“Above the Law” Landlord: Letitia James Caught Violating New York’s Rent Stabilization Laws

By The Blogging Hounds New York Attorney General Letitia James, who has styled herself as a defender of tenants’ rights and the working class, is now facing explosive revelations that she has personally violated the very rent stabilization laws she is sworn to enforce. For nearly a quarter of a century, James has failed to…

By The Blogging Hounds

New York Attorney General Letitia James, who has styled herself as a defender of tenants’ rights and the working class, is now facing explosive revelations that she has personally violated the very rent stabilization laws she is sworn to enforce. For nearly a quarter of a century, James has failed to register her Brooklyn apartment building with the New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR), unlawfully collecting inflated rents and stripping tenants of their legal protections.

A Building That Never Lost Rent Stabilization Status

James purchased 296 Lafayette Avenue in 2001, a four-story building in Brooklyn’s Clinton Hill neighborhood. Public records show that she never once registered the property with DHCR, as required for rent-stabilized buildings.

The key detail lies in the Certificates of Occupancy. In 1961, the building was legally designated as a seven-family dwelling. Under New York’s Rent Stabilization Law of 1969, any pre-1974 building with six or more units was automatically locked into rent stabilization protections. That status “runs with the building” forever and cannot be removed by later alterations.

Even though the unit count fluctuated—reduced to four units in 1981 and changed again to five units in 2001—the law is crystal clear: rent stabilization cannot be evaded by paperwork or alterations. New York’s highest court reaffirmed this principle in Gersten v. 56 7th Ave. LLC (2005).

Two Decades of Illegal Rents

Because James never registered her property, she was barred from legally raising rents. Yet tenants under her ownership have seen increases year after year. That means every rent hike since 2001 has been unlawful.

Under RSC § 2528.4, tenants can file overcharge complaints, triggering repayment of excess rent with 9% annual interest, plus treble damages for willful violations. Given that James’s noncompliance stretches back 24 years, her financial liability could easily reach into the millions.

The Hypocrisy of New York’s “Tenant Protector”

James has built her career on crusading against landlords she accuses of skirting rent laws. Just this August, she sued Zara Realty in Queens for overcharging tenants and ignoring rent reduction orders, declaring that “rent stabilization laws are a vital safeguard for working families.”

Yet by her own hand, James has denied her tenants those very safeguards. Worse, her long silence deprived city officials of crucial housing stock data, undermining affordability assessments in a city already suffering from a housing crisis.

A Pattern of Property Misrepresentation

This scandal comes on the heels of earlier revelations about James’s fraudulent real estate and mortgage filings, in which she allegedly misrepresented her unit count to obtain favorable loans. Now, combined with her DHCR violations, a picture emerges of an Attorney General operating as though she is above the law.

Time to Resign

The hypocrisy could not be starker. James has demanded accountability from landlords while flouting rent stabilization laws herself for nearly a quarter century. If any ordinary landlord had engaged in this misconduct, James herself would be the one leading the charge for their prosecution.

For the integrity of her office, Letitia James should:

Resign immediately as Attorney General
Register her building with DHCR
Provide restitution to her tenants for decades of illegal rent charges

Anything less will confirm what many New Yorkers already believe: that in Letitia James’s New York, the law applies to everyone but her.

Enjoying Our Content? Help Keep It Going!
When you shop through one of our hand-picked affiliate links below , you’re directly supporting this blog. We’re truly grateful for your support!