Bill Text: NY A03351 | 2013-2014 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relates to providing recourse for manufactured homeowners in manufactured home parks confronted with unjustifiable rent increases; creates a local option in counties in New York state to provide such protection.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-2)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2014-05-07 - REFERRED TO HOUSING, CONSTRUCTION AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT [A03351 Detail]

Download: New_York-2013-A03351-Introduced.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
           S. 2905                                                  A. 3351
                              2013-2014 Regular Sessions
                             S E N A T E - A S S E M B L Y
                                   January 24, 2013
                                      ___________
       IN  SENATE  --  Introduced  by Sens. LAVALLE, NOZZOLIO -- read twice and
         ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee  on
         Housing, Construction and Community Development
       IN  ASSEMBLY  -- Introduced by M. of A. THIELE, LOSQUADRO, GRAF, JAFFEE,
         SCARBOROUGH -- read once and referred to the Committee on Judiciary
       AN ACT to amend the real property law, in relation to providing recourse
         for manufactured  homeowners  in  manufactured  home  parks,  who  are
         confronted with unjustifiable rent increases
         THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section 1. Legislative findings. The legislature  finds  and  declares
    2  that:
    3    (a) Factors unique to home ownership in manufactured home parks in New
    4  York  state  require  that  the  owners  of  such  manufactured homes be
    5  protected from involuntary forfeiture of their homes due to unreasonable
    6  increases in lot rent.
    7    (b) Homeownership in such manufactured home parks differs  from  other
    8  forms  of  homeownership as well as from the traditional landlord-tenant
    9  relationship. Unlike other homeowners, because the manufactured homeown-
   10  ers do not control the land on which  their  manufactured  homes  exist,
   11  they  have  no  control  over  this substantial portion of their housing
   12  costs.
   13    (c) Vacant lots on which to place an existing  manufactured  home  are
   14  extremely  rare in New York state, and the cost of relocating a manufac-
   15  tured home, even if such a vacancy exists,  is  prohibitively  high  and
   16  threatens the structural integrity of many manufactured homes.
   17    (d)  The  manufactured  homeowners'  total  lack  of  bargaining power
   18  disrupts the normal operation of market forces and renders such manufac-
   19  tured homeowners captive to whatever  terms  a  manufactured  home  park
   20  owner  may choose to impose. Although many manufactured home park owners
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD01864-01-3
       S. 2905                             2                            A. 3351
    1  choose not to take advantage of their superior  bargaining  power,  many
    2  do.  This often results in manufactured homeowners being evicted because
    3  of manufactured home park rents they can no  longer  afford,  and  as  a
    4  result,  losing  their  manufactured home altogether because there is no
    5  alternative site on which to place such home.
    6    (e) Under current law, manufactured homeowners who rent lots in  manu-
    7  factured home parks have no legal remedy for an unjustifiable and unrea-
    8  sonable rent increase.
    9    S  2. Subdivision e of section 233 of the real property law is amended
   10  by adding a new paragraph 4 to read as follows:
   11    4. ALL RENT INCREASES, INCLUDING ALL FEES, RENTS, CHARGES, ASSESSMENTS
   12  AND UTILITIES, SHALL  BE  SUBJECT  TO  JUDICIAL  CHALLENGE  PURSUANT  TO
   13  SECTION  TWO  HUNDRED  THIRTY-THREE-B  OF  THIS ARTICLE FOR MANUFACTURED
   14  HOMEOWNERS.
   15    S 3. Paragraph 2 of subdivision g of section 233 of the real  property
   16  law,  as  amended by chapter 566 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read
   17  as follows:
   18    2. A manufactured home park owner or operator  shall  be  required  to
   19  fully  disclose  in  writing  all  fees, charges, assessments, including
   20  rental fees, rules and regulations prior to [a manufactured home  tenant
   21  assuming  occupancy] ENTERING INTO A RENTAL AGREEMENT WITH A PROSPECTIVE
   22  TENANT in the manufactured home park.
   23    S 4. The real property law is amended by adding a new section 233-b to
   24  read as follows:
