How to Read a New York Residential Lease for Exam Questions

The most reliable exam method is to read in layers:

1. identify the tenancy and housing category
2. read the actual clause
3. check the statewide statutory overlay
4. add rent-regulation, Good Cause and local rules when they apply
5. determine the lawful process and remedy

Avoid assuming that a signed clause wins over a statute. Resist the urge to assume that every tenant has the same renewal or rent rules.

The lease in one table

Official source map

The New York Attorney General Residential Tenants' Rights Guide gives the current statewide overview. New York Homes and Community Renewal provides official rent-stabilized lease riders, renewal forms and fact sheets.

The statutory anchors include:

• Real Property Law section 235-b: implied warranty of habitability in every residential rental agreement.
• Real Property Law section 235-f: occupancy by immediate family and one additional occupant in qualifying circumstances.
• Real Property Law section 235-e: rent receipts and the five-day certified-mail nonpayment notice.
• Real Property Law section 226-b: assignment and sublet procedures.
• Real Property Law section 226-c: notice for certain rent increases and nonrenewals.
• Real Property Law sections 231-a, 231-b and 231-c: sprinkler, flood-risk and Good Cause notices.
• Real Property Law section 223-b: retaliation protections.
• Real Property Law section 227-e: landlord's duty to mitigate when a tenant vacates in violation of the lease.
• Real Property Law section 238-a: limits on residential late fees and certain application or court-related charges.
• General Obligations Law section 7-108: security-deposit rules for non-rent-regulated residential units.

Step zero: classify the housing before reading the clause

The same sentence can produce a different answer depending on the unit.

Ask:

1. Is the unit market-rate, rent stabilized, rent controlled or subsidized?
2. Is it in New York City or another municipality with local rules?
3. Is it covered by Good Cause Eviction, or exempt?
4. Is the owner or transfer subject to a special statutory exception?
5. Is the question about a lease right, a statutory right or both?

Market-rate does not mean unregulated

A market-rate lease is still subject to statewide rules on habitability, security deposits, roommates, retaliation, fees, notices and eviction process.

Rent-stabilized lease

Rent-stabilized tenants receive additional protections involving legal rent, vacancy and renewal leases, required riders, services and grounds for eviction. In New York City, HCR's rent-stabilized rider must be attached to vacancy and renewal leases. The rider explains rights and the rent calculation. HCR supplies separate forms and addenda for covered ETPA locations outside New York City.

Good Cause coverage

Good Cause Eviction applies in New York City and municipalities that validly opt in, subject to statutory exemptions. It limits covered landlords' ability to remove tenants or refuse renewal without a statutory ground and provides a framework for challenging unreasonable rent increases.

Coverage can change as municipalities opt in. For a current transaction, verify the property address, effective date, ownership facts and exemptions. For an exam question, use the facts given.

Clause 1: parties, agents and notice addresses

The lease should correctly identify:

• landlord or legal owner
• tenant or tenants
• managing agent, if any
• address for rent and legal notices
• emergency or repair contact

The property manager may administer the lease without owning the property. A broker who helped rent the unit is not automatically the landlord's ongoing property manager.

All named tenants can be jointly responsible when the lease creates joint and several liability. That can let landlord pursue one tenant for the full unpaid amount, leaving cotenants to resolve contribution among themselves.

Exam cue: First identify who signed and which capacity each person holds.

Clause 2: premises and permitted spaces

The premises clause identifies the apartment or house and any included areas:

• storage unit
• parking space
• yard or patio
• laundry area
• common spaces
• furnishings or appliances

Access to a shared roof, basement or driveway should not be assumed from physical availability. Read the lease and building rules.

The legal status of the unit matters. A lease description does not create a valid certificate of occupancy or legalize a prohibited dwelling.

Clause 3: term and type of tenancy

A fixed-term lease states a beginning and ending date. A periodic tenancy continues for recurring periods until lawfully terminated. A holdover can become a tenancy at sufferance or a new periodic relationship depending on possession, rent acceptance and law.

