Question about leases (apartments, lawyer, tenant)

[thrGr81]

Hi,

I recently got a lease and it's my first time receiving one. I'm going through it now and boy is it long, like a hundred pages, is that normal?

I'm barely halfway through it and it's pretty surprising to read. It seems no matter what I do or what happens I'm liable and have to pay the owner. And no matter what the owner does and even if owner is at fault I'm still liable and have to pay the owner. Are all leases always so tailored to the owner? It feels like I should get a lawyer to read through it all. Does this sound normal? Thank you in advance.

[namebyuser]

Wow I wonder how common is this for lottery apartments. What AMI are you if you don’t mind me asking?

[Anonemously]

100 doesn’t sound normal. Most leases use a standard template, I would say 10-20 pages is typical. It seems the LL has their own template that heavily favors them. You would lose nothing by having a legal professional read it over for you to give you a better understanding of the language being used.

Good luck! Remember LLs only look out for themselves.

[thrGr81]

my apt is for 165% but i dont actually qualified for that, just slightly below but my application got accepted

the lease did include a bunch of stuff like rules of the building and even for the amenities. there was even a section which was over 10 pages dedicated to something called VAWA which i had no idea what it was until i read it

also curious are all HPD lottery leases so gear towards owner, feels like i have no rights whatsoever

[BugsyPal]

Originally Posted by thrGr81

my apt is for 165% but i dont actually qualified for that, just slightly below but my application got accepted

the lease did include a bunch of stuff like rules of the building and even for the amenities. there was even a section which was over 10 pages dedicated to something called VAWA which i had no idea what it was until i read it

also curious are all HPD lottery leases so gear towards owner, feels like i have no rights whatsoever

There is actual lease, and then their are riders and other attachments spelling out extra things not covered in lease. Things like amenities and other bits likely are covered by riders or separate bits aside from lease.

Standard boilerplate rent stabilized lease is not many pages.

[thrGr81]

Originally Posted by BugsyPal

There is actual lease, and then their are riders and other attachments spelling out extra things not covered in lease. Things like amenities and other bits likely are covered by riders or separate bits aside from lease.

Standard boilerplate rent stabilized lease is not many pages.

yes you're right the lease itself isnt too bad, just that everything was given to me as one document and there are definitely a lot of riders. already mentioned some and there is another bunch of pages dedicated to adverse conditions

anyone can share how their leases read and if its as geared towards the owner as i'm reading?

[randomperson2]

Mine might be 200 pages? Lease itself is only a few pages, but there are dozens of riders.

A RS lease is probably the most favorable form of lease you're going to get from anyone, unless it's your mom.

[thrGr81]

thanx now im wondering if i should ask my parents for a lease to see what they offer

[NYC_Housing_Wonk]

If there are specific items in your lease that seem off, you can always reach out to HPD. Prior to the lottery launching for each project, a copy of the leases for the affordable units is required to be reviewed by HPD. Anything that does not align with rent stabilization HPD will request for it to be adjusted or removed.

A helpful guide as well is to visit the Rent Guidelines Board website. It basically outlines your rights as stabilized tenant and what the landlord can and cannot do regarding rent-stabilized units.
https://rentguidelinesboard.cityofnewyork.us/

[popartist]

Yeah, the actual lease is not long, but there's several statutory riders (like Domestic Violence, Electric, Window Guards, etc.) that can put it over 100 pages - think I had like eight riders on mine.