ABOVE GUIDELINE RENT APPLICATIONS - CASE MANAGEMENT APPROACH STARTING MARCH 1, 2017
ABOVE GUIDELINE APPLICATIONS (The following item has been reproduced from the website of Cohen Highley LLP Rent Control Bulletin December 2016 Mr. Joe Hoffer lawyer and author of "A Practical Guide to the Tenant Protection Act)
Beginning in March 2017 the Board will adopt a “case management” approach to capital expenditure AGI applications. The Board will schedule a preliminary case management hearing and the parties will be expected to attend to discuss the details of the application and negotiate for a settlement of the proposed increase. If a resolution is reached then a “consent order” will issue and the matter will end. If the application is not resolved then the parties will have to reattend with their witnesses at a later date (perhaps months later) for a formal hearing before an adjudicator.
The benefits to the case management approach include the early opportunity to negotiate an AGI Order, or at a minimum to get disclosure of the tenants’ case. The downside is the prospect of delays if tenants are not prepared, or if they decline to seriously discuss settlement knowing that a hearing date is months off in the future. The current process puts mediation as a “last resort” and if it is not successful, then parties will usually go to a hearing immediately and this encourages successful mediation. With case management as an interim step, there may be less incentive to reach a resolution right away if the parties recognize there are no imminent consequences since the hearing is put off to a later date.
NOTE TO TENANTS CURRENTLY RESIDING IN THE SAME APARTMENT UNIT NOW AND IN 2007. If your landlord applied and received an ABOVE GUIDELINE RENT INCREASE during 2007 it is time to locate those applications for review to see if you qualify for a reduction in rent from the increase the landlord received at the time. Will post a further update on this subject in the next couple of weeks.
Beginning in March 2017 the Board will adopt a “case management” approach to capital expenditure AGI applications. The Board will schedule a preliminary case management hearing and the parties will be expected to attend to discuss the details of the application and negotiate for a settlement of the proposed increase. If a resolution is reached then a “consent order” will issue and the matter will end. If the application is not resolved then the parties will have to reattend with their witnesses at a later date (perhaps months later) for a formal hearing before an adjudicator.
The benefits to the case management approach include the early opportunity to negotiate an AGI Order, or at a minimum to get disclosure of the tenants’ case. The downside is the prospect of delays if tenants are not prepared, or if they decline to seriously discuss settlement knowing that a hearing date is months off in the future. The current process puts mediation as a “last resort” and if it is not successful, then parties will usually go to a hearing immediately and this encourages successful mediation. With case management as an interim step, there may be less incentive to reach a resolution right away if the parties recognize there are no imminent consequences since the hearing is put off to a later date.
NOTE TO TENANTS CURRENTLY RESIDING IN THE SAME APARTMENT UNIT NOW AND IN 2007. If your landlord applied and received an ABOVE GUIDELINE RENT INCREASE during 2007 it is time to locate those applications for review to see if you qualify for a reduction in rent from the increase the landlord received at the time. Will post a further update on this subject in the next couple of weeks.
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