[nyc] Am I Stuck With Almost 40k In Rent? Tenant Friendly Laws Don’t Help Much With Breaking A Lease

Me and my partner just signed what we thought was our dream apartment a month ago. She’s pregnant, and I saw a dozen different apartments to find a nice safe cozy spot for our incoming first child. We told the broker we were looking specially for a ‘nice cozy safe spot’ to set up a nursery and raise a kid. The apartment had all the utilities turned off so it was dark when we toured it. Should have been red flag #1 but the previous tenants moved out almost a month earlier so we thought nothing of it. Anyway, we hand over 10k (broker, 1st & deposit) & celebrate our new chapter with some delivery pizza.

Took 4 days to get the super to get the heat going. I also realize it wasn’t cleaned what so ever and paid out of pocket to have the place cleaned. Mold in the fridge, yellow gunk on everything even the shower head, black gunk throughout the kitchen. Anyway, I can power through that, it’s just cleaning.

After starting to set up the nursery & my possessions downstairs (it’s a duplex) the basement then starts taking in water at the first rain (after the drought ended) through the roof of the basement. I was not there when it started but came back to a nursery that now had flooding damage and soaked possessions. That same day I noticed mold in the air vents that I had been using every day. None of this is what I want for a child, let alone an adult. I then messaged all this directly to the landlord. 11 days later and nothing has been done besides a contractor will ‘take a look at it’ in a few days and then do anything that’s needed in a few more days after that. It’s been a lot of talk, zero action. I waited to inform HPD so I could go through the landlord first.. but they were informed a few days ago.

Everyone I’ve talked to at 311 & free legal aid says I can’t just break a lease, or expect any money back, and that I should expect to pay for the remainder of my lease if the landlord won’t let me out. That I could try court but I don’t have anything legal to stand on as all of this is supposedly fixable. That the worst thing from feet dragging by the landlord would just be a fine & violation mark. I can’t afford to pay two rents at a time but don’t want my partner or my first child in this environment. Did I just screw myself out of about 40k and make my kids first environment most likely a mold riddled one? I feel horrible right now.