On April 1st an amendment to New York Executive Law Sec. 296 will require every owner or managing agent of housing accommodations in the State of New York to provide a notice to all residents of their rights to request reasonable modifications and/or accommodations necessary to accommodate disabilities recognized by the State of New York (or by the City of New York, if the building is located within the City of New York).
The form of the notice to be given has been established by the New York State Division of Human Rights and can be accessed at https://dhr.ny.gov/requirednotice (we also expect that the New York City Commission on Human Rights may prepare a similar notice for use in connection with housing accommodations located within the City of New York). Since cooperative apartment buildings are deemed to be owners of New York housing accommodations, cooperative boards must have their notices sent out to existing residents by no later than April 1, 2021 and, going forward, to any new residents within thirty (30) days of the commencement of their occupancy. Additionally, the notice of the right to request accommodations must be conspicuously posted within the building.
While condominium and homeowner associations are not obligated to provide the notice to the residents of their associations, any unit owner or homeowner who has rented out their unit will be obligated to provide the notice to their tenants. As such, the notice requirement will impact New York cooperatives, and many condominium unit owners and homeowners.
If you have any questions regarding the specific obligations of this new law please do not hesitate to contact us.