LIEB BLOG

Legal Analysts

Wednesday, October 05, 2011

Right to always Assign or Sublet a Lease

Right to always Assign or Sublet a Lease

At last night's class, Long Island Landlord, a real estate agent inquired whether a landlord could draft a lease to a single family residence, which flat out precluded assignments or sublets. While indicating that a landlord may not, I could not recall the statute or the wording, which was the foundation for this rule and therefore agreed to provide it on the blog today.

Real Property Law §226-b(1) states: Unless a greater right to assign is conferred by the lease, a tenant renting a residence may not assign his lease without the written consent of the owner, which consent may be unconditionally withheld without cause provided that the owner shall release the tenant from the lease upon request of the tenant upon thirty days notice if the owner unreasonably withholds consent which release shall be the sole remedy of the tenant. If the owner reasonably withholds consent, there shall be no assignment and the tenant shall not be released from the lease.

Therefore, a landlord cannot fully prevent a tenant from a right to assign or sublease by unconditionally withholding consent unless the landlord is willing to release the tenant from the lease (in a 4 or more residential unit apartment, a landlord can never unreasonably withhold consent). A landlord should be mindful that releasing the tenant from the lease would result in the tenant being free and clear of all responsibilities, but allowing the assignment or sublease would result in the tenant plus an additional tenant being liable to the landlord, unless there is a novation accompanying the assignment or sublease, which is not required. Therefore, it would seem that except in special circumstances a landlord should only object to an assignment or sublease if they have good cause.

Real Property Law §226-b(6) states: Any provision of a lease or rental agreement purporting to waive a provision of this section is null and void.

Therefore, you cannot draft around this provision. Yet, there are certain properties the statue does not apply to such as a rent stabilized apartments. To be clear, the statute does apply to single-family residences.


WARNING - Read the statute prior to relying on this blog to be sure its applicable to your specific situation and to comply with its notice requirements.

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011

HUD's RESPA Settlement Agreements

HUD's RESPA Settlement Agreements
We are often asked at the Long Island Education Board how we know HUD's position with respect to potential RESPA violations. We know from reading their previous settlements & decisions.

Here is a great link to see how HUD has previously settled RESPA issues. Learning from the past is a great way to enhance the future. Click here to see the settlements.
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Thursday, September 22, 2011

Sleeping Epiphany of Last Night's Course

Sleeping Epiphany of Last Night's Course
As discussed at last night's course - Conflicts of Interest - us attorneys often wake in the middle of the night and fear we gave inaccurate advice or need to revisit a topic with a client. Well, I realized while sleeping, awaking at 3am to email myself a note that I may have discussed the wrong term of art concerning HUD's Regulation X & RESPA. The proper term at issue is "required use". Although alluding to the term in the class, I awoke to realize I may have said something otherwise, while nonetheless addressing the very same topic.

This topic was originally blogged about on July 26, 2010 & addressed HUD's request for comments. The request can be found at this link, but has long since expired.

Currently, the regulation reads as follows, but as you can tell the regulation greatly impacts the job of a real estate agent & you should not only remain informed, but have your voice heard on any future changes to the definition.

Required use means a situation in which a person must use a particular provider of a settlement service in order to have access to some distinct service or property, and the person will pay for the settlement service of the particular provider or will pay a charge attributable, in whole or in part, to the settlement service. However, the offering of a package (or combination of settlement services) or the offering of discounts or rebates to consumers for the purchase of multiple settlement services does not constitute a required use. Any package or discount must be optional to the purchaser. The discount must be a true discount below the prices that are otherwise generally available, and must not be made up by higher costs elsewhere in the settlement process.
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Obtaining a Certified Copy of your Deed in Suffolk County

Obtaining a Certified Copy of your Deed in Suffolk County
An important warning about companies defrauding consumers with between $50 to $100 of unnecessary fees for a document you may not need right now.

The letter has been redacted to protect the privacy of its recipients.

All should know that the letter comes with a slip to fill-out and to enclose $5 in order to receive a certified copy of your deed. Its that easy. If you didn't receive the letter, simply utilize the secure online site, discussed in the letter, to order a copy of your deed.
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Sunday, September 18, 2011

An excerpt from our continuing educational classes - register now!

An excerpt from our continuing educational classes - register now!
Foreclosure & the Economy: The Short Sale Class
9/13/11
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