No hot water, landlord allows entry to brokers

If you went to visit an apartment that had any form of "out of order" sign on the shower or elsewhere, would you rent the place?

I'm not following.

He's suggesting you make it clear to prospective tenants that the apartment is undesirable....

That doesn't help my situation at all.
It's a brownstone, the owner is trying to sell the building.

You should read your lease to determine under what circumstances the landlord or his agent can enter your apartment. Unless it's an emergency, reasonable notice is typically required. To most people that would mean a minimum of 24 hours to ask for your approval to enter, which you can reasonably refuse if warranted. If an agent entered your apartment without notice or knocking, that would not only be a violation of your right of peaceful enjoyment of your property, but it's a serious safety issue for both you and the agent.

You should immediately call the police if an agent enters your apartment. Whether you forcefully hold him there only you can decide, but I think the agent and landlord are taking huge risks by doing this.

I'm not sure you're explaining the whole story, you shouldn't withhold rent without escrow and legal advice, so I'm assuming the landlord views you as a having defaulted on your lease, regardless of the hot water situation. You need to pay your full rent and have your own lawyer send a strongly worded letter about the hot water, the lack of notice of entry and the threat to withhold rent. Do not withhold rent because you think it's fair, you're opening yourself up for default and reasonable action by the landlord to replace you.

How long is the remainder of the lease? I assume you are planning on moving at the end?

And is this a market rate lease or rent regulated lease?

311 has to contact the housing department for you to speak to them and they will give you info. You have to file a loss of services form if it hasn't been fixed in 10 days after contacting HPD (I think it's HPD) Housing will contact the landlord and if it isn't fixed you I think you can ask for a freeze or a rent reduction. It's quite confusing but they are helpful when you call. How long have you had no hot water?

I appreciate the responses.
@Goldie- it's a standard lease so it has the usual notification required to enter unless it's an emergency.

I understand that withholding rent is not the right thing to do but the landlord is not only missing in action when she's contacted, in a prior instance when the ceiling in the bathroom collapsed and the apartment was uninhabitable, she was abusive and threatening on the phone.

@greensdale- the lease runs to the end of the year and it won't be extended. It's a market rate lease.

@cccharley- after nearly a dozen complaints about hot water that went no where, they suggested that we go to housing court to file a suit. What could I possibly sue for?
The hot water issue has been going on for over 3 weeks.

How much inconvenience would it be if you left early?

My current plan is to move by the end of the year anyway, getting married.

I think you have more leeway to play a bit of hardball if you have the stomach for it. Normally I wouldn't advise withholding rent, but the owner has well demonstrated some of his or her pain points and since the landlord is the initial aggressor ...

So I should wait for her lawyer to contact me?

Or seek out a lawyer to write her a letter?

If a broker walked into my apartment unannounced that would be the last time that broker ever walked

And just think, in Florida you could could shoot him.

How will a lawyers letter better explain that you have no hot water than when you explained it? You've already provided notice it sounds like. Further letters are a waste of ink

I haven't provided notice, she doesn't know about my personal situation.
I can't reach her, until she sent this recent letter threatening legal action, I hadn't heard from her in a month or so.

Notice re no hot water.

Regarding unauthorized entry: change the cylinder of your lock (i.e., rekey). A new cylinder costs approximately nothing, at any hardware store, Lowe's, Home Depot. You can do it yourself with only a screwdriver. Then let the LL sue you for the key.

Anyone watch Suits? Mike gets served in housing court when his client withholds rent payment because his client failed to deposit the withheld rent into an escrow account.

Best show ever.

A show is a show. But landlord tenant court in Manhattan is no show.

Set up your own escrow account, no need to pay an attorney. Put your rental payment into the account. Let the landlord sue you. Before going to court an inspector will come and put multiple violations on the apt. In court he won't have a leg to stand on and violations don't look good when you're trying to sell a building.

People tend to think that an attorney will solve everything. Not so.

Lots of good info here -- the only thing that I'd advise AGAINST is simply withholding rent. You are still contractually bound to doing this, and it can look very bad in court if just stop paying. Like other have said, put it into an escrow account. This will show that you have the money, and that you are happy to pay in good faith should repairs get made. That being said...

Landlords are REQUIRED to provide hot water (along with heat, extermination services, garbage/sanitary services, etc.) to all tenants 365 days a year, according to the City Housing Maintenance Code and State Multiple Dwelling Law (Title 3, Sections 75-84).

http://public.leginfo.state.ny.us/LAWSSEAF.cgi?QUERYTYPE=LAWS+&QUERYDATA=@PLADC0T27C2+&LIST=LAW+&BROWSER=BROWSER+&TOKEN=05661412+&TARGET=VIEW

If you need repairs done:
Tell the landlord, in writing with date sent via USPS (registered, certified, receipt). Say the work needs to be done RIGHT AWAY. Keep good records (pictures, videos, etc.) of the conditions in the apartment along with the corresponding dates and times. Keep copies of all documents sent and received by the landlord, if any. Keep track of all emails and phone call (dates, times).

If the landlord refuses to make the repair or if unresponsive, file an HP Action with Housing Court (in Brooklyn: 141 Livingston St., 2nd floor). BE PREPARED! Take a list and all supporting document, and the name, and address of the landlord or managing agent. The clerk there will help you fill out the necessary paperwork and tell you how to serve them to your landlord. Make sure that the clerk also tells you how to schedule an inspection from a city inspector. Then, they will schedule your court date. When you get to court, you’ll have to prove that you properly served your landlord with copies of these court papers.

By the time you have your court date, the city inspector should have been to your apartment. There should be a lawyer there from the HPD (NYC Dept of Housing Preservation and Development) to answer questions you may have. As long as the judge has the inspection report (remember: from a CITY inspector), and you have supporting evidence, AND if you served the landlord the papers properly, the judge will order, in writing, to make the necessary repairs. This results in a court order. The court order will have a time frame, based on what the judge decides, which is usually based on severity (maybe 30 days, but a gas leak might be 12 hours). I don’t know where no hot water lies, but the judge with determine this. Ask for a copy of this court order, then ask the HPD lawyer what to do next.
If the landlord STILL doesn’t make the repairs, he is in trouble, and can be mandated by the City to pay "civil penalties" or by being in contempt of court. For future reference, ask the HPD lawyer how to restore a case (bring it back to court).

Now, the lack of hot water might qualify as bad enough to have City's Emergency Repair Unit do the work. Call 311 (I know you did this already), and has for the City's ERU, and tell them to come out with and inspector IMMEDIATELY. They might do the work right then and there once they arrive, and bill the landlord directly later. This can happen with severe service problems like sewage backup. Call many times. Get other tenants to call too (if they are experiencing the same problem).
You can also go in person. The HPD is located at 210 Joralemon St., 8th floor. Also, if your apartment is rent stabilized or rent controlled, you can file a written complaint with the Division of Housing and Community Renewal: 718-739-6400 (for paperwork) or 718-722-4778 (general office). Or go to 55 Hanson Place, 7th floor.

Good luck and let us know how it goes!