Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in New York

I have been renting the main floor apartment of a three family home since March 10 2010. I am responsible for paying my own electric bill. After receiving to abnormally high bills I asked my landlord if my bill was including the electricity being used by the tenants in the basement ( there have been two separate tenants that lived there and moved out in the 3 mth time I've been here). My landlord responds with a"yup" and says that the tenants should had told me that they had to pay a portion of the bill I've been receiving in the mail . I feel that it was her responsibility as landlord to tell me this situation when I moved in. She told me that if I want my money back I would have to find them and collect from them. I have no idea were these tenants have moved to and feel that she should be the one to reimburse me since she didn't handle here responsibilities as a landlord properly.


Asked on 6/07/10, 6:42 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Guy Lewit Guy Mitchell Lewit, Esq.

Do you have a lease? Does it say anything about you paying utilities? Does it say you have to pay utilities for the other tenants? Take the extra money off the next month's rent. Tell your landlord it was her responsibility to insure that the tenants in the basement pay their fair share (and how would that be determined?) and that because she did not do that you are applying the extra utilities to the rent...AND make sure you do something to prevent that from happening if she re-rents the space. Also, is everything legal about the rental? I think the basement may be an illegal rental... you should call up the NYC dept of housing and find out...

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Answered on 6/10/10, 1:45 pm


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