Written and oral leases

The Attorney General explains that non-rent-stabilized apartment leases may be oral or written, but an oral lease for longer than one year cannot be enforced under the Statute of Frauds. Written terms reduce disputes.

Expiration is not physical eviction

Even after a lease expires, landlord cannot change locks, remove belongings or shut off services to force departure. A lawful eviction requires notice, a court proceeding, judgment, warrant and enforcement by an authorized officer.

Rent stabilization and Good Cause can also restrict refusal to renew.

Clause 4: rent, due date and payment method

Read for:

• monthly rent
• due date
• permitted payment methods
• address or portal
• first-month proration
• returned-payment charges
• concessions
• renewal or escalation terms

A “free month” can be a concession while the legal or gross rent is higher. Determine which number controls renewal, deposit and other calculations.

Rent receipt

New York law and local rules can require receipts in specified circumstances. Keep proof of payment regardless of method.

Late fees

Real Property Law section 238-a provides that an ordinary residential late fee cannot be demanded unless rent remains unpaid after five days and cannot exceed $50 or five percent of monthly rent, whichever is less. A 2025 amendment permits a cooperative housing corporation outside specified regulated programs to charge an owner-shareholder up to eight percent of monthly maintenance when the proprietary lease or occupancy agreement provides for it.

Separately, Real Property Law section 235-e requires landlord or the authorized rent-collection agent to send a certified-mail notice when rent is not received within five days of the lease due date. Failure to send it can be used as an affirmative defense in a nonpayment eviction. A qualifying co-op proprietary lease may provide another mailing method for an owner-shareholder.

A lease cannot enlarge that statutory maximum simply by printing a higher charge.

Rent increase is not one universal rule

For an unregulated unit, the contract and notice law matter. Rent-stabilized increases follow regulated rules. Good Cause can affect whether an increase is unreasonable in a covered unit. Never use one percentage without first identifying the unit.

Clause 5: security deposit

Statewide reform generally limits a residential security deposit to one month's rent.

The lease should identify:

• deposit amount
• account treatment
• conditions for lawful deductions
• move-in condition documentation
• inspection before move-out
• return address

The deposit remains the tenant's money held as security. It is not automatically the final month's rent, and tenant should not simply stop paying the last month unless landlord agrees.

Non-rent-regulated unit

General Obligations Law section 7-108 provides an inspection opportunity before move-out and generally requires return of the deposit with an itemized statement of deductions within 14 days after tenant vacates. Missing the itemized statement deadline can forfeit landlord's right to retain any portion. Willful violation can support punitive damages up to twice the deposit.

Rent-regulated unit

Different return and interest rules can apply. Do not carry the nonregulated 14-day rule into every rent-stabilized question without checking the governing provision.

Ordinary wear versus damage

Security may cover unpaid rent, damage beyond ordinary wear, and other lawful charges under the agreement and statute. Faded paint from normal use differs from a large hole caused by tenant conduct.

Clause 6: occupants, roommates and guests

Real Property Law section 235-f prevents enforcement of some lease clauses that unduly restrict occupancy.

In general:

• a tenant may occupy with immediate family
• when one tenant is named, tenant may generally add one additional occupant and that occupant's dependent children
• when two or more tenants are named, tenants and immediate family may occupy, and occupants may be added so total tenants and occupants do not exceed the number of named tenants
• tenant must maintain the premises as a primary residence and comply with notice requests under the statute
• occupancy remains subject to lawful overcrowding standards

This is not permission for an illegal short-term rental or commercial lodging business.

Guest versus occupant

A guest visits temporarily. An occupant resides there. The lease can regulate conduct and lawful use, but statutory roommate rights cannot be waived through a more restrictive label.

Clause 7: use, conduct, pets and smoking

Use clauses may address:

• residential use only
• nuisance and illegal activity
• noise
• pets
• smoking
• common-area rules
• waste and property damage

Rules must also comply with fair housing. A no-pets clause does not decide a reasonable accommodation request for an assistance animal. An assistance animal is not treated as a pet for that analysis.

