Tenants Sue Kushner Companies Claiming Rent Rule Violations
A group of New York City tenants has sued the Kushner Companies, the family real estate firm of Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law
and White House adviser, accusing the company of systematically violating the state’s rent regulations.
The nonprofit group that researched the building, Housing Rights Initiative, said it had found similar irregularities in more than 50 other Kushner Companies apartment buildings across New York City
and is studying potential future litigation related to those properties.
Under New York State law, any building of six apartments or more built before 1974, or new buildings
that have received certain types of property tax breaks, must charge rents that conform with the state’s rent stabilization laws.
The lawsuit, filed in the New York State Supreme Court in Brooklyn on Tuesday, was on behalf of nine tenants, but it concludes
that more than 100 former and current tenants could have similar claims.
The building is in the heart of Brooklyn Heights, a short walk from the historic Brooklyn Bridge
and several amenities along the water, including basketball courts, roller-skating rinks, jogging and biking paths, and sweeping views of Lower Manhattan.
The complaint stems from the Kushner Companies’ 2014 purchase of a 48-unit apartment building
at 89 Hicks Street in Brooklyn Heights, one of the city’s most affluent neighborhoods.