NY State Renters’ Rights and Tenant Protections

If you rent an apartment in New York, you have some of the strongest protections in the country: a landlord has to keep the unit livable, cannot take more than one month’s rent as a security deposit, must give written notice before raising rent by 5% or more, cannot evict you without going to court, and cannot punish you for complaining. New York renters’ rights sit in the state’s Real Property Law and General Obligations Law, and were significantly expanded by the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019.¹ They apply across housing types, including multi-family buildings, single-family rentals, and manufactured home parks.²

Your Apartment Must Be Livable

Every residential lease in New York, written or verbal, carries an automatic guarantee that the apartment is fit for people to live in. This is the implied warranty of habitability under Real Property Law Section 235-b, and you cannot waive it. A lease clause saying you accept the unit “as is” has no legal effect if the apartment has conditions that endanger your life, health, or safety.³ The warranty covers common areas too: hallways, stairwells, laundry rooms.

Heat and hot water are the most concrete parts of this. From October 1 through May 31, between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., indoor temperatures must reach at least 68°F whenever the outside temperature drops below 55°F. Between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., indoor temperatures must be at least 62°F regardless of what it’s doing outside. Hot water must be available year-round at a minimum of 120°F at the tap.⁴ Habitability also covers structural safety, working plumbing and electrical systems, and freedom from vermin.

When conditions slip, you can bring the issue to Housing Court and ask for a rent reduction proportional to how much the problem affected livability. Judges weigh severity, how long the condition lasted, and whether you notified the landlord. Documentation is what wins these cases: photos, written complaints to the landlord, and 311 or code enforcement complaints all build a record.⁵

Security Deposit Limits and Refunds

Under General Obligations Law Section 7-108, a landlord cannot collect a security deposit greater than one month’s rent. That cap holds regardless of your credit score, pets, or anything else.⁶ The deposit must sit in a trust account at a New York bank, separate from the landlord’s own funds.

When you move out, the landlord has 14 days to either return the full deposit or send you an itemized statement explaining every dollar withheld. The statement must describe specific damage beyond ordinary wear and tear. Miss that 14-day window and the landlord loses the right to keep any portion of the deposit.⁶

You also have the right to request a pre-move-out inspection. The landlord has to tell you about this right in writing within a reasonable time after either side gives notice to end the tenancy. The walkthrough lets you see what the landlord considers damage and fix it before any deduction. If a landlord willfully violates these rules, they can be liable for punitive damages up to twice the deposit amount on top of your actual losses.⁶

Notice Before a Rent Increase

Real Property Law Section 226-c requires landlords to give you advance written notice before raising rent by 5% or more, or before deciding not to renew your tenancy. How much notice depends on how long you’ve lived there (or the length of your current lease, whichever is longer):

Less than one year: 30 days.
One to two years: 60 days.
Two years or more: 90 days.

Until the landlord properly delivers that notice, you only owe your current rent. Courts enforce the timing strictly, and a rent increase served without adequate notice can be invalidated.⁷

If You Have a Rent-Stabilized Apartment

Rent-stabilized tenants have a legal right to a lease renewal, and the landlord must offer it between 150 and 90 days before the current lease expires. If the landlord fails to offer one, you can file a complaint with the state’s Homes and Community Renewal agency.⁸ Allowable increases for stabilized units are set each year by the applicable Rent Guidelines Board, and in recent years those increases have ranged from 0% to small single-digit percentages.⁹ Market-rate tenants have no automatic right to renew but still get the notice protections above.

Who Can Live With You

Real Property Law Section 235-f makes it illegal for landlords to restrict occupancy to only the named tenants and their immediate family. If you’re the sole tenant on a lease, you have the right to live with your immediate family, one additional occupant, and that occupant’s dependent children, as long as you or your spouse keep the apartment as a primary residence.¹⁰

On leases with two or more named tenants, the total number of tenants and occupants (not counting dependent children) cannot exceed the number of named tenants. You must tell the landlord the name of any new occupant within 30 days of their move-in, or within 30 days of the landlord asking. The occupant doesn’t gain tenancy rights and cannot stay on if the named tenant moves out, unless the landlord agrees in writing. Any lease clause that tries to override these rules is void.¹⁰

Eviction Must Go Through Court

New York flatly prohibits self-help evictions. A landlord cannot change your locks, shut off utilities, remove your belongings, or physically block you from your apartment. The only legal path is through court: the landlord files a case, gets a judgment of possession, and has a warrant of eviction executed by a sheriff, marshal, or constable.¹¹ A landlord who skips this process faces potential criminal charges and civil liability.

Even after a court issues a warrant, you still have time. The warrant has to be served on you, and at least 14 days must pass before law enforcement can carry out the physical eviction. That window exists to let you move or, in some cases, resolve the underlying issue, such as paying overdue rent.

Protection From Retaliation

Real Property Law Section 223-b makes it illegal for a landlord to punish you for using your rights. A landlord cannot evict you, raise your rent, or cut your services because you filed a good-faith complaint with a government agency about building conditions, took legal action to enforce your lease or the warranty of habitability, or joined a tenant organization.¹²

The law builds in a strong presumption. If the landlord takes any of those adverse actions within one year of your protected activity, courts presume retaliation, and the landlord has to prove a legitimate, non-retaliatory reason.¹² A court finding of retaliation lets you stay in your unit and recover damages. The protection applies equally to written leases and month-to-month tenancies.

Discrimination Is Illegal

The federal Fair Housing Act bars landlords from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, or disability.¹³ New York’s Human Rights Law adds more protected categories, including age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, and lawful source of income. That last one matters: refusing a tenant because they’ll pay with a Section 8 voucher or other housing assistance is illegal in New York.

If you have a disability, the Fair Housing Act requires landlords to make reasonable accommodations when necessary for equal enjoyment of the housing. A “no pets” building must allow an assistance animal when supported by a medical provider. Landlords also have to permit reasonable structural modifications, like grab bars, although you may be responsible for the cost and for restoring the unit when you move out.¹⁴ Narrow federal exemptions exist for owner-occupied buildings with four or fewer units and some private sales, but state and local laws usually cover what the federal exemptions miss.

Landlord Entry and Privacy

You have a right to quiet enjoyment of your apartment, which limits when and how a landlord can enter. New York does not have a single statute spelling out exact notice periods. In practice, courts and housing authorities generally treat 24 hours as reasonable notice for inspections or showings, and roughly one week for scheduling non-emergency repairs. Entry should be during normal business hours unless you agree otherwise.

A landlord who repeatedly enters without notice, enters at unreasonable hours, or uses access rights to harass you may be violating the covenant of quiet enjoyment and the lease itself. You can seek a court order to stop the behavior. If the pattern is severe enough, it can amount to constructive eviction, giving you grounds to terminate the lease and pursue damages.

Genuine emergencies are the exception. A fire, burst pipe, or gas leak lets the landlord enter without notice to address the immediate threat. Once the emergency is handled, normal notice rules apply to any follow-up work.

Breaking a Lease for Military Service

Active-duty service members can break a residential lease early under the federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. This covers tenants who entered military service after signing the lease, received deployment orders for 90 days or more, received permanent change of station orders (including retirement), or were called to active duty as a member of the National Guard or Reserves. You must give the landlord written notice and a copy of your military orders. Verbal notice does not count.

The landlord cannot charge an early termination penalty. Prepaid rent must be refunded for the unused period, and the security deposit, less legitimate damage deductions, must be returned within 30 days of the termination date. These rights override any conflicting lease terms.

Lead Paint Disclosure in Pre-1978 Buildings

If your unit was built before 1978, federal law requires the landlord to disclose known lead-based paint hazards before you sign the lease. The landlord has to give you the EPA pamphlet “Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home,” share any available records or reports about lead paint in the building, and include a lead warning statement in the lease. Signed copies have to be kept for at least three years.¹⁵ A few exemptions apply, including housing confirmed lead-free by a certified inspector, short-term rentals of 100 days or less, zero-bedroom units like studio lofts (unless a child under six will live there), and senior or disability housing without young children in residence.

1
New York State Senate. New York State Senate Bill 2019-S6458
2
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Code RPP – Landlord and Tenant
3
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Law 235-b – Warranty of Habitability
4
Division of Housing and Community Renewal. Fact Sheet 15 – Heat and Hot Water
5
New York State Attorney General. Legal Services and Code Enforcement
6
New York State Senate. New York General Obligations Law 7-108 – Deposits Made by Tenants of Non-Rent Stabilized Dwelling Units
7
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Code 226-C – Notice of Rent Increase or Non-Renewal of Residential Tenancy
8
Homes and Community Renewal. Leases – Security Deposits, Roommates, Sublets, and More
9
Rent Guidelines Board. Leases FAQs
10
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Law 235-F – Unlawful Restrictions on Occupancy
11
Homes and Community Renewal. Eviction
12
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Law 223-b – Retaliation by Landlord Against Tenant
13
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Housing Discrimination Under the Fair Housing Act
14
U.S. Department of Justice. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
15
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Real Estate Disclosures about Potential Lead Hazards