On September 5, 2018, the Board of Trustees of the Village of Ossining voted to adopt the New York State Emergency Tenant Protection Act (ETPA). This vote was taken after the board reviewed the results of a Housing Vacancy Rate Analysis it had commissioned for residential properties with six or more units that were built before January 1, 1974. The analysis found a vacancy rate of 3.06%, which was below the 5% threshold required to declare a state of public emergency requiring the regulation of certain residential rents.
The New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal ( DHCR) is responsible for administering the ETPA and is currently developing an implementation plan that will detail to owners, tenants and civic leaders, the respective rights and responsibilities relating to Initial Building registrations, rent increases , leases, maintenance of services, and protections from unlawful harassment and evictions. The implementation plan will be rolled out in the months ahead and will be communicated through this website and through targeted mailings to affected and interested parties.
In the interim, DHCR wants all affected parties to be aware of the following resources, which can be referred to and put into use immediately.
On October 25, 2018 the Office of Rent Administration sent a mailing to the owners of buildings in Ossining that the municipality had identified as being subject to the Emergency Tenant Protection Act. The mailing included a letter providing an overview of the requirements for participating in the ETPA and an Initial Registration packet. Reference material and contact information for assistance was also provided.
On November 13, 2018 the Westchester County Rent Guidelines Board voted to establish rent increase guideline rates that are specific for leases entered into in the Village of Ossining.
One year renewal lease - 0% increase
Two-year renewal lease - 1% increase or .8% increase (where the tenant pays for Heat and/or Hot Water)
Fair Market Rent Guideline - a look back period to challenge rent increases taken within six months prior to September 5, 2018: increases of no more than 4% for tenants with leases and increases of no more than 2% for tenants without written leases.
NOTE - Owners must serve each rent stabilized tenant with an Initial Apartment Registration form and tenants will have 90 days from the date of service to challenge the rent being registered through a Fair Market Rent Appeal(FMRA) on a DHCR application form. Tenants can still file the FMRA even if the registration is not served.
On November 30, 2018 the Office of Rent Administration sent a mailing to the owners of buildings in the Village of Ossining advising them that the previously announced deadline for filing initial registrations has been extended and that they will be advised of the new filing deadline in a future mailing. Owners were also notified that they will also be advised by future correspondence regarding when the annual fee payment for ETPA administration is due.
On March 26, 2019 the Office of Rent Administration sent a letter to the owners of buildings in Ossining restarting the registration process and directed owners to file initial building registrations within 30 days of the issuance date of the letter.
