Court Declares Former Rent-Controlled Apartment Rent-Stabilized: What Tenants Should Know

Thurman v. Sullivan Properties L.P., Index No. 653540/2022 (Sup. Ct. N.Y. Cnty. Oct. 14, 2026)

By Bikram Singh, Esq. | Singh & Rani LLP

On October 14, 2026, the New York County Supreme Court (Hon. Matthew V. Grieco) granted partial summary judgment to our client, tenant Todd Thurman. The Court declared that his Greenwich Village apartment is rent-stabilized, even though the landlord had treated it as deregulated for more than 15 years. The decision is Thurman v. Sullivan Properties L.P., Index No. 653540/2022.

Bikram Singh of Singh & Rani LLP represented the plaintiff, Todd Thurman, in this case.

Background

Apartment 3A at 117 Sullivan Street was rent-controlled until the last rent-controlled tenant moved out in 2005. The landlord then rented it to a new tenant for $2,550 per month. That rent was above the $2,000 "luxury" deregulation threshold in effect at the time. From then on, the landlord treated the unit as fully deregulated. Every later lease, including Mr. Thurman's 2010 lease, said the apartment was not rent-stabilized.

The landlord argued that the apartment left regulation automatically because the first post-control rent was above $2,000. The Court disagreed.

What the Court Decided

A vacated rent-controlled apartment becomes rent-stabilized. Under New York law, when a rent-controlled tenant leaves, the apartment moves into rent stabilization (Liggett v. Lew Realty LLC, 42 N.Y.3d 415 [2024]). The first rent the owner and the next tenant agree on is the initial regulated rent (Rent Stabilization Code § 2521.1[a][1]).

Luxury deregulation was never automatic. To deregulate an apartment, an owner had to follow specific steps. One required step was giving the new tenant a written notice showing the last regulated rent, the reason the unit was no longer regulated, and how the rent reached the deregulation threshold. An apartment that was never properly treated as rent-stabilized could not be removed from stabilization through high-rent vacancy deregulation (Matter of AEJ 534 E. 88th, LLC v. DHCR, 194 A.D.3d 464 [1st Dept 2021]).

The records showed the landlord skipped those steps. No lease ever met the requirements for a rent-stabilized lease. DHCR's rent history listed the unit as rent-controlled through 2020, and no rent was ever registered. The landlord's own general counsel swore that the apartment was "never subject to rent stabilization." The Court found that this sworn statement effectively conceded that the apartment had never been properly deregulated.

Earlier in the case, the Appellate Division, First Department, held that a tenant may challenge an apartment's deregulated status at any time during the tenancy. The usual four-year lookback period for overcharge claims does not block that kind of challenge (Thurman v. Sullivan Properties L.P., 226 A.D.3d 453 [1st Dept 2024]).

Why This Matters for Tenants

Many New York City apartments that left rent control in the 1990s and 2000s were treated as "market rate" based only on a high first rent. If the owner did not follow the required procedure, the apartment may still be rent-stabilized. A rent-stabilized tenant has the right to renewal leases and is protected by limits on rent increases. The tenant may also have a claim for overcharges.

Your apartment may be worth reviewing if:

• it was once rent-controlled, or a long-term tenant lived there before you;
• your lease says the unit is "not rent-stabilized," but you never received a deregulation notice;
• your DHCR rent history shows no registrations, or still lists the unit as rent-controlled.

You can request your apartment's rent history from DHCR at no cost.

Singh & Rani LLP represents tenants and owners in rent stabilization, overcharge, and deregulation disputes throughout New York City. Bikram Singh represented the plaintiff-tenant in Thurman v. Sullivan Properties L.P. If you have questions about your apartment's status, please contact us at (212) 729-6920 or bsingh@singhranilaw.com.

Singh & Rani LLP 5 Penn Plaza, 19th Floor New York, NY 10001

Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. This post is for general information only and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.

Related: First Department Affirms Tenant's Right to Challenge Deregulation — and Declines to Follow McNeely