RPAPL 741: Contents of a NY Eviction Petition

Under New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 741, an eviction petition must be verified and must set out the petitioner’s interest in the property, the respondent’s interest and relationship to the petitioner, a description of the premises, the facts supporting removal, the relief sought, a Good Cause Eviction notice, and, in certain cities, an allegation that the landlord has complied with local rental registration laws.¹ A petition that misses any of these can be dismissed before a judge ever considers whether the tenant should be evicted, so each element deserves attention on the way in and on the way out.

Verification

The statute opens by requiring the petition to be sworn to. The petitioner can verify it personally, or an attorney or agent can verify it under CPLR 3020(d), and an attorney is permitted to verify on information and belief even when the petitioner is in the same county.¹

If the verification is missing or defective, the respondent can treat the pleading as a nullity under CPLR 3022, but only with prompt notice of that election.² Courts often allow the petitioner to file a corrected verification rather than dismiss outright.³ Even so, filing without a proper verification hands the respondent leverage for no reason.

The Petitioner’s Interest in the Property

Subdivision 1 requires the petition to state the petitioner’s legal connection to the premises: owner, lessee, managing agent, or another party authorized under RPAPL 721 to bring the proceeding. The statute does not list categories; it demands a clear statement. Without one, the court cannot confirm standing.

The Respondent’s Interest and How They Are Named

The petition must describe the respondent’s connection to the property and to the petitioner. A month-to-month tenant, a leaseholder, a subtenant, and a squatter each occupy different legal positions, and the type of proceeding available depends on classifying the respondent correctly.

Names matter here. When the landlord knows a respondent’s name, the petition must use it; “John Doe” or “Jane Doe” cannot substitute for a known tenant or co-tenant.⁴ The Doe placeholder is for occupants whose identity the landlord genuinely does not know, such as unauthorized subtenants. A respondent who is improperly named or left off the petition can typically get the case dismissed without prejudice, meaning the landlord refiles and starts over on service.

Description of the Premises

Subdivision 3 calls for a description of the property from which removal is sought. The description has to be specific enough that a marshal or sheriff can identify the exact unit. For a multi-unit building, a street address alone is not sufficient; the petition should include apartment number, floor, and any other identifier that removes doubt about which space is at issue.

A vague or wrong description can cause a marshal to remove the wrong person, and courts have dismissed petitions that could not pinpoint the unit.

Facts Justifying the Eviction

Subdivision 4 requires the facts supporting removal. What suffices depends on whether the case is a nonpayment or a holdover proceeding, and this is where petitions most often fall apart.

Nonpayment

A nonpayment petition must state the total rent owed and break it down by month.⁵ It must also allege that the landlord served a written rent demand before filing. The tenant has 14 days after receiving that written demand to pay before the case can start.⁶ A petition that does not allege a proper demand and expired waiting period gives the court nothing to work with.

Holdover

A holdover petition has to explain why the respondent no longer has a right to remain. Common grounds include an expired lease that was not renewed, a lease violation after notice to cure, or termination of a month-to-month tenancy by a proper notice to quit. The petition should describe the predicate notices that were served and the conduct or circumstances that ended the tenancy. Generic assertions that the tenant has no right to stay do not meet the standard.

Relief Sought

Subdivision 5 requires the petition to say what the petitioner is asking for. That means, at a minimum, a final judgment of possession and a warrant of eviction. The petitioner can also seek a money judgment for unpaid rent, and for any period during which rent was not technically due, the fair value of the respondent’s use and occupancy, provided the notice of petition demands that judgment.

Petitioners commonly ask that filing costs be included in the money judgment. Omitting the request for relief is a common and consequential mistake: without it, the court cannot grant a remedy the facts might otherwise support.