Good Cause coverage can also require that rules invoked as grounds for removal be reasonable, written and accepted by tenant, with statutory cure opportunities.

Clause 8: utilities, services and building systems

The lease should state who pays electricity, gas, heat, water, internet and other utilities. It may explain separately metered service and shared charges.

Payment allocation does not erase landlord's duty to provide legally required essential services. Heat, hot water and utility shutoff rules can involve state and local law.

Exam trap: “Tenant pays for heat” does not necessarily mean tenant must repair landlord's central heating system.

Clause 9: repairs and warranty of habitability

Real Property Law section 235-b places an implied warranty in every written or oral residential rental agreement. The premises must be fit for human habitation, fit for the uses reasonably intended, and free from conditions dangerous or detrimental to life, health or safety.

The warranty cannot be waived. A clause saying tenant accepts dangerous conditions and releases landlord from all responsibility does not defeat the statute.

Tenant can still be responsible for damage caused by tenant, household members or guests. Habitability is not a promise that every cosmetic feature will be perfect.

Repair workflow

A lease may require tenant to give written repair notice and access. For an exam scenario:

1. identify the condition

2. determine who caused it

3. check notice and access

4. separate emergency safety issues from routine maintenance

5. apply habitability and local housing rules

Clause 10: landlord access

Access clauses often permit entry for repairs, inspections, legally required work and showings. They usually call for reasonable notice except in emergencies.

The lease should not be read as permission for harassment or repeated unnecessary entry. Good Cause guidance identifies reasonable notice and a lawful purpose as important when access refusal is alleged.

The exact local notice rule can vary. Avoid memorizing one statewide number for every access situation.

Clause 11: alterations and improvements

This clause may prohibit alterations without written consent and address restoration at move-out.

Check:

• painting
• fixtures and wall mounting
• satellite or communications equipment
• accessibility modifications
• permits and licensed contractors
• mechanic's liens
• ownership or removal of improvements

Fair housing can require reasonable modifications for a person with a disability under applicable law. The allocation of cost and restoration depends on the housing and request.

Clause 12: assignment and subletting

Assignment transfers the tenant's entire remaining lease interest. A sublease transfers less than the whole interest, and the original tenant remains in a landlord-tenant relationship with the prime landlord.

Real Property Law section 226-b supplies important procedures.

Assignment

A tenant cannot assign without owner's written consent unless the lease grants a greater right. Owner may generally withhold consent to assignment without cause, but if owner unreasonably refuses, tenant may request release from the lease under the statutory procedure.

Sublet in a building with four or more residential units

A tenant generally has a right to sublet with advance written notice and statutory information. Owner cannot unreasonably withhold consent. The statute sets a response process and consequences.

Rent-regulated tenants also face HCR rules, primary-residence requirements and limits on sublet duration or profit.

Avoid confusing a lawful roommate with a subtenant. The rights, notice and possession differ.

Clause 13: insurance, indemnity and liability

A lease may require renter's insurance and allocate responsibility for personal property. Standard renter's insurance typically does not cover flood damage, which is why the statutory flood notice points tenants to separate flood coverage.

General Obligations Law section 5-321 invalidates a lease clause that exempts landlord from liability for landlord negligence in operating or maintaining the premises. An indemnity clause cannot be assumed enforceable merely because tenant signed it.

Clause 14: default, notice and cure

The default section may list:

• nonpayment of rent
• substantial lease violation
• nuisance
• illegal use
• unauthorized transfer
• failure to provide required access

Read the default clause beside statutory notice and court rules. A lease cannot authorize private lockout as a substitute for eviction.

Nonpayment and holdover are different

A nonpayment case seeks rent and possession based on unpaid rent after required demand. A holdover case seeks possession based on expiration or breach of a substantial obligation after required notices.

Cure periods

Some defaults require notice and an opportunity to cure. Good Cause requires a 10-day written cure opportunity for a covered lease or rule violation before that ground supports eviction.

Do not invent a universal cure period. Identify the legal track and notice given.

