to be in Writing
2
US EPA. Lead-Based Paint Disclosure Rule (Section 1018 of Title X)
3
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Law 231-A – Sprinkler System Notice in Residential Leases
4
New York City Administrative Code. New York City Administrative Code 27-2018.1 – Notice of Bedbug Infestation History
5
New York State Senate. New York General Obligations Law 7-108 – Deposits Made by Tenants of Non-Rent Stabilized Dwelling Units
6
New York State Senate. New York General Obligations Law 7-103 – Money Deposited or Advanced as Security
7
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Law 235-B – Warranty of Habitability
8
New York City Rules. Rules of the City of New York 25-101 – Owners Right of Access and Requirements for Notification
9
New York State Attorney General. New York State Good Cause Eviction Law
10
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Law 223-B – Retaliation by Landlord Against Tenant
11
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Assistance Animals
12
Homes and Community Renewal. Rent Control
13
Rent Guidelines Board. Tax Abatements and Exemptions FAQs
14
Homes and Community Renewal. Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019 Overview
15
Homes and Community Renewal. Succession
16
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 711 – Grounds Where Landlord-Tenant Relationship Exists
17
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Law 227-A – Termination of Residential Lease by Senior Citizens or Individuals With a Disability
18
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 USC 3955 – Termination of Residential or Motor Vehicle Leases