STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4955--B 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY February 27, 2023 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. THIELE, L. ROSENTHAL -- read once and referred to the Committee on Housing -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee -- reported and referred to the Committee on Codes -- reported and referred to the Committee on Rules -- Rules Committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to the Committee on Rules AN ACT to amend the real property law, in relation to lease-hold retire- ment communities 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 2 238-b to read as follows: 3 § 238-b. Lease-hold retirement community. 1. Definitions. As used in 4 this section: 5 (a) A "lease-hold retirement community" shall mean a contiguous parcel 6 of privately owned real property containing two hundred or more lots 7 which are leased to owners of year-round homes erected thereon and 8 affixed thereto wherein the occupation is restricted to individuals 9 based on age pursuant to paragraph (h) of subdivision three of this 10 section. 11 A "lease-hold retirement community" shall not include a manufactured 12 home park, or condominium, as defined in this chapter, a continuing care 13 retirement community authorized under article forty-six or forty-six-A 14 of the public health law, or a cooperative housing corporation. 15 (b) "Home owner" shall mean one who holds title to a home. 16 (c) "Tenant" shall mean one who occupies a home in a lease-hold 17 retirement community for thirty days or more, and whose occupation of 18 the home in the lease-hold retirement community is known to the lease- 19 hold retirement community owner or operator. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD02016-05-3A. 4955--B 2 1 2. Leases. (a) Any lease-hold retirement community owner or operator 2 shall offer every home owner the opportunity to sign a long term lease 3 for ninety-nine years, with an option of the home owner to cancel said 4 lease on ninety days written notice to said owner or operator. 5 (b) A copy of such lease-hold retirement community's rules and regu- 6 lations, if any, shall be attached to and become a part of the lease 7 provided for by this section, as if fully set forth therein. 8 (c) No rules or regulations shall be inconsistent with the lease 9 provisions in effect at the commencement of such lease. 10 (d) A copy of the lease shall be delivered by such lease-hold retire- 11 ment community owner or operator to all home owners or tenants at the 12 time of the first deposit made payable to said lease-hold retirement 13 community owner or operator. 14 3. Rules and regulations. (a) The lease-hold retirement community 15 owner or operator may promulgate rules or regulations governing the rent 16 and use or occupation of the home lot, provided that such rules or regu- 17 lations shall not be unreasonable, arbitrary or capricious. 18 (b) A copy of all rules and regulations shall be delivered by the 19 lease-hold retirement community owner or operator to all home owners or 20 tenants at the time of the first deposit made payable to said lease-hold 21 retirement community owner or operator. 22 (c) A copy of all rules and regulations shall be posted in a conspicu- 23 ous public location upon the grounds of the lease-hold retirement commu- 24 nity. 25 (d) If a rule or regulation is not applied uniformly to all home 26 owners or tenants, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that such 27 rule or regulation is unreasonable, arbitrary or capricious. 28 (e) Any rule or regulation which does not conform to the requirements 29 of this section or which has not been supplied or posted as required by 30 this section, shall not be enforceable. 31 (f) No rule or regulation may be added, amended, repealed or changed 32 by the lease-hold retirement community owner or operator without speci- 33 fying the date of implementation of said added, amended, repealed or 34 changed rule or regulation, which date shall be no fewer than thirty 35 days after written notice to all home owners or tenants. 36 (g) Rules and regulations shall not take effect until supplied and 37 posted pursuant to this subdivision. 38 (h) Such rules and regulations may establish a minimum age for indi- 39 viduals to occupy a home within the lease-hold retirement community 40 subject to any applicable law. 41 4. Fees. (a) No lease-hold retirement community home owner or tenant 42 shall be charged a fee, charge, or assessment except for rent, utili- 43 ties, and fees for services necessary for the operation of the lease- 44 hold retirement community, such as for facilities available to the home 45 owners and tenants. 46 (b) All such charges for rent, utilities, services necessary for the 47 operation of the lease-hold retirement community, and facilities avail- 48 able to the home owners and tenants must be reasonably related to the 49 facility available or the services actually rendered. 50 (c) A lease-hold retirement community owner or operator must fully 51 disclose all charges for rent, utilities, services necessary for the 52 operation of the lease-hold retirement community, and facilities avail- 53 able to the home owners and tenants to all home owners at the time of 54 the first deposit made payable to said community owner or operator. A 55 new or increased fee, charge, or assessment that is not specified in a 56 home owner's lease agreement shall not be collectable until the lease-A. 4955--B 3 1 hold retirement community owner or operator provides the home owner with 2 a written copy detailing such fee, charge, or assessment specifying the 3 date of implementation which shall be no less than ninety days after 4 such written notice. 5 (d) Failure on the part of the lease-hold retirement community owner 6 or operator to fully disclose all charges for rent, utilities, services 7 necessary for the operation of the lease-hold retirement community, and 8 facilities available to the home owners and tenants pursuant to para- 9 graph (c) of this subdivision shall prevent the said community owner or 10 operator from collecting such charges. 11 5. Prohibition. No lease-hold retirement community owner or operator 12 shall: 13 (a) Restrict the purchase or installation of any commodities, goods or 14 services by the home owner or agent thereof to specific vendors, includ- 15 ing, but not limited to, employees, agents or other persons acting for 16 or on behalf of the lease-hold retirement community owner or operator. 17 (b) Restrict the interior improvement, including but not limited to, 18 the installation of appliances, to any property of the home owner or 19 tenant, so long as such interior improvement is in compliance with 20 applicable building codes, other provisions of law, and the rules and 21 regulations of the lease-hold retirement community and provided further 22 that adequate utilities are available for such improvement. 23 (c) Restrict the installation, maintenance or repair of any property 24 of the home owner or tenant to specific vendors including, but not 25 limited to, employees, agents or other persons acting for or on behalf 26 of the lease-hold retirement community owner or operator. 27 (d) Charge a fee or impose other charges on a home owner or tenant who 28 chooses to install appliances or fixtures. This shall not restrict the 29 ability of the lease-hold retirement community owner or operator to 30 collect increased utility charges resulting from the installation of any 31 appliance or fixture. 32 (e) Impose any charge for or restrict the ingress or egress to the 33 lease-hold retirement community of, any person employed, retained, or 34 invited by the home owner or tenant. 35 6. Sale of homes. (a) No lease-hold retirement community owner or 36 operator shall deny a home owner the right to sell their home within the 37 lease-hold retirement community provided the home owner shall give to 38 the lease-hold retirement community owner or operator twenty days' writ- 39 ten notice of the home owner's intention to sell, provided that if the 40 home owner is deceased no such notice shall be required from the admin- 41 istrator or executor of the home owner's estate, and provided further 42 that no lease-hold retirement community owner or operator shall restrict 43 access to the lease-hold retirement community to any potential purchaser 44 or representatives of any seller unless the lease-hold retirement commu- 45 nity owner establishes that such restriction is necessary to protect the 46 property of such community owner or operator from substantial harm or 47 impairment. The lease-hold retirement community owner or operator may 48 reserve the right to approve the purchaser of said home for the remain- 49 der of the seller's or deceased home owner's term but such permission 50 may not be unreasonably withheld. If the lease-hold retirement communi- 51 ty owner or operator unreasonably withholds permission or unreasonably 52 restricts access to the lease-hold retirement community, the home owner 53 or the executor or administrator of a deceased home owner's estate may 54 recover the costs of the proceedings and attorneys' fees if it is found 55 that the lease-hold retirement community owner or operator acted in bad 56 faith by withholding permission or restricting access.A. 4955--B 4 1 (b) The right to sell a lease-hold retirement community home includes 2 the incidental right to use any and all methods common to sales of resi- 3 dential property. 4 (c) The lease-hold retirement community owner or operator shall enter 5 into a lease agreement within a reasonable time from the completion of 6 the sale pursuant to subdivision two of this section with the subsequent 7 purchaser of a home in the lease-hold retirement community. 8 (d) The lease-hold retirement community owner or operator shall not 9 exact a commission or fee with respect to the price realized by the 10 seller unless the community owner or operator has acted as agent for the 11 home owner in the sale pursuant to a written contract. 12 (e) If the lease-hold retirement community owner or operator rejects a 13 purchaser as a prospective home owner, the selling home owner must be 14 informed in writing of the reasons therefor. 15 7. (a) The lease-hold retirement community owner or operator may 16 reserve the right to approve any tenants who lease or sublease real 17 property and any improvements thereon from a home owner within the 18 lease-hold retirement community. The lease-hold retirement community 19 owner or operator may only withhold approval if the proposed tenant or 20 proposed lease or sublease is not in conformity with the established 21 rules and regulations of such lease-hold retirement community. 22 (b) If a home owner wishes to lease or sublease real property and any 23 improvements thereon within a lease-hold retirement community: 24 (1) The home owner must inform the lease-hold retirement community 25 owner or operator no less than thirty days prior to the proposed effec- 26 tive date of such lease or sublease. 27 (2) The lease-hold retirement community owner or operator may request 28 additional information from the home owner within ten days. If such 29 additional information is not unduly burdensome, failure to provide such 30 additional information will allow the lease-hold retirement community 31 owner or operator to withhold their approval of the proposed tenant or 32 proposed lease or sublease. 33 (3) If the lease-hold retirement community owner or operator does not 34 respond by approving or withholding approval of the proposed tenant or 35 proposed lease or sublease within thirty days of the initial request by 36 the homeowner, the proposed tenant or proposed lease or sublease shall 37 be deemed approved. 38 8. Emergencies. A lease-hold retirement community owner or operator 39 shall designate a phone number that is available on a twenty-four hour 40 basis to insure the availability of emergency response in matters 41 affecting the health, safety, well-being, and general welfare of lease- 42 hold retirement community tenants. The telephone number shall be posted 43 in a conspicuous public location in the lease-hold retirement community, 44 given in writing to each home owner and tenant, and registered with 45 appropriate municipal law enforcement, health and fire officials. 46 9. Retaliation. (a) No lease-hold retirement community owner or opera- 47 tor shall serve a notice to quit upon any home owner or commence any 48 action to recover real property or summary proceeding to recover 49 possession of real property in retaliation for: 50 (1) A good faith complaint, by or in behalf of the home owner, to a 51 governmental authority of the lease-hold retirement community owner's 52 or operator's alleged violation of any health or safety law, regu- 53 lation, code, or ordinance, or any law or regulation which has as its 54 objective the regulation of premises used for dwelling purposes; or 55 (2) Actions taken in good faith, by or in behalf of the home owner, to 56 secure or enforce any rights under the lease, under subdivision ten ofA. 4955--B 5 1 this section and subdivisions two and three of section two hundred thir- 2 ty-five-b of this article, or under any other local law, law of the 3 state of New York, or of its governmental subdivisions, or of the 4 United States which has as its objective the regulation of premises used 5 for dwelling purposes; or 6 (3) The home owners's participation in the activities of a home 7 owners's organization. 8 (b) No lease-hold retirement community owner or operator shall 9 substantially alter the terms of the tenancy in retaliation for any 10 actions set forth in subparagraphs one, two and three of paragraph (a) 11 of this subdivision. 12 (c) This subdivision shall apply to all lease-hold retirement communi- 13 ty with four or more homes. However, its provisions shall not be given 14 effect in any case in which it is established that the condition from 15 which the complaint or action arose was caused by the home owner, a 16 member of the home owner's household, or a guest of the home owner. Nor 17 shall it apply in a case where a tenancy was terminated pursuant to the 18 terms of a lease as a result of a bona fide transfer of ownership. The 19 rights and obligations of the lease-hold retirement community owner or 20 operator and the home owner shall be governed by the provisions of this 21 subdivision and subdivisions three, four and five of section two hundred 22 twenty-three-b of this article. 23 10. Warranty of habitability, maintenance, disruption of services. In 24 every written or oral lease or rental agreement entered into by a home 25 owner, the lease-hold retirement community owner or operator shall be 26 deemed to covenant and warrant that the premises so leased or rented and 27 the home if rented, including rental through a rent-to-own contract, and 28 all areas used in connection therewith in common with other home owner 29 or residents including all roads within the lease-hold retirement commu- 30 nity are fit for human habitation and for the uses reasonably intended 31 by the parties and that the occupants of such premises and such homes if 32 rented shall not be subjected to any conditions which would be danger- 33 ous, hazardous or detrimental to their life, health or safety. When any 34 such condition has been caused by the misconduct of the home owner or 35 lessee or persons under their direction or control, it shall not consti- 36 tute a breach of such covenants and warranties. The rights and obli- 37 gations of the lease-hold retirement community owner or operator and the 38 home owner shall be governed by the provisions of this subdivision and 39 subdivisions two and three of section two hundred thirty-five-b of this 40 article. 41 11. Attorneys' fees. Whenever a lease shall provide that in any action 42 or summary proceeding the lease-hold retirement community owner or 43 operator may recover attorneys' fees and expenses awarded by a court, 44 there shall be implied in such lease a covenant by the lease-hold 45 retirement community owner or operator, to pay to the home owner the 46 reasonable attorneys' fees and expenses incurred by the home owner to 47 the same extent as is provided in section two hundred thirty-four of 48 this article which section shall apply in its entirety. A lease-hold 49 retirement community owner or operator may not demand that a home owner 50 pays attorneys' fees unless such fees have been awarded pursuant to a 51 court order. 52 12. Refusal to furnish service. Any lease-hold retirement community 53 owner or operator who has agreed to provide hot or cold water, heat, 54 light, power, or any other service or facility to an occupant of the 55 lease-hold retirement community shall not willfully or intentionallyA. 4955--B 6 1 fail to furnish such water, heat, light, power or other service or 2 facility, or interfere with the quiet enjoyment of the leased premises. 3 13. Receipts. Upon receipt of rent, fees, charges or other assess- 4 ments, in the form of cash or any instrument other than the personal 5 check of the tenant, it shall be the duty of the lease-hold retirement 6 community owner or operator to provide the payor with a written receipt 7 containing the following: 8 (a) The date; 9 (b) The amount; 10 (c) The identity of the premises and the purpose for which paid; and 11 (d) The signature and title of the person receiving payment. 12 14. Remedies. The county attorney may commence an action to restrain, 13 prevent, and/or enjoin a violation of this section or a continuance of 14 such violation of this section or a continuance of such violation by a 15 lease-hold retirement community owner or operator. 16 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 233-b of the real property law, as added 17 by section 12 of part O of chapter 36 of the laws of 2019, is amended to 18 read as follows: 19 1. The provisions of this section shall apply to all manufactured 20 homes located in a manufactured home park as defined in section two 21 hundred thirty-three of this article, however manufactured homes located 22 in manufactured home parks that are subject to a regulatory agreement 23 with a governmental entity to preserve affordable housing or that other- 24 wise limits rent increases are exempt from the provisions of this 25 section. Homes in a lease-hold retirement community, as defined in 26 section two hundred thirty-eight-b of this article, shall also be 27 subject to the provisions of this section relating to rent increases the 28 same as a manufactured home park. 29 § 3. Severability. If any part or provision of this act or the appli- 30 cation thereof to a person or circumstance is adjudged invalid by any 31 court of competent jurisdiction, such judgment shall be confined in its 32 operation to the part or the provision or application directly involved 33 in the controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered and 34 shall not affect or impair the validity of the remainder of this act or 35 application thereof to other persons or circumstances. 36 § 4. Nothing provided herein shall prohibit a county from enacting 37 more stringent standards for a lease-hold retirement community than are 38 established in section one of this act. 39 § 5. This act shall take effect on the first of October next succeed- 40 ing the date on which it shall have become a law and shall apply to 41 sales, actions, rent increases, or leases involving lease-hold retire- 42 ment community homes occurring or entered into on or after such date.