Rent Setting and Increases to Tenants in Division of Alternative Management Program Building

RCNY tit. 28, ch. 14

in effect

28 RCNY § 14-01 General Provisions.

§ 14-01 General Provisions. (a) All notices required by this chapter shall be in English and Spanish. (b) For the purposes of this chapter, unless the context indicates otherwise, the following definitions apply: DAMP. "DAMP" shall mean to the Division of Alternative Management Programs, or any successor division, of the Department of Housing Preservation and Development. DAMP Lessee. "DAMP Lessee" shall mean a person or entity with whom HPD has entered into a lease for the management of a building under any DAMP Program. DAMP Programs. "DAMP Programs" shall mean the programs administered by DAMP. DAMP Program Director. "DAMP Program Director" shall mean the individual at HPD responsible for the operation of an individual DAMP Program or his or her designee. Room. "Room" shall mean the basic living space of a dwelling unit (i.e. living room, kitchen, dining room, and bedroom). Each bathroom shall be considered as one-half of a room. In studio apartments or apartments in which the kitchen (or kitchenette) and living area occupy the same space, that space shall be considered as two Rooms. Tenant. "Tenant" shall mean a residential tenant of record occupying a dwelling unit pursuant to a lease with the City or with a net lessee which has entered into a net lease with the City for the building in which such dwelling unit is located. Other residential occupants, such as squatters and licensees, are not Tenants. Non-residential tenants or occupants, such as those who occupy space for retail, commercial, manufacturing, or community facility purposes, are not Tenants. (c) Unless otherwise provided in this title, the provisions of this chapter govern the procedures for setting and increasing rents for Tenants of City-owned buildings participating in DAMP Programs. (d) No Tenant shall receive more than one rent increase within a twelve-month period unless additional increases in the maximum rental charge-per-Room are requested or approved by no fewer than sixty percent (60%) of the Tenants. (e) DAMP shall assist eligible Tenants in applying for existing rental assistance programs.

28 RCNY § 14-02 Initial Rent Setting.

§ 14-02 Initial Rent Setting. (a) To facilitate a particular building's operation and as a condition of admission to a DAMP Program, the appropriate DAMP Program Director may establish a minimum per Room rent level for all dwelling units in such building. (b) The determination to establish a minimum per Room rent level for all dwelling units in a particular building shall be based on the DAMP Program Director's estimate of the maintenance and operating expenses of the particular building upon admission to a DAMP Program. The DAMP Program Director shall consider the existing rent roll for the particular building or project, the number of vacant dwelling units at the time of admission to a DAMP Program and the maintenance and operating expenses incurred by other buildings presently or previously in that or other DAMP Programs. (c) The DAMP Program Director shall notify each Tenant that the particular building has been accepted into a DAMP Program, the effective date of entry, to whom rent payments are to be made after that date, and what the initial rent for the dwelling unit will be upon entry and shall provide information on any rental assistance which may be available to the Tenants and the procedures to apply for such assistance. The notice shall be in writing and sent by regular mail to the affected Tenants at least thirty (30) days before the date of entry into a DAMP Program.

28 RCNY § 14-03 Interim Rent Increases.

§ 14-03 Interim Rent Increases. (a) One or more interim rent increases may be necessary to raise rents to a level sufficient to cover the maintenance and operating expenses of a particular building during the period of City ownership and alternative management. (b) The DAMP Lessee may prepare a request to the appropriate DAMP Program Director for an interim increase in the rent level per Room for Tenants of a particular building. If the DAMP Lessee fails to submit a request for an interim rent increase, the DAMP Program Director may propose an increase in the rents in accordance with the provisions of these rules. (c) The DAMP Lessee or DAMP Program Director shall prepare a statement of the maintenance and operating expenses which form the basis for the rent increase, a history not to exceed the prior year of billing and collection of rents in the particular building and a current rent roll. The statement shall contain: (1) the past actual expenditures for maintenance and operation of a particular building for the period it has participated in a DAMP Program for a period not to exceed the prior year, including, but not limited to: the cost of fuel for heat and hot water, expenditures for common space utilities, repair and maintenance, supplies, insurance, and custodial services; and fees for management and professional services. (2) a projection of maintenance and operating expenses of the particular building for a period of one (1) year following the effective date of the rent increase, including, but not limited to: the cost of fuel for heat and hot water; expenditures for common space utilities, repair and maintenance, supplies, insurance and custodial services; and fees for management and professional services to be rendered. (3) a calculation of the rent required on a per room per month rate and per dwelling unit per month rate.

