The OCJ has partnered with Legal Services to provide tenants in New York City with free access to telephone legal advice and information. In New York, the law gives all tenants the right to safe, decent and hygienic housing. This right, commonly known as the guarantee of habitability, is contained in any written or verbal rental agreement and applies to the rented room or apartment, as well as to the common areas of the building. The information contained on this website does not constitute legal advice and may not be used as a substitute for the advice of a qualified lawyer to advise on legal matters relating to housing. For more information, please visit our Find a Lawyer page. We give you brief answers to your rights as a tenant and explain the options for dealing with a housing situation. Tenants may have a basis to file a harassment lawsuit against the landlord in the housing court. Tenants should consult a lawyer before taking legal action. Tenants who cannot afford representation may be eligible for free or low-cost legal aid from the Legal Aid Society. HPD`s Fair Housing Advisors can also provide tenants with resource information.

Dial 311 for more information. However, the above 14-day requirement does not apply to rent-regulated tenants. If you receive court documents that your landlord is trying to evict you, or a notice from the housing court that plans to appear in an eviction case, you should talk to a lawyer who can advise you on what you need to do next to protect your rights as a tenant. From now until at least 1. In May 2021, New York City tenants who meet the following requirements will be eligible for HRA`s Family Homelessness Eviction Prevention Supplement (FHEPS) program before your landlord sues you to evict you for non-payment of rent. FHEPS can pay ongoing rent (and refundable rent) for families with children who receive cash assistance and risk eviction. Immigrant families may be eligible. Clients can begin the application process in one of four ways. Under New York City`s Right to Attorneys Act (RTC), the DSS/HRA Office of Civil Justice (OCJ) offers tenants facing eviction in housing court or NYCHA administrative proceedings free access to legal representation and advice from nonprofit legal aid organizations in all five boroughs. Our lawyers are fighting for safe and affordable housing. We offer the following legal services: “Harassment” means any act or omission by a landlord or landlord`s representative that results or intends to cause or cause a person legally entitled to live in a room or apartment to waive their room or apartment or their tenancy rights. In upstate New York, tenant harassment can be a felony or misdemeanor.

In New York City, tenant harassment is also a violation of housing law, and tenants can sue their landlord in housing court if they are harassed. In upstate New York, a lender must file a lawsuit in the Supreme Court and obtain a foreclosure order against a homeowner who has not paid the mortgage. The landlord is legally entitled to collect rents and enter into leases until the foreclosure ends in an auction when the building is sold to a new owner or retained by the lender. Most tenants who need free legal assistance cannot get it. The law does not have the right to a free lawyer for low-income people who face civil lawsuits, as is the case for defendants in criminal cases. The Met Council on Housing is struggling to change that, but currently the government is not offering that support. Some nonprofits offer free legal assistance to tenants, but because resources are limited, only a small percentage of those who need it are taken care of and most are turned away. In New York City housing courts, 90 percent of tenants facing eviction have no legal representation, compared to 98 percent of landlords. If you are a member of a tenants` group or association or would like information on how to form a tenants` group or association, or if you are a board member or shareholder of HDFC coop, call the Housing Justice Unit`s advocacy helpline at 212-577-7988 Monday to Friday from 10 a.m.

to 4 p.m. or Email HousingGrpAdv@legal-aid.org. A good place to start your search for free legal services is: LawHelp.org/NY Within fourteen days of the tenant leaving the premises, the landlord will provide the tenant with a detailed statement indicating the basis of the amount of the deposit withheld, if any, and will refund the tenant a portion of the remaining deposit. If a landlord does not provide the declaration and deposit to the tenant within fourteen days, the landlord loses any right to withhold part of the deposit. The quickest way to find out if you qualify for free housing legal aid is to call your district`s Legal Aid Society neighbourhood office: Legal services for right to counsel are free, available in any zip code, and available regardless of immigration status. No. Our telephone tenant rights advisors are trained volunteers, not lawyers. We inform you about your rights as a tenant, your options for resolving a problem with your housing situation, and strategies to enforce your rights. We can tell you about the laws that exist to protect you.

However, we cannot advise you on how to proceed in legal matters. Only lawyers are legally entitled to do so – and qualified. A judge ordered the ERAP application portal to reopen by Tuesday, January 11, 2022. All eligible tenants must apply as soon as the portal is open. Please check this page for updates on the status of the portal. The NYS Attorney General provides information on a variety of tenant-related topics, including deposits, senior housing, small claims court, hiring a moving company, recent changes to NYS Tenancy Act, tenant harassment, fair housing, immigrant rights, illegal lockouts, etc. The right to a lawyer begins when your case is filed. If you qualify, you will be referred to a tenant lawyer in housing court or sent to the legal service provider`s office.

Once you have a hearing date, lawyers from legal service providers will call your name to ask if you need a lawyer. Then the lawyer will check in with you and ask you basic questions about your income and case. They will then make an appointment with you to discuss the details of your case. If you are facing an eviction case, the CJO may provide free legal assistance through our non-profit legal service providers to provide you with legal representation or other assistance in your housing court case under city law to a lawyer.