Clause 15: attorney fees

A lease may require tenant to pay landlord's attorney fees after tenant default. Real Property Law section 234 creates a reciprocal right for tenant when the lease gives landlord that right and tenant successfully defends or enforces rights in covered litigation.

The clause does not make fees automatic. Prevailing-party status, the case and reasonableness matter.

Clause 16: renewal, nonrenewal and rent-change notice

For many nonregulated residential tenancies, Real Property Law section 226-c requires advance written notice when landlord intends not to renew or proposes a rent increase of five percent or more:

• 30 days for occupancy under one year and a lease term under one year
• 60 days for occupancy from one to two years or a lease term of at least one year but less than two years
• 90 days for occupancy over two years or a lease term of at least two years

The statute addresses landlord notice. It does not turn every lease into a tenant option for renewal.

Rent stabilization

Rent-stabilized renewal timing, form and lawful rent follow HCR rules. In New York City, owners generally offer renewal by mail or personal delivery 90 to 150 days before expiration, and tenant generally has 60 days to choose a one-year or two-year term.

Good Cause

For a covered unit, lease expiration alone is not usually enough to remove tenant or refuse renewal. For every initial lease, renewal lease and specified notice, Real Property Law section 231-c requires the statutory Good Cause notice stating whether the unit is covered or exempt and, if exempt, the basis.

Clause 17: move-out, surrender and mitigation

The lease may require notice, return of keys, cleaning and removal of belongings. Giving keys back does not automatically resolve rent liability, and abandonment does not let landlord leave the unit vacant solely to increase damages.

Real Property Law section 227-e requires landlord, when tenant vacates in violation of the lease, to make reasonable and customary efforts to re-rent at fair market value or the lease rent, whichever is lower. A new lease terminates the former tenant's lease and mitigates damages.

The burden of proving mitigation rests on landlord.

Clause 18: mandatory notices and riders

Sprinkler notice

Real Property Law section 231-a requires every residential lease to state conspicuously in bold whether a maintained and operative sprinkler system exists. If it exists, the lease must state the last maintenance and inspection date.

Flood-history and flood-risk notice

Real Property Law section 231-b requires every residential lease to state specified FEMA floodplain information and known prior natural-flood damage. It also requires the statutory notice explaining that ordinary renter's insurance typically does not cover flood damage and that NFIP renter coverage is available for personal property and contents.

Good Cause notice

Real Property Law section 231-c requires landlords to append or incorporate the statutory coverage or exemption notice in initial and renewal leases and specified tenant notices.

Lead-based paint

For most pre-1978 housing, federal law requires the lead warning, disclosure of known hazards, available records and the EPA pamphlet before lease signing, subject to federal exemptions.

Rent-stabilized rider or addenda

Covered rent-stabilized tenants must receive the applicable HCR rider or addenda. The rider helps explain legal rent, increases and regulated rights. It is not optional decoration.

Local law may require additional notices, such as bedbug-history or window-guard materials in New York City.

Clauses that New York law does not permit

The Attorney General identifies prohibited provisions including clauses that attempt to:

• exempt landlord from liability for landlord or employee negligence
• waive tenant's jury-trial right in specified personal-injury or property-damage litigation
• require tenant to pledge household furniture as rent security
• waive the warranty of habitability
• eliminate statutory roommate rights

General Obligations Law section 5-702 also requires consumer leases to use common, understandable words, coherent organization, appropriate captions and readable print.

Signing an unlawful clause does not necessarily make it enforceable.

A worked lease scenario

The lease says:

Rent is due on the first. Any payment received after the third carries a $100 fee. Landlord may enter at any time. Tenant waives all claims about heat and agrees that only Tenant may occupy.

Read it in layers:

1. Late fee: For an ordinary residential tenancy, state law does not permit the charge until rent remains unpaid after five days and caps it at $50 or five percent, whichever is less.
2. Access: “At any time” does not erase lawful-purpose, notice, privacy and anti-harassment limits.
3. Heat: Tenant cannot waive the residential warranty of habitability.
4. Occupancy: The one-person restriction may conflict with section 235-f rights for immediate family and an additional occupant.