28 RCNY § 14-04 Disposition Rent Increases.

§ 14-04 Disposition Rent Increases. (a) Disposition rent increases are necessary to raise rents to a level sufficient to cover the maintenance and operating expenses in a particular building during the first year of private ownership. (b) The DAMP Lessee may prepare a request to the appropriate DAMP Program Director for a disposition rent increase for Tenants to take effect prior to the sale of the particular building. (c) If a request for a disposition rent increase is not submitted, the DAMP Program Director may propose a disposition rent increase in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. (d) The DAMP Lessee or DAMP Program Director shall prepare a statement of estimated maintenance and operating expenses which form the basis for the disposition rent increase, a history not to exceed the prior year of billing and collection of rents in the particular building and a current rent roll. The statement of estimated maintenance and operating expenses shall contain: (1) the past actual expenditures for maintenance and operation of a particular building, including, but not limited to: the cost of fuel for heat and hot water, payments for common space utilities, repair and maintenance, supplies, insurance and custodial services; fees for management and professional services; and a capital and/or operating reserve, if any. (2) a proposed budget for the maintenance and operation of the particular building setting forth the projected operating expenses during the first year of private ownership, including, but not limited to: the cost of fuel for heat and hot water, expenditures for common space utilities, repair and maintenance, cleaning supplies, insurance, custodial services, fees for management and professional services, a reserve for vacancies and uncollectible debts, a capital and/or operating reserve, if any, real estate taxes, water and sewer charges and debt service. (3) a calculation of the rent required on a per Room per month and per dwelling unit per month rate.

28 RCNY § 14-05 Notice of Interim and Disposition Rent Increases.

§ 14-05 Notice of Interim and Disposition Rent Increases. (a) All Tenants who are subject to the proposed increase will be sent a notice in writing of the proposed rent increase by regular mail, with a duplicate copy delivered to the Tenant's apartment not less than sixty (60) days before the anticipated effective date of the rent increase. The date of notice shall be deemed to be either five (5) days from the date of postmark, or the actual date of delivery to the Tenant's apartment, whichever is earlier. Each affected Tenant will have thirty (30) days from the date of the notice to submit by mail to DAMP or by hand-delivery to the place designated by DAMP in the notice written comments on the proposed rent increase. The date of submission shall be deemed to be five (5) days after the date of postmark or the actual date of the hand-delivery receipt, whichever is earlier. During the comment period, the financial data pertinent to the proposed rent increase shall be available for inspection upon request. (b) The notice of proposed rent increase in DAMP Programs shall be addressed to each affected Tenant and shall include the proposed new rent level, the statement of estimated maintenance and operating expenses upon which the rent increase was calculated, the anticipated effective date of the rent increase, and shall provide information on any rental assistance which may be available to the Tenant and the procedures to apply for such assistance. The notice of proposed rent increase in DAMP Programs shall also inform each affected Tenant of the opportunity and procedure for commenting on the proposed rent increase by submitting written comments. (c) A final notice of rent increase shall be addressed to each affected Tenant and sent by regular mail with a duplicate copy delivered to the Tenant's apartment, at least thirty (30) days before the effective date of the rent increase, after consideration by the DAMP Program Director of any written comments submitted by the Tenants of a particular building participating in a DAMP Program. The final notice of rent increase shall include the specific amount of the rent increase and its effective date, and shall provide information on any rental assistance which may be available to the Tenant and the procedures to apply for such assistance.

28 RCNY § 14-06 Alternative Rent Setting.

§ 14-06 Alternative Rent Setting. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this chapter, and subject to the notice and other procedural requirements of this chapter, DAMP may set rents for a particular building based on a per square foot per apartment standard instead of a per Room per apartment standard. In addition, if a project consists of more than one building in a common ownership entity, rents may be set based on economic estimates of the maintenance and operating expenses of the multi-building project instead of on economic estimates relating to the maintenance and operating expenses of an individual building.

Source: City of New York, Charter, Administrative Code and Rules (American Legal Publishing XML export, codelibrary.amlegal.com)URL: https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/newyorkcity/latest/NYCrules/0-0-0-56155Fetched: 10/24/2026