It’s a very confusing case, especially for those of us who don’t understand all the minutiae of NYC’s rent control laws. According to the tabloids, Cyndi Lauper:
[quote]
[ul][li]Demands her rent be reduced to $508 — after having paid $3,250 a month for years.[]Is suing the owners of her luxury building at 390 West End Ave., charging she’s the victim of a sleazy scheme to end the rent stabilization of her apartment.[]Sublets from Shlomo {Who may wanna change his first name to Land} Baron. Baron leases the apartment @ $2,400 a month. The prior tenant paid $508.[]A NY State Supreme Court judge ruled the apartment was exempt from rent stabilization because Baron wasn’t using it as his primary residence.[]First sued Baron claiming she paid in excess of the legal stabilized rent — plus damages.[]Then sued 390 West End in a bid to get her rent reduced to the stabilized price of $508 a month. The court ruled in favor of reducing her rent to $989 a month. The Appellate Division of state Supreme Court upheld that ruling.[]Lauper says that’s still too much — even though the Apthorp, with its elaborate wrought ironwork, two water fountains, marble benches and statues, rivals such other famed buildings in gran deur as the Dakota and the El Dorado[/ul][/li][/quote]
IMHO, the real scam here is the fact a fairly new tenant, with plenty of money to pay rent, feels she and her husband are entitled to live here: at the Apthorp Building @ 1/6 the market rate. I don’t think this is what the crafters of WWII rent control laws had in mind when they first enacted fair housing price contols.
I’ve admittedly never priced housing in NYC, but I’m shocked that $3000 per month would be considered a “luxury apartment”. I thought $3,000 per month was just… a decent place.
Well the rent laws in NYC are strange but it sounds like the building owner and the Baron may have conspired to raise the rent on this particular unit.
A person is paying 500 bucks and then moves out. (or died more likely because if I was paying 500 a month I would NEVER LEAVE) The building wants much more but can’t due to those pesky laws. But with a loophole ment so that people who have the means to more than one apartment don’t have a whole bunch of them is used to have a person get the place and then sublet it out for much more.
I think the law allows for all rent controlls to be removed when the rent on a unit goes above 2K. (I think that is the ammount) So this was a scam to get around that wait.
So it sounds like Ms. Lauper was being taken for a ride and, no, she shouldn’t have to pay more just because she has some money. The law is the law.
But I’d fricken love to live there for $989 a month.
Nobody likes to get screwed over on a money deal, whether you are rich or poor.
She paid the $3000+ every month, so it is not like she can’t afford it or doesn’t think it is worth it, but I don’t blame her for being pissed to find out others were in on this scam. I am sure it has less to do with saving a few thousand dollars a month. My guess is that she and hubby are simply pissed off and want to get personal and financial revenge.