5 Things to Know About Tenant Harassment

Civil harassment may include:

• Using force or threats of force
• Interrupting essential services: heat, hot water, electricity, gas, etc.
• Bringing repeated baseless court cases
• Removing a tenant’s belongings from their apartment or room
• Removing the front door from the apartment or room
• Breaking or changing the locks on doors without supplying new keys
• Making repeated contact about giving the tenant something of value if the tenant moves out
• Requiring or preventing a tenant from seeking medical help
• Requesting ID that would disclose citizenship status when the person has already provided current government identification

Criminal harassment includes:

• Any conduct that impairs the habitability of a housing unit
• Conduct that creates or maintains a condition which endangers the safety or health of tenants
• Conduct likely to interfere or disturb, or is intended to disturb the comfort of a person legally entitled to live in an apartment or room
• Conduct intended to or that causes physical injury to tenant or a third person

You can file a Housing Part (“HP”) Harassment Petition in the Housing Court in the borough you live in. You may also include complaints of any repairs or services needed in your apartment when you fi le the HP.  The Clerk of the Housing Court will give you the required forms.

Fully fill out the forms provided by the Clerk, including the dates and other details of the incidents of harassment. Remember to list any conditions that need repair in your apartment and public areas of the building. You may also ask the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) to inspect those conditions by filling out a Tenant’s Request For Inspection.

The judge or clerk will tell you how to serve (send) a copy of the papers on the landlord and any other parties named, including HPD, and give you a date to return to court. It is important to follow the court’s instructions for service very carefully. If you do not serve the other side properly, the Court may dismiss your case.

There is a $45.00 fee to file the case. If you cannot afford the fee, you can ask the Court to waive it.

To prove harassment, you must show the Court what the landlord has done to harass you. The landlord will be given an opportunity to deny your allegations or explain why there was no harassment.

Evidence of harassment can include:

• Records or logs you’ve kept of the harassment
• Letters or emails from or to the landlord
• Records of complaints to the landlord
• Records of complaints to government agencies
• Violations placed by government agencies
• Pictures or videos of harassment
• Tenant and witness testimony

The more specific and detailed your evidence, the stronger your case will be!

If the Court finds that you have been harassed, it will order the landlord to stop harassing you and may fine the landlord between $2,000 and $10,000 for each harassing incident. These fines are paid to the City however, the law also allows the Court to grant a minimum of $1,000 financial compensation to tenant.

In addition, if the Court finds that the landlord has engaged in harassment, the building will be enrolled in the No Harassment Pilot Program which requires the landlord to apply for special work permits before it can do substantial work in the building.

If the landlord violates Court’s orders, you may request that the Court impose additional penalties.

If a tenant files three harassment cases in a ten year period and the claims are deemed “frivolous” by Court (the Court doesn’t think they are worthy cases), the landlord may seek an order preventing the tenant from bringing future harassment cases and requiring the tenant to pay the landlord’s attorney fees.

You may raise harassment as a “counterclaim” (a claim against your landlord) in any eviction proceeding, however, harassment is generally not a “defense” to any eviction proceeding.  An exception is harassment by failure to make repairs or provide services, which may be a “defense” in a non-payment proceeding i.e.: failure to make repairs may be a partial excuse for the tenant’s failure to pay rent.  As stated above, the Court may make a finding of harassment and order the landlord to cease the harassment and may also award money damages.

If your apartment is rent stabilized or rent controlled*, you can go to the New York State Homes and Community Renewal (“HCR”) office for assistance. Visit their website here.

HCR has several complaint forms for different issues and tenants may want to utilize more than one of them. Like Housing Court, HCR can assess penalties and issue an order against the landlord. Landlords who have harassed tenants may also be subject to fines.

Once HCR has found harassment, HCR will not allow the landlord to take further rent increases until HCR determines the harassment has stopped.

^*Generally, rent controlled apartments are those in buildings constructed before Feb. 1, 1947 and in which the tenant has lived continuously since before July 1, 1971.  Rent Stabilized apartments are in buildings built between Feb. 1, 1947 and Jan. 1, 1974 and have six (6) or more units or the building receives J-51 or 421a tax abatements.

If multiple tenants in a building are being harassed, the tenants can bring a “group harassment action” in Housing Court or file a “group harassment complaint” with HCR. If you think your neighbors might have complaints similar to yours, talk to them before you file your complaint to see if they would agree to join a “ group case or complaint.

If the harassment is based on your protected identity, you can also file a discrimination complaint with the NYC Human Rights Commission.  Protected identity categories include: race, age, gender, sexual orientation, disability, and lawful source of income (including rent subsidies).  Call 311 or visit NYCHRC for more information.

You can call 311 to report the conditions in your apartment to HPD. HPD may issue fines against the landlord if the violations are not corrected. A tenant may also go to housing court and file an “HP” proceeding solely for repairs or a combined HP proceeding for harassment and repairs.

If you suspect the harassment is a crime, for example if the landlord or the landlord’s agents resort to violence, you can report it to the police or the office of the District Attorney.  If you are not sure, you can consult with a lawyer or the police department.

The information in this document has been prepared by The Legal Aid Society for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. This information is not intended to create, and receipt of it does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. You should not act upon any information without retaining professional legal counsel.