BrickUnderground.com
Attorney Sam Himmelstein was asked about the legal precedents for a tenant who had to break their lease and relocate for a new job. The landlord listed the apartment at a higher rent than what the tenant was paying. Himmelstein explains that the law requires landlords to rent the apartment at the lower of the fair market value and the rate agreed to during tenancy. In the tenant’s case, their landlord had violated the law by listing the apartment for more than what was agreed to during tenancy. Himmelstein says the tenant would defeat any lawsuit the landlord may bring for breaking the lease. The statute violated by the landlord is part of rent reforms under the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act passed in 2019.