The presence of four signed clauses does not produce four enforceable clauses.

A seven-step exam method

1. Classify the unit. Market-rate, regulated, subsidized, Good Cause covered or exempt?
2. Classify the tenancy. Fixed term, periodic, renewal or holdover?
3. Find the clause. Rent, deposit, occupancy, repairs, transfer, default or renewal?
4. Identify the actor and deadline. Who must do what, when and how?
5. Apply nonwaivable law. Habitability, fees, deposit, occupants, retaliation and eviction process.
6. Add the special overlay. HCR, Good Cause, federal disclosure or local law.
7. Choose the lawful consequence. Notice, cure, damages, renewal, agency complaint or court process, never automatic self-help.

Frequently asked questions

What should a New York residential lease contain?

At minimum, identify parties and premises, rent and due dates, term, occupancy conditions, and each side's rights and duties. Current residential leases also need required sprinkler and flood notices, plus Good Cause and other riders when applicable.

Can a New York landlord charge any late fee stated in the lease?

No. For an ordinary residential tenancy, the charge cannot be demanded unless rent remains unpaid after five days and cannot exceed $50 or five percent of monthly rent, whichever is less. A narrow co-op owner-shareholder exception now permits up to eight percent of monthly maintenance when the agreement provides for it.

Can a residential lease waive the warranty of habitability?

No. Real Property Law section 235-b makes the warranty nonwaivable.

Can a lease prohibit every roommate?

Not when the restriction conflicts with Real Property Law section 235-f. The statute protects qualifying immediate-family and additional-occupant arrangements, subject to primary residence, notice and occupancy laws.

Is a security deposit the last month's rent?

No. It is security for lawful claims. Tenant should continue paying rent unless landlord agrees otherwise.

Must every nonregulated security deposit be returned within 14 days?

The 14-day itemization and return rule in General Obligations Law section 7-108 applies to non-rent-regulated residential units. Rent-regulated deposits follow a different framework.

Can a landlord enter a New York apartment whenever the lease says so?

Not without regard to lawful purpose, notice, privacy, emergencies and anti-harassment rules. Local requirements and the facts matter.

Does lease expiration automatically let a landlord change the locks?

No. Physical removal requires lawful court process. Rent stabilization or Good Cause may also restrict nonrenewal.

Does Good Cause Eviction apply everywhere in New York?

No. It applies in New York City and municipalities that opt in, with statutory exemptions. Address, adoption date and ownership facts must be checked.

Is a rent-stabilized rider optional?

No for a covered rent-stabilized lease. HCR requires the applicable rider or addenda and supplies official forms.

Continue your study

Compare estate for years, periodic tenancy, tenancy at will and tenancy at sufferance with gross, net, percentage and graduated leases. Then study assignment, sublease, roommates and leasehold improvements and New York residential tenant protections and ending a tenancy.

For the full subject, open the contracts, sales and leases study guide. Property managers should also use the property management study guide.

Sources and verification notes

This walkthrough was checked against official materials available through August 27, 2026. It teaches document analysis and exam distinctions. It is not a lease form, a coverage determination or legal advice for a landlord-tenant dispute.

• New York Attorney General, Residential Tenants' Rights Guide
• New York Homes and Community Renewal, leases and official rent-stabilized forms
• New York Attorney General, Good Cause Eviction Law
• New York Real Property Law section 235-b, warranty of habitability
• New York Real Property Law section 235-f, occupancy by family and an additional occupant
• New York Real Property Law section 235-e, receipts and five-day nonpayment notice
• New York Real Property Law section 226-b, assignment and sublet
• New York Real Property Law section 226-c, rent increase and nonrenewal notice
• New York Real Property Law section 231-a, sprinkler notice
• New York Real Property Law section 231-b, flood notice
• New York Real Property Law section 231-c, Good Cause notice
• New York Real Property Law section 238-a, fees and late-rent notice
• New York General Obligations Law section 7-108, nonregulated security deposits
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, lead disclosure for rentals