Case Type

Non-payment

Housing Type

Rent Stabilized

Court

Civil Court of the City of New York

County

Bronx County (Bronx)

L&T / Index / Case / Docket / Clerk's Number

LT-337355-24/BX

Slip Opinion Number

2025 NY Slip Op 35141(U)

Petitioner

2075 CRESTON AVENUE REALTY LLC

Respondent

COLON, ELSA; CASTILLO, LUIS

Judge

Rumprecht-Behrens, Agata E.

Decision/Order Date

2025-12-23

Posture

Post-answer Motion by Tenant

Disposition

Motion Granted for Tenant

Winner

Tenant Substantially Won

Synopsis

In this nonpayment proceeding, the court granted the tenant's motion to amend their pro-se answer, finding the proposed defenses were not "palpably insufficient or devoid of merit." The court also granted limited discovery for the tenant's rent overcharge claim. The court rejected the landlord's argument that the claim was time-barred, applying *Matter of West Pierre Assoc. LLC v Harvey* because the tenancy commenced post-HSTPA. A single unexplained rent increase was deemed sufficient to render the rent history unreliable, justifying discovery to determine the legal rent.

Keywords

Motion To Amend Answer; CPLR § 3025(b); Discovery; CPLR § 408; Rent Overcharge; HSTPA; Overcharge Lookback Period; Matter Of West Pierre Assoc LLC v Harvey Applied; NYC Admin Code § 26-516; Unreliable Rent History Justifies Discovery; One Unexplained Rent Increase Renders Rent History Unreliable

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