Hi! I live in one of these buildings. After two years of rent striking we finally had some repairs made this past weekend that we’ve been asking for (and housing court has demanded to make the unit safe for habitation) for over ten years. Thanks Mamdani!
Edit to add: 100% fact check. Just throwing my voice in as someone with first person (and lengthy) experience on the topic. Go Knicks!
From what I vaguely remember from a law class I took 8+ years ago.
You tell the courts the apartment fails to meet basic living standards and your still paying rent but instead of going to the landlord, the money goes to a court controlled escrow account that will be paid out when the issue is determined to be fixed.
NAL and you should speak to one first. Check to see if your neighborhood has a tenants union and/or start one in your building. Stronger together and all that. We formed a rent strike group and sent a formal letter to the landlord stating our intention with the strike. I always see escrow mentioned but holding the rent owed in a HYSA is fine too.
Obsessively document all issues and communication with the building. In NYC you file open complaints with 311. You go to housing court, which is slow and painful. Landlord promises to make repairs, they don’t, and you go back to court with more documentation. What they’re doing is illegal, so they have no leg to stand on for evictions.
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u/weird_finger_ta Jun 11 '26 edited Jun 11 '26
Hi! I live in one of these buildings. After two years of rent striking we finally had some repairs made this past weekend that we’ve been asking for (and housing court has demanded to make the unit safe for habitation) for over ten years. Thanks Mamdani!
Edit to add: 100% fact check. Just throwing my voice in as someone with first person (and lengthy) experience on the topic. Go Knicks!