Whether your landlord must offer you a lease renewal — and on what terms — depends on whether your apartment is rent stabilized, covered by Good Cause Eviction, or unregulated. This guide explains what each category of tenant is entitled to when their lease comes up for renewal.
Lease Renewal Rights for Rent-Stabilized Tenants
If your apartment is rent stabilized, your lease renewal rights are the strongest in New York State. Under the Rent Stabilization Law, your landlord must offer you a renewal lease between 90 and 150 days before your current lease expires. The renewal must be offered on the same terms and conditions as your current lease, with only the rent adjustment permitted by the NYC Rent Guidelines Board.
What Your Landlord Must Do
- Send a written renewal offer between 90 and 150 days before your lease expires
- Offer a one-year or two-year renewal term (your choice)
- Charge only the rent increase approved by the NYC Rent Guidelines Board for that year
- Keep all other lease terms the same (they cannot add new restrictions in the renewal)
What You Must Do
You have 60 days from receipt of the renewal offer to sign and return it. If you do not respond within 60 days, your landlord can treat your silence as a refusal — though in practice courts look closely at the full circumstances. Return the signed renewal as soon as you decide to stay.
What Happens If Your Landlord Doesn’t Offer a Renewal
If your landlord fails to send a renewal offer in the required timeframe, your lease automatically continues on a month-to-month basis at the same rent — no increase. File a complaint with DHCR at (718) 739-6400 if this happens, and contact a tenant attorney.
Narrow Exceptions Where a Landlord Can Refuse Renewal
Under rent stabilization, a landlord can refuse to renew only in limited, legally defined circumstances:
- Owner occupancy: The owner or an immediate family member intends to occupy the apartment as their primary residence — but strict procedural requirements and timelines apply
- Non-primary residence: The tenant is not using the apartment as their primary residence
- Substantial rehabilitation: The building will be gut-rehabilitated (requires DHCR approval)
- Demolition: Requires DHCR approval and advance notice
- Material lease violation: The tenant materially violated the lease and was given notice and opportunity to cure
If your landlord claims any of these exceptions, demand the legal basis in writing and consult a tenant attorney immediately. These exceptions are frequently misused.
Lease Renewal Rights Under Good Cause Eviction
Since April 2024, tenants covered by Good Cause Eviction (market-rate apartments in larger buildings not covered by rent stabilization) have a right to lease renewal unless the landlord has a legally defined good cause reason to refuse.
Valid reasons to refuse renewal under Good Cause include material lease violations, nuisance, illegal activity, damage, refusal of access, owner occupancy, and demolition — the same categories that justify eviction. “I want to rent to someone else” or “I want to charge more” are not valid reasons.
Good Cause does not cap your rent increase the way stabilization does — but increases above the threshold (5% above current rent, or CPI plus 5%, whichever is higher) are presumed unreasonable and can be challenged in housing court if the landlord tries to evict you for nonpayment of the higher amount.
Lease Renewal Rights for Unregulated Tenants (Not Covered by Good Cause)
If your apartment is unregulated and you are not covered by Good Cause Eviction (for example, you are in a small owner-occupied building, a building completed within 30 years, or a condo rented by the individual owner), your landlord has no legal obligation to offer you a renewal lease. Your tenancy ends when the lease expires unless your landlord chooses to renew.
In this situation:
- Begin renewal discussions with your landlord at least 60 days before your lease expires
- Get any renewal agreement in writing before your current lease ends
- If your landlord doesn’t renew and doesn’t formally ask you to leave, and you remain past the lease end date with their knowledge, you may become a month-to-month tenant — but this depends on the circumstances and your lease terms
Key Dates: When to Act
- 150 days before lease expiration: Earliest date your stabilized landlord can send the renewal offer
- 90 days before lease expiration: Latest date your stabilized landlord must send the renewal offer
- 60 days from receiving the renewal offer: Deadline for you to sign and return a stabilized lease renewal
- 30–60 days before expiration: Start discussions if unregulated; get anything agreed to in writing
What If Your Landlord Adds New Terms to the Renewal Lease?
For rent-stabilized tenants, renewal leases must be on the same terms as the prior lease — your landlord cannot unilaterally add new restrictions, new fees, or new rules in a renewal. If the renewal offer includes substantively different terms, you can reject those terms while accepting the renewal, and file a complaint with DHCR if your landlord refuses to correct the lease.
For unregulated tenants, landlords have more flexibility — a renewal is essentially a new lease negotiation, and the landlord can propose new terms. You are not obligated to accept them, but you also have no legal right to the prior terms.
Free Help
- DHCR Tenant Hotline: (718) 739-6400 — for stabilized tenant lease renewal questions
- Met Council on Housing: (212) 979-0611
- Legal Aid Society: legalaidnyc.org
- Legal Services NYC: lsnyc.org
Frequently Asked Questions
My landlord offered me a renewal but raised my rent by 15%. Is that legal for a stabilized apartment?
No. Rent-stabilized rent increases are capped at the annual percentages set by the NYC Rent Guidelines Board — which have ranged from 0% to low single digits in recent years for one-year leases. A 15% increase is almost certainly illegal. File a complaint with DHCR immediately.
My lease expires in two months and my landlord hasn’t sent a renewal. What should I do?
If you are rent stabilized: contact DHCR at (718) 739-6400 and a tenant attorney — your landlord is already late (the offer should have come 90–150 days before expiration). Your lease continues month-to-month in the meantime. If unregulated: contact your landlord in writing now and ask about renewal.
I signed a renewal lease but now want to back out. Can I?
Once signed and returned, a lease renewal is generally binding. If you discover the terms are unlawful (for example, an illegal rent increase for a stabilized apartment), you can challenge those specific terms with DHCR while still accepting the lease itself.
Can my landlord change the pet policy in my renewal lease?
For stabilized tenants, renewal leases must be on the same terms as the prior lease. A landlord cannot add a new no-pets clause to a renewal if the prior lease permitted pets. For unregulated tenants, a landlord can propose new terms in a renewal, including pet restrictions.