   25    S 233-B. UNJUSTIFIED RENT INCREASES IN MANUFACTURED HOME  PARKS.    1.
   26  LOCAL  OPTION.  THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION SHALL APPLY IN ANY COUNTY
   27  IN WHICH THE GOVERNING BOARD OF SUCH  COUNTY  HAS  PASSED  A  LOCAL  LAW
   28  ADOPTING THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION.
   29    2.  SCOPE.  TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR THIS REMEDY, THE MANUFACTURED HOME MUST
   30  BE THE PRIMARY RESIDENCE OF THE MANUFACTURED HOMEOWNER.
   31    3. PRIMA FACIE CASE. AN INCREASE IN RENT WHICH EXCEEDS THE  PERCENTAGE
   32  INCREASE  IN  THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX SINCE THE CURRENT LOT RENT BECAME
   33  EFFECTIVE MAY BE CHALLENGED BY AN AGGRIEVED  MANUFACTURED  HOMEOWNER  AS
   34  UNJUSTIFIED.  THE  TERM "CONSUMER PRICE INDEX" MEANS THE INDEX PUBLISHED
   35  MONTHLY BY THE UNITED  STATES  DEPARTMENT  OF  LABOR,  BUREAU  OF  LABOR
   36  STATISTICS,  FOR  THE  APPLICABLE  NEW  YORK  REGION.  IN  THIS SECTION,
   37  "INCREASE IN LOT  RENT"  INCLUDES  ALL  COST  INCREASES,  INCLUDING  ALL
   38  INCREASED RENT, FEES, CHARGES, ASSESSMENTS AND UTILITIES.
   39    4. JOINDER. MULTIPLE AGGRIEVED MANUFACTURED HOMEOWNERS MAY JOIN IN THE
   40  SAME ACTION WHERE THERE IS A COMMON QUESTION OF LAW OR FACT.
   41    5.  VENUE  AND STATUTE OF LIMITATION. WITHIN NINETY DAYS OF THE NOTICE
   42  OF THE PROPOSED INCREASE, AN AGGRIEVED MANUFACTURED HOMEOWNER MAY  CHAL-
   43  LENGE  SUCH  INCREASE  BY  FILING AN ACTION IN THE COUNTY WHERE THE REAL
   44  PROPERTY IS  LOCATED  SEEKING  A  DECLARATORY  JUDGMENT  THAT  THE  RENT
   45  INCREASE IS UNJUSTIFIABLE.
   46    6.  PRESUMPTION.  IN ANY PROCEEDINGS UNDER THIS SECTION THERE SHALL BE
   47  AN IRREBUTTABLE PRESUMPTION THAT A RENT INCREASE IS JUSTIFIABLE WHEN THE
   48  AMOUNT OF SUCH INCREASE DOES NOT EXCEED THE TENANT'S PRO-RATA  SHARE  IN
   49  OPERATING  COSTS  AND  PROPERTY  TAXES FOR THE MANUFACTURED HOME PARK IN
   50  WHICH THE TENANT RESIDES.
   51    7. STANDARD FOR JUDICIAL REVIEW.  IN DETERMINING WHETHER THE  PROPOSED
   52  RENT INCREASE IS UNJUSTIFIABLE, THE COURT SHALL CONSIDER:
   53    (A)   INCREASES  IN  THE  MANUFACTURED  HOME  PARK  OWNER'S  OPERATING
   54  EXPENSES.
   55    (B) INCREASES IN THE MANUFACTURED HOME PARK OWNER'S PROPERTY TAXES  ON
   56  SUCH PARK.
       S. 2905                             3                            A. 3351
    1    (C) INCREASES IN THE COST OF DEBT SERVICE WHICH IS DIRECTLY RELATED TO
    2  ACQUISITION OR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURED HOME PARK.
    3    (D) THE RETURN ON THE MANUFACTURED HOME PARK OWNER'S EQUITY INVESTMENT
    4  OVER  THE  PAST  THREE  YEARS,  AND THE REASONS OFFERED BY THE OWNER FOR
    5  SEEKING AN INCREASE IN THE RETURN ON HIS OR HER INVESTMENT.
    6    (E) A SAMPLING OF CURRENT LOT RENTS IN THE REGION IN WHICH THE PARK IS
    7  LOCATED.
    8    (F) ANY OTHER COSTS ASSERTED BY THE MANUFACTURED HOME PARK OWNER WHICH
    9  ARE RELEVANT AND PROBATIVE OF THE NEED FOR AN INCREASE.
   10    8. CONDITIONAL APPROVAL. THE COURT MAY CONDITION ITS APPROVAL  OF  ANY
   11  JUSTIFIED  INCREASE  UPON  THE REDRESS OF CONDITIONS IN THE MANUFACTURED
   12  HOME PARK WHICH THREATEN THE HEALTH AND SAFETY OF THE MANUFACTURED  HOME
   13  PARK TENANTS.
   14    9.  ESCROW.    WHILE  A  CHALLENGE TO A RENT INCREASE PURSUANT TO THIS
   15  SECTION IS PENDING, MANUFACTURED HOME PARK TENANTS SHALL PAY THE  AMOUNT
   16  OF THE RENT INCREASE TO THE MANUFACTURED HOME PARK OWNER, WHO SHALL HOLD
   17  SUCH  AMOUNTS IN ESCROW PENDING A MEDIATED AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE PARTIES
   18  OR A FINAL DECISION FROM THE COURT, PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT NO  MANUFAC-
   19  TURED  HOME  PARK  TENANT  SHALL  BE EVICTED FOR NON-PAYMENT OF THE RENT
   20  INCREASE PRIOR TO A FINAL DISPOSITION OF THE MATTER BY THE COURT IN  THE
   21  COUNTY WHERE THE MANUFACTURED HOME PARK IS LOCATED. FAILURE BY THE MANU-
   22  FACTURED  HOME  PARK  OWNER  TO  PLACE  SUCH CHALLENGED RENT INCREASE IN
   23  ESCROW SHALL BE PUNISHABLE BY A CIVIL PENALTY  OF  NOT  MORE  THAN  FIVE
   24  HUNDRED  DOLLARS.  IF THE PETITIONERS APPEAL, THE MANUFACTURED HOME PARK
   25  OWNER MAY REMOVE THE RENT INCREASE FUNDS FROM ESCROW, MINGLE SUCH  FUNDS
   26  WITH  ANY  OTHER FUNDS, AND EVICT A TENANT WHO HAS NOT PAID THE INCREASE
   27  FOR NON-PAYMENT OF RENT. IF THE COURT ENTERS A FINAL JUDGMENT  DECLARING
   28  THE  RENT  INCREASES OR ANY PART THEREOF UNJUSTIFIABLE, THE MANUFACTURED
   29  HOME PARK OWNER SHALL REFUND THE AMOUNT  OF  UNJUSTIFIABLE  INCREASE  TO
   30  EACH TENANT HOUSEHOLD.
   31    S  5. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed-
   32  ing the date  on which it shall have become a law.