New York rent increase law

New York has no statewide rent cap for units outside rent regulation and the Good Cause Eviction Law. If you plan to renew with a rent increase of 5 percent or more, or not to renew at all, give written notice: at least 30 days if the tenant has lived there less than one year and has no lease of at least one year, 60 days for one to two years of occupancy or a lease of one to two years, and 90 days for more than two years of occupancy or a lease of two years or more. Whichever of occupancy or lease term is longer decides the period.

N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 226-c

• If your notice is late, the tenancy continues on its existing terms from the day you gave actual written notice until the full notice period has passed. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 226-c(1)(a)
• The notice must append or contain the Good Cause Eviction Law notice, stating whether the unit is covered and, for a covered unit, the lawful basis for a non-renewal or the reason for an increase above the local rent standard. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 226-c(1)(a) N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 231-c
• Where the Good Cause Eviction Law applies, an increase above the local rent standard in a calendar year is presumed unreasonable, and nonpayment of an unreasonable increase is not grounds for eviction. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 216(1)(a) N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 211(8) See Good Cause Eviction Law on the New York page
• Offering a renewal at an unreasonable increase in retaliation for a tenant's complaint is unlawful retaliation. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 223-b(2)
• A cooperative corporation need not give this notice to a tenant who is a shareholder of the cooperative. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 226-c(1)(b)

New York has no statewide cap on rent. Rent stabilization and rent control, under the Emergency Tenant Protection Act and related laws, apply in New York City and in localities that have declared a housing emergency; their wider statutes and regulations were not read for this page. The selected NYC apartment and loft order below was reviewed separately. The Good Cause Eviction Law applies in New York City and in localities that opt in. The Multiple Dwelling Law applies in cities of 325,000 or more people, and in localities that adopt it.

N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 212 N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 213 N.Y. Mult. Dwell. Law § 3

• A locality that opts in to the Good Cause Eviction Law may set its own fair market rent percentage for the rent exemption and its own small landlord unit count. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 213(2)
• Rent stabilized and Emergency Tenant Protection Act units follow their own deposit section, with the same one-month limit. N.Y. Gen. Oblig. Law § 7-107
• Owners of multiple dwellings covered by the Multiple Dwelling Law must file a registration notice with their name and address. In New York City, which requires registration by local law, an unregistered owner cannot recover rent until it registers. N.Y. Mult. Dwell. Law § 325 N.Y. Mult. Dwell. Law § 325(2)
• Identify the unit's regulatory status and lease start date before choosing an increase. NYC Apartment and Loft Order 58 applies to covered rent-stabilized apartment leases and loft increase periods commencing October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027. Its annual guideline adjustment is 0 percent for both one-year and two-year apartment leases and corresponding covered loft periods, together with further adjustments authorized by law. This is a dated NYC guideline, not a statewide cap or a determination that a particular home is covered. NYC RGB Apartment and Loft Order 58 (2026-27)
• Use the order for the relevant commencement period rather than carrying an earlier year's percentages forward. Check the lawful base rent, prior adjustments, escalator provisions and any separately authorized increase before calculating a regulated rent. The selected order preserves lawful adjustments under prior orders and has separate special and decontrolled-unit rules. County board orders, the full stabilization code and any specific apartment's rent history were not reviewed for this addition. NYC RGB Order 58: scope and adjustments

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