How to Evict a Roommate in New York (and Other Household Situations)
What New York law says about roommates who are not on the lease, guests who won't leave, family members, renting a room in your own home, and tenancies at will — each with the statute or official source.
Short answer: Under New York's 'Roommate Law', a person who lives in the unit with the tenant's consent but is not on the lease (and is not the tenant's immediate family) is an 'occupant', not a tenant. A tenant on a single-person lease may share the unit with immediate family, one additional occupant, and that occupant's dependent children; on a multi-tenant lease, tenants plus occupants (not counting occupants' dependent children) may not exceed the number of tenants on the lease. The tenant must tell the landlord the occupant's name within 30 days after move-in or after the landlord asks. An occupant gets no right to stay if the tenant leaves, and no other tenancy rights, without the landlord's express written permission. N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 235-f
| Roommate not on the lease | Under New York's 'Roommate Law', a person who lives in the unit with the tenant's consent but is not on the lease (and is not the tenant's immediate family) is an 'occupant', not a tenant. A tenant on a single-person lease may share the unit with immediate family, one additional occupant, and that occupant's dependent children; on a multi-tenant lease, tenants plus occupants (not counting occupants' dependent children) may not exceed the number of tenants on the lease. The tenant must tell the landlord the occupant's name within 30 days after move-in or after the landlord asks. An occupant gets no right to stay if the tenant leaves, and no other tenancy rights, without the landlord's express written permission. The tenant or the tenant's spouse must use the unit as a primary residence. Source: N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 235-f |
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| Removing a roommate or subtenant | A roommate who is a licensee of the tenant (living there with permission but with no landlord-tenant relationship) can be removed by a summary proceeding in court after a 10-day notice to quit, once the license expires or is revoked. A roommate who is a subtenant paying rent to the tenant is a tenant of the tenant and is removed through the landlord-tenant procedures. Either way, an occupant who has lawfully lived in the unit for 30 consecutive days or longer cannot be locked out, have belongings removed, or be forced out without a court order; doing so is unlawful eviction, a class A misdemeanor with civil penalties of $1,000 to $10,000 per violation. Unlawful eviction: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/RPA/768. Whether a roommate is a licensee or a subtenant depends on the facts. Source: RPAPL §§ 711, 713(7), 768 |
| Guests who won't leave | A guest is not automatically a tenant, but a person who has lawfully occupied a dwelling for 30 consecutive days or longer is protected from self-help eviction and can only be removed with a court order. A guest whose permission has been revoked is typically removed as a licensee through a summary proceeding after a 10-day notice to quit. A squatter (someone who enters without permission of the person entitled to possession) is not a tenant. |
| Removing a family member or partner | No statute specifically addresses family members. A family member or partner without a lease who has lawfully lived in the home for 30 consecutive days or longer may not be removed by force, lockout, shutting off services, or removing belongings; only a court order or warrant of eviction allows removal. If there is no landlord-tenant relationship, the court route is generally a summary proceeding after a 10-day notice to quit. RPAPL § 713 does not mention family members by name; which ground applies (for example, licensee) depends on the facts. Source: RPAPL §§ 713, 768(1)(a) |
| Renting a room in your own home (lodgers) | No separate statewide lodger statute. Under RPAPL § 711, an occupant of one or more rooms in a rooming house is a tenant. A person renting a room with the owner's permission but without a landlord-tenant relationship may be removed as a licensee by summary proceeding after a 10-day notice to quit. Self-help removal is unlawful once the person has lawfully occupied for 30 consecutive days. Source: RPAPL §§ 711, 713(7), 768 |
| Tenancy at will | A tenancy at will or by sufferance, however created, may be ended by a written notice of not less than 30 days given on behalf of the landlord, requiring the tenant to leave. The notice must be served personally on the tenant or on a person of suitable age living on the premises, or, if neither can be found, posted on a conspicuous part of the premises. Source: N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 228 |
| Hotel and extended-stay guests | A resident (not a transient occupant) of one or more rooms in a hotel who has been in possession for 30 consecutive days or longer counts as a tenant and may be removed only by a court proceeding. Occupants of rooms in a rooming house are tenants regardless of length of stay under the same section. Source: RPAPL § 711 |
Never remove someone by changing the locks or taking their belongings: if the person has become a tenant, only a court can order them out. If there is violence or a threat, call 911 and ask about a protective order.
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