New York eviction law

Before starting a nonpayment eviction, serve a written demand giving the tenant at least 14 days' notice to pay the rent or give up possession, served as the law requires: by personal delivery, or by delivery to a suitable person at the property or posting there, followed within one day by certified or registered mail and first class mail. The demand must append or contain the Good Cause Eviction Law notice. Separately, if you have not received rent within five days of the due date, send the certified-mail notice of non-receipt, or the tenant may raise its absence as a defense.

N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 711(2) N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 231-c N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 735

• No tenant or lawful occupant may be removed except through a court proceeding. N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 711
• The certified-mail notice of non-receipt is due when rent has not been received within five days of the date the lease names. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 235-e(d)
• After a judgment for unpaid rent, the court must vacate the warrant if the tenant tenders or deposits the full rent due before it is executed, unless you prove the tenant withheld it in bad faith. N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 749(3)
• Where the Good Cause Eviction Law applies, unpaid rent is good cause unless it results from an unreasonable rent increase. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 216(1)(a) See Good Cause Eviction Law on the New York page

For a unit covered by the Good Cause Eviction Law, violating a substantial lease obligation is good cause only if the tenant fails to stop after written notice giving ten days from receipt to cure, and any house rules must be reasonable and accepted in writing or part of the lease from the start. No other statute read sets a notice period before a lease-violation case, so outside Good Cause the lease's own terms govern. After a judgment based on a lease breach, the court must stay the warrant for 30 days so the tenant can correct the breach.

N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 216(1)(b) N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 753(4)

• The obligation cannot have been imposed to get around the Good Cause Eviction Law. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 216(1)(b) See Good Cause Eviction Law on the New York page
• A lease term waiving the 30-day cure stay is void. N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 753(5)
• A holdover case can be brought against a tenant who stays after the lease term ends. N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 711(1)

Only a court can remove a tenant. You start a summary proceeding after the required notice, such as the 14-day rent demand, and, unless court rules for nonpayment cases provide otherwise, the notice of petition and petition must be served 10 to 17 days before the hearing. After a judgment, the court issues a warrant, and the sheriff, marshal or constable must give the household at least 14 days' written notice and carry it out on a business day between sunrise and sunset.

N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 711 N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 733 N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 749

• A court may stay a warrant for up to one year when the tenant cannot find similar housing nearby or would suffer extreme hardship, on condition that the tenant deposits the rent. N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 753(1) N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 753(2)
• In a case based on a lease breach, the court must give the tenant 30 days after judgment to correct it. N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 753(4)
• In a nonpayment case, tendering the full rent before the warrant is executed vacates it, unless the rent was withheld in bad faith. N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 749(3)
• A squatter is not a tenant for these proceedings. N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 711
• Where the Good Cause Eviction Law applies, the court may order removal only on one of that law's grounds. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 216(1) See Good Cause Eviction Law on the New York page
• Prepare evidence for the issues actually disputed. The New York courts suggest bringing original documents where possible: the lease and renewals, notices, service information, rent records and relevant photographs. Landlords may need ownership and registration records, plus witnesses who can explain repairs or access attempts. Tenants should keep payment proof, condition photos and receipts for claimed expenses. If service is disputed, the process server may be an important witness. Confirm the local court's instructions rather than assuming an uploaded ledger or a written account replaces the evidence needed at the hearing. New York Courts: what to bring to court

You may not force out an occupant who has lawfully occupied the home for 30 consecutive days or more, or who has a lease, except under a court warrant or order or a government vacate order. That rules out force or threats, cutting off or interrupting essential services, removing the tenant's belongings or the entry door, and disabling or changing the lock without giving the tenant a key.

N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 768

• An intentional unlawful eviction is a class A misdemeanor and carries a civil penalty of $1,000 to $10,000 for each violation. N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 768(2)
• You must take all reasonable steps to restore an occupant who was unlawfully put out, on request; failing to do so adds up to $100 a day, for up to six months. N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 768(1)(b) N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 768(2)(b)
• Willfully failing to supply water, heat, light, power or another service the lease requires is a separate violation. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 235

No statute read sets a procedure or storage period for belongings a tenant leaves behind. Removing a lawful occupant's belongings to force the occupant out is an unlawful eviction. A deposit may cover the reasonable, itemized cost of moving and storing the tenant's belongings.

N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 768 N.Y. Gen. Oblig. Law § 7-108(1-a)(b)

• Before executing an eviction warrant, the officer must check for companion animals and arrange for their care. N.Y. Real Prop. Actions & Proc. Law § 749(2)(b)
• Holding the belongings of a tenant who lawfully ended a lease on entering military service, to secure later rent, is a misdemeanor. N.Y. Mil. Law § 310(3)

You may not serve a notice to quit, start an eviction or substantially change the tenancy in retaliation for a tenant's good faith complaint about a health, safety or habitability violation, good faith action to enforce the lease or housing law, or participation in a tenants' organization. Refusing to renew, or offering a renewal at an unreasonable increase, counts as a substantial change, though you never have to offer a renewal longer than one year.

N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 223-b

• An eviction notice, case or change in terms within one year after the complaint or action is presumed retaliatory, and you must show a non-retaliatory reason by a preponderance of the evidence. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 223-b(5)
• If the court finds retaliation, judgment goes to the tenant, though the tenant still owes rent; the tenant can also sue for damages, attorneys' fees and costs. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 223-b(3) N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 223-b(4)
• A lease fee or penalty for filing a good faith complaint about conditions is void, and trying to collect it costs three times the amount. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 223-b(5-a)
• The section covers all rental housing except owner-occupied dwellings with fewer than four units, and it does not apply when the tenant or the tenant's household or guest caused the condition. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 223-b(6)
• You may not interfere with a tenant's right to form, join or take part in a tenants' group. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 230