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Tenant advocate briefs Peekskill council on state 'good cause' eviction law and local opt-in options
Summary
Adam Markovics of the Bronx Defenders told Peekskill councilors that New York's Good Cause Eviction statute (effective in NYC 04/20/2024) offers municipalities a modest, customizable tenant‑protection framework; he described exemptions, the small‑landlord default and the rent‑increase rebuttable presumption.
Adam Markovics, director of the Bronx Defenders' Right to Counsel program, presented an informational briefing on New York State's Good Cause Eviction law and how municipalities may opt in. The presentation was part of a council discussion intended to inform later public hearings and any local adoption process.
Markovics summarized the statute's origin and scope: enacted in the 2024-25 state budget and effective in New York City on April 20, 2024, the law creates Article 6‑a of the Real Property Law and permits villages, towns and cities to opt in with limited customization. "My position...housing is a human right. Evictions should never happen," Markovics said, framing the law as a modest step to give tenants more due process in eviction cases.
He outlined major exemptions and default thresholds in the statute, which municipalities may adjust in two narrow ways: the percent‑above‑FMR (fair market rent) threshold for the "high rent" exemption and the maximum number of units a landlord may own to qualify as a "small landlord." Notable defaults described in the briefing include a 10‑unit small‑landlord baseline and exemptions for units with certificates of occupancy issued after Jan. 1, 2009; the law also provides a rent‑increase rebuttable presumption tied to CPI+5% (which Markovics noted equated to roughly 8.79% in 2025), giving tenants an opportunity to contest large rent hikes in court.
Markovics walked through how other Lower Hudson Valley municipalities have tailored the law: Croton and Tarrytown set more restrictive small‑landlord definitions (one owner unit in some cases), while White Plains used a four‑unit threshold. He said many municipalities have coupled their opt-in decisions with local outreach and policy work; he also offered to share his slides and field follow‑up questions.
Council members asked procedural questions about how an opt-in would be implemented locally and how the statute interacts with local affordable or newly built housing. Markovics answered that municipalities must adopt the state law wholesale but may choose the two specified local customizations; he underscored that the law does not apply to newly built units covered by the post‑2009 exemption.
The presentation provided councilors with legal and policy context to guide any future local drafting, public hearings and potential adoption steps; the council signaled it would include further legal review and public input before any formal local-law action.
