Yet another head-scratching rent stabe story

More evidence that NYC's rent stabilization system is in dire need of reform. This is just madness when a millionaire gets cheap rent while many people are having trouble finding a market rate apartment that doesn't consume half their take-home pay.

- strict income and asset limits no matter what the stabilized rent
- return apartment to the free market when tenant leaves, phasing out rent stabilization over time
- end ability of relatives to "inherit" the lease

Asset limits would be nice (not just income). rights of succession are relatively fair public policy. You can't just will an apt to someone in Alabama that is your niece, they have to live there, etc., for at least two years. Otherwise we'd have a million court cases where the husband/wife dies and suddenly the widow is kicked out w/out that protection. Obviously people can skirt around the requirements a bit in a legal manner, but they do with income tests too.

This guy's landlord is not obligated to collect the highest possible, if he prefers not to.

In this case, all he had to do was get two consecutive years of income affidavits and the the lease could have been terminated. Either he didn't ask for the affidavits, or he chose not to evict. Perhaps he was friends with the tenant, and let him ride.

Are you guys trying to take that choice/decision away from the owner of a property? You sound like Bolsheviks.

highest *rent* possible

The whole thing sounds silly. So she only needs to pay 5k in back rent to get the keys. Guy has 18m net worth but no will? She wont see the money for a long time regardless if it is going through the Surrogate's intestate, anyhow. There's just not something normal.

Anyway the apartment is in Harlem so who cares

I agree with alanhart.