NY Summary Eviction: Notice of Petition and Petition

In a New York summary eviction, the Notice of Petition and Petition are the two documents that open the case: the Petition sets out the landlord’s legal grounds for removal, and the Notice of Petition tells the tenant when and where to appear. Both are filed together with the court, but neither can be filed until the landlord has already served a predicate notice on the tenant. Get the content, issuance, service, or timing wrong on either paper, and the court will dismiss the proceeding.

Serve the Predicate Notice First

New York does not let a landlord file eviction papers cold. Before the Petition and Notice of Petition can be filed, the tenant must have been served with a written notice appropriate to the type of case, and the notice period must have expired.

Nonpayment: The 14-Day Rent Demand

If the case is about unpaid rent, you must serve a written rent demand giving the tenant at least 14 days to pay or move out.¹ The Petition cannot be filed until that 14-day window closes without payment. The demand must be served using the same methods required for the Notice of Petition and Petition themselves.

Under recent amendments, the 14-day demand must also state whether the property is covered by New York’s Good Cause Eviction Law, and if it is exempt, explain why.¹ Leaving that language out can be grounds for dismissal.

Holdover: Written Termination Notice

If the tenant is holding over after the lease or you are ending a month-to-month tenancy, the required notice period turns on how long the tenant has occupied the unit:²

30 days if the tenant has been in the unit less than a year and has no lease of at least a year.
60 days for occupancy or a lease term of one to two years.
90 days for occupancy or a lease term of two years or more.

The notice must be served by someone over 18 who is not a party to the case.³ One trap to watch: accepting rent after serving the termination notice can be treated as creating a new tenancy, and the case can be dismissed.

What the Petition Must Contain

The Petition is the pleading that tells the court why you want the tenant removed. It must be verified, meaning you sign a sworn statement that the contents are true.⁴ An attorney may verify it on your behalf, even in the same county.⁵

The statute requires five elements:⁵

Your interest in the property. Whether you are the owner, managing agent, or hold another legal stake.
The tenant’s interest and relationship to you. For example, a month-to-month tenant under a written lease.
A description of the premises. Apartment number, floor, and building address, not just the street address.
The facts supporting your case. For a nonpayment case, that means the rent amount, the period owed, and that the 14-day demand was served and not answered.
The relief requested. Usually a judgment of possession. Back rent and fair-value compensation for the post-lease period can be requested too, but only if the Notice of Petition includes a demand for that judgment.

The Petition must also state whether the property is covered by the Good Cause Eviction Law and, if exempt, why.⁵ In Albany, Newburgh, Syracuse, and Schenectady, the Petition must also show compliance with local rental registration requirements.

Standardized petition forms, with separate versions for nonpayment and holdover, are available from the New York State Unified Court System.⁶ You can also purchase forms at a legal stationery store or have an attorney draft custom papers.⁷ Using the court’s forms is the easiest way to hit every required element.

What the Notice of Petition Must Contain

The Notice of Petition functions like a summons. It tells the tenant when, where, and why to appear. A detail that catches self-represented landlords: you cannot issue this document yourself. Only an attorney, a judge, or the court clerk can issue a Notice of Petition.⁸ Without a lawyer, the clerk issues it when you file.

For a holdover case, the Notice of Petition must state the date, time, and place of the hearing and warn the tenant that failing to appear and raise any defense may bar them from asserting that defense later in another proceeding.⁸ A nonpayment Notice of Petition works differently: it is returnable before the clerk rather than set for a specific hearing date.

In a nonpayment case, if the tenant pays the full amount owed at any point before the hearing, the landlord must accept payment and the case becomes moot.⁸ That right to cure lasts until the hearing begins.

Filing with the Court

Bring the originals to the clerk’s office in the court that covers the property. In New York City, summary eviction proceedings go to Housing Court. Outside the city, they are filed in the local District Court, City Court, or Town or Village Justice Court. Filing in the wrong court results in dismissal, not just delay.

The filing fee in New York City Housing Court is $45.⁹ Fees outside the city vary. The clerk stamps an index number on the papers, keeps the Petition, and returns the stamped Notice of Petition to you for service on the tenant.⁷

Serving the Papers on the Tenant

Service is where cases most often fall apart. The rules on who delivers the papers, how, and when are strict.

Who Can Serve

You cannot serve the papers yourself. The server must be at least 18 and not a party to the case.¹⁰ That can be a friend, an uninvolved relative, or a professional process server. Professional service typically costs $30 to $150 depending on attempts and location.

The Three Methods

New York law allows three delivery methods, attempted in order:¹¹

Personal delivery. Handing the papers directly to the tenant. Service is complete immediately.
Substituted service. If the server can reach the apartment and a person of suitable age and discretion will accept the papers, the server leaves them with that person. Within one day, the server must also mail copies to the tenant by certified or registered mail and by regular first-class mail.
Conspicuous-place service. If no one answers or accepts, the server affixes a copy to a visible part of the property or slides it under the entrance door. The same one-day certified-and-regular mailing rule applies.

The mailing addresses matter. For an individual, copies go to the property itself, plus the tenant’s last known home address if you have it in writing and it differs from the property. If there is no home address on file but you have a work address, the mailing goes there instead.¹¹

Timing by Case Type

The service windows differ, and using the wrong one gets the case thrown out.

For holdover proceedings, the papers must be served at least 10 days and no more than 17 days before the hearing date.¹² Serve too early or too late, and the court loses jurisdiction.

Nonpayment proceedings do not have a fixed hearing date at the start. The Notice of Petition is returnable before the clerk within 10 days after service. If the tenant answers, the clerk sets a trial date 3 to 8 days later. If no answer is filed within the 10 days, the judge can enter a default judgment for the landlord.¹³

File the Affidavit of Service

After delivery, the person who served the papers must complete an Affidavit of Service. It is a sworn statement describing the date, time, location, and method of delivery, signed before a notary.¹⁴ This is the court’s only proof the tenant received proper notice, so vague descriptions can sink the case.

The affidavit must be filed with the court within three days. For personal delivery, the three-day clock runs from the date of delivery. For substituted or conspicuous-place service, it runs from the date of mailing. Service is not legally complete until the affidavit is filed, so even a flawless delivery does not count if the paperwork never reaches the clerk.¹¹

After the Papers Are Served

Once service is complete, the tenant has the right to answer. In a holdover case, the tenant can respond at the hearing, orally or in writing, and raise any legal or equitable defense, including counterclaims. A court can award money to a tenant on a counterclaim if the facts support it.¹⁵ In a nonpayment case, the tenant has 10 days from service to answer; if they do, the clerk schedules a trial within 3 to 8 days.¹³

If the tenant does not answer or appear, the landlord can seek a default judgment. Before any default judgment issues, the landlord must file an affidavit under the federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act stating whether the tenant is on active military duty or that status could not be determined. Filing a false military-status affidavit is a federal crime punishable by up to one year in prison.¹⁶ If the tenant is an active-duty servicemember, the court can stay the proceeding for at least 90 days on request.

1
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 711 – Grounds Where Landlord-Tenant Relationship Exists
2
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Law 226-C – Notification of Renewal or Non-Renewal of Tenancy
3
New York State Unified Court System. Landlord’s Guide to Holdover Eviction Proceedings
4
New York State Unified Court System. Petition – Nonpayment Proceeding
5
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 741 – Contents of Petition
6
New York State Unified Court System. Landlord and Tenant Forms – Statewide
7
New York State Unified Court System. Starting a Case – NY Housing
8
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 731 – Commencement; Notice of Petition
9
New York State Unified Court System. Court Fees in the New York City Housing Court
10
New York State Unified Court System. Landlord’s Guide to Nonpayment Eviction Proceedings
11
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 735 – Manner of Service; Filing; When Service Complete
12
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 733 – Time of Service
13
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 732 – Service of Notice of Petition and Petition in Nonpayment Proceedings
14
New York State Unified Court System. Filing an Affidavit of Service
15
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 743 – Answer
16
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 US Code 3931 – Protection of Servicemembers Against Default Judgments