STATE OF NEW YORK
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2949--A
Cal. No. 187
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 31, 2019
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Introduced by Sens. STAVISKY, SALAZAR, BIAGGI, HOYLMAN, KRUEGER, LIU,
MONTGOMERY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be
committed to the Committee on Judiciary -- reported favorably from
said committee, ordered to first and second report, ordered to a third
reading, amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place in the
order of third reading
AN ACT to amend the real property law, in relation to requiring land-
lords to mitigate damages if a tenant vacates a premises in violation
of the terms of the lease
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The real property law is amended by adding a new section
2 227-e to read as follows:
3 § 227-e. Landlord duty to mitigate damages. In any lease or rental
4 agreement, excluding any real estate purchase contract defined in para-
5 graphs (a), (c) and (d) of subdivision four of section four hundred
6 sixty-one of this chapter, covering premises occupied for dwelling
7 purposes, if a tenant vacates a premises in violation of the terms of
8 the lease, the landlord shall, in good faith, take reasonable and
9 customary actions to rent the premises at fair market value. If the
10 landlord rents the premises at fair market value, the new tenant's lease
11 shall, once in effect, terminate the previous tenant's lease and miti-
12 gate damages otherwise recoverable against the previous tenant because
13 of such tenant's vacating the premises. The burden of proof shall be on
14 the party seeking to recover damages. Any provision in a lease that
15 exempts a landlord's duty to mitigate damages under this section shall
16 be void as contrary to public policy.
17 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06169-07-9