Housing Issues


Please know that the Division of Housing and Community Renewalhttp://www.nyshcr.org/   (DHCR) is responsible for the supervision, maintenance and development of affordable low- and moderate-income housing in New York State.  DHCR performs a number of activities in fulfillment of this mission, including:

  • Rent Administration - Administration of the rent regulation process for more than one million rent-regulated apartments in both New York City, and those localities in the counties of Albany, Erie, Nassau, Rockland, Schenectady, Rensselaer and Westchester subject to rent laws;  click here: http://www.nyshcr.org/Rent/
  • Community Development - Administration of housing development and community preservation programs, including State and Federal grants and loans to housing developers to partially finance construction or renovation of affordable housing; and
  • Housing Operations - Oversite and regulation of the State's public and publicly assisted rental housing.

Rent Overcharges - In New York City and certain communities in Nassau, Rockland and Westchester counties where rent stabilization or rent control laws apply, the landlord may not charge more than the legal regulated rent. Under the housing law, landlords must register each rent stabilized apartment with DHCR and provide tenants annually with a copy of the registration statement. Tenants may also get a copy of the rent history for their apartment directly from DHCR.

To contact DHCR, please click here:  http://www.nyshcr.org/AboutUs/ContactUs.htm

Rent Security Deposits: The Office of New York State Attorney General offers, as an alternative to filing a lawsuit, a mediation service to assist tenants in recovering rent security deposits and interest. To access the Office’s mediation service, simply file a rent security complaint form with the Office of the New York State Attorney General, Bureau of Consumer Frauds and Protection at
28 Liberty Street, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10005.

The amount of a security deposit for a rent regulated apartment is usually limited by law to one month's rent. If the landlord demands that the tenant pay more than one month's security, a tenant can file a "Tenant's Complaint of Rent Overcharges and/or Excess Security Deposit" with DHCR (DHCR Form RA-89). You may obtain the form from the DHCR website here:

Tenants who are concerned about cooperative and condominium housing topics
should contact the office’s Real Estate Finance Bureau, click here

Real Estate Finance Bureau Complaint Form

Other Resources:

Housing tip sheets and educational materials:

Tenant Rights: