What constitutes an illegal conversion in NYC? (rental, month-to-month) - New York City - New York - City-Data Forum

seaboarded · 07-23-2014, 07:33 AM

I live in a three family house on Staten Island. The landlord is currently in the process of converting the livingroom to a bedroom which he will rent. This is a conversion of the original floor plan and will leave the house without a common space. How do I know if this is legitimate or not? The landlord is completely absent--haven't seen her in over six months--and has various "helpers" overseeing this.

And who can I report my landlord to if the conversion is illegal?

BlakeJones · 07-23-2014, 07:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by seaboarded

I live in a three family house on Staten Island. The landlord is currently in the process of converting the livingroom to a bedroom which he will rent. This is a conversion of the original floor plan and will leave the house without a common space. How do I know if this is legitimate or not? The landlord is completely absent--haven't seen her in over six months--and has various "helpers" overseeing this.

And who can I report my landlord to if the conversion is illegal?

Any sort of construction work on a property requires a permit, regardless of who will and won't live there. No permit = illegal. If he's going to rent out that living room, as long as it has a window and is heated it's perfectly legal to rent out.

As for your losing a common space, there is nothing in the law about that. It all comes down to what your lease says, if there's no provision for a common space then you don't have a leg to stand on

seaboarded · 07-23-2014, 08:00 AM

Thanks for this. Is there any way to tell on the certificate of occupancy how many people can legally live at a certain address? With the conversion we have between 11 and 15. It's a very month-to-month kind of set up with lots of people passing through...

BlakeJones · 07-23-2014, 08:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by seaboarded

Thanks for this. Is there any way to tell on the certificate of occupancy how many people can legally live at a certain address? With the conversion we have between 11 and 15. It's a very month-to-month kind of set up with lots of people passing through...

Sounds like a lot people for one house. I don't know the rules but I'm sure someone on here will be able to tell you what the deal is

seaboarded · 07-23-2014, 01:49 PM

Anybody?

Harlem resident · 07-23-2014, 04:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by seaboarded

Anybody?

Make a complaint on the 311 web site and follow up.
Keep making complaints. Each one needs to receive a response.
Don't be subtle. The building department is not great. HPD is far better.

BlakeJones · 07-23-2014, 04:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Harlem resident

Make a complaint on the 311 web site and follow up.
Keep making complaints. Each one needs to receive a response.
Don't be subtle. The building department is not great. HPD is far better.

I think you're missing the point. The guy is itching to call 311, he just needs to know what he's supposed to be saying to them

Harlem resident · 07-23-2014, 05:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlakeJones

I think you're missing the point. The guy is itching to call 311, he just needs to know what he's supposed to be saying to them

Dangerous conditions in the house, over-crowding, illegal fire egress. Burdens on electrical. "Change in use or egress."

Illegal renting. If the house is being used for significant rental income rather than private residential there are taxes involved.

What's the zoning ?

And so on.

People can basically call 311, very upset, and read a list of the conditions.
The OP should not be afraid of over-stating; on the contrary.

seaboarded · 07-23-2014, 09:42 PM

311 is the best way to go about this? Their hold times are like root canals. Is the certificate of occupancy on record somewhere I can access...the more I think about this, the more I think this is illegal...could I just call FDNY to have them come inspect?

seaboarded · 07-23-2014, 09:52 PM

Ok, I just looked up the certificate of occupancy. It's from 1948. It's a two-family residence on the 1st and 2nd floors (A1-1 family dwelling). The cellar, which is occupied now by four people, is marked as heating and storage. The attic, which is occupied by two more people, is marked as unoccupied. Again, there are about 15 people living here. There are no open permits though the roof is being repaired. (It was leaking water onto an interior staircase for five months.)

Any more thoughts?