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Updated almost 6 years ago,

User Stats

24
Posts
4
Votes
Justin Ward
  • Syracuse NY
4
Votes |
24
Posts

Owner occupant duplex NY. What additional rights do I have?

Justin Ward
  • Syracuse NY
Posted

Hopefully this is in the right section. I live in central New York and I'm about to buy my first duplex. I'm trying to learn everything I can about my rights and the tenants rights in order to avoid issues in the future. I've already read through the Fair Housing laws and the tenant's rights manual that my city gives out. I've read that the Fair Housing laws in New York do NOT apply to owner occupied duplex's. The only rule that still applies seems to be racial discrimination which should be obvious anyway.  But I never see examples of what the rules actually ARE for owner occupied duplex's. Some of the things I want to know are:

Can I refuse someone with a criminal record from living in my home?


If my tenant gets into a relationship and their significant other wants to move in, do I have more say in the matter than a normal rental property? I'm mainly worried because I plan on being diligent with background checks but with normal rentals in NY you don't have a right to run a background check on occupants that aren't signing your lease. This seems like a huge risk to have to allow someone that I have no information on, to live in my home. 

If an occupant is not following the rules but the tenant is, are their legal actions I can take to evict an occupant that isn't on the lease? for example smoking in the apartment or being loud past a reasonable hour.

If an occupant who isn't on the lease is involved in domestic violence against my tenant, will I have the ability to evict them from the property even if the tenant wants them to stay?

I know I may be getting a little specific but the closer I get to closing, the more I want to be sure that I know what to do in every corner case. I really appreciate any information on these or similar scenarios. Thanks!

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