Good Cause Eviction Notice

Subdivision 5-a, added by New York’s Good Cause Eviction Law, requires every petition to append or incorporate a notice about the law’s application to the unit.¹ The provision is scheduled to sunset on June 15, 2034. The notice must address three points:

Whether the unit is subject to Good Cause and, if exempt, the reason for the exemption.
If the unit is covered and the landlord is not renewing the lease, the lawful reason for non-renewal.
If the landlord is raising the rent above the local rent standard on a covered unit, the justification for that increase.

The local rent standard is generally the lower of 5 percent plus the annual change in the regional consumer price index, or 10 percent, and a rent increase above that threshold is presumptively unreasonable absent justification.⁷

Subdivision 5-b adds that if the petitioner claims the unit is exempt because of an ownership-based exemption, the petition must include the information supporting that claim. Courts have dismissed cases over a missing Good Cause notice, so this is not a formality.

Disclosing Rent Regulatory Status

The numbered subdivisions do not spell out rent regulation, but courts have read the “facts” requirement in subdivision 4 to require accurate disclosure of the unit’s regulatory status. In MSG Pomp Corp. v. Doe, the court dismissed a petition where the landlord falsely stated the premises were owned by the City and falsely claimed the unit was not subject to rent regulation.⁸ The reasoning: those misrepresentations kept the tenant from understanding what claims to defend against, which defeats the point of the disclosure requirements in the first place.

The petition should state whether the unit is subject to rent stabilization, rent control, the Emergency Tenant Protection Act, or a subsidy program such as Section 8. For rent-stabilized units, current registration with the Division of Housing and Community Renewal is expected, since owners are required to file annual registrations.⁹ Misstating any of this can invite dismissal or protracted challenges.

Local Registration Allegations

Subdivisions 6 through 9 impose registration requirements in specific cities. In Albany, Newburgh, Syracuse, and certain other municipalities where landlords must register rental properties as a condition of legal rental, the petition must allege compliance with the local registration law. A landlord in one of those cities who has not registered cannot maintain an eviction proceeding until compliance is achieved.

What Happens When a Petition Is Defective

A petition that fails on any RPAPL 741 element is exposed to a motion to dismiss. Dismissals under 741 are almost always without prejudice, so the landlord can correct the problem and refile. That still means restarting service, waiting for a new court date, and absorbing the delay.

Some defects are more survivable than others. A missing apartment number or a minor misspelling may be curable by amendment when the court allows it. Fundamental misrepresentations about ownership, regulatory status, or the basis for the eviction generally are not, as MSG Pomp Corp. shows.⁸ A petition filed without the Good Cause notice when the law requires one has likewise been treated as a failure to satisfy the statute.

For a respondent, checking the petition against each subdivision is the first line of defense. An answer in a summary proceeding can be oral or written and may raise any legal or equitable defense, including defects in the petition.¹⁰ These cases move fast; raising petition defects early is what separates a winning objection from a waived one.

A Note on Service

RPAPL 741 governs what the petition must contain, not how it reaches the respondent. Even a fully compliant petition fails if it is not served correctly. RPAPL 735 allows personal delivery, delivery to a person of suitable age and discretion at the property, or conspicuous-place service, with an additional mailing by certified or registered mail and regular first-class mail within one day when personal delivery is not made.¹¹ The petition, notice of petition, and proof of service must be filed within three days after personal delivery or mailing. Substantive compliance with 741 only matters if the respondent actually received the papers the way the law requires.

1
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 741 – Contents of Petition
2
New York State Senate. New York Civil Practice Law and Rules 3020 – Verification
3
Justia Law. Morel v Aviles, 2023 NY Slip Op 51355(U)
4
New York State Unified Court System. Landlord/Tenant Answer In Person Fact Sheet
5
New York State Unified Court System. Petition to Recover Possession of Real Property – Nonpayment
6
New York State Unified Court System. Landlord’s Guide to Nonpayment Eviction Proceedings
7
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Law 231-C – Good Cause Eviction Law Notice
8
CaseMine. MSG Pomp Corporation v Doe
9
New York State Homes and Community Renewal. Rent Registration
10
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 743
11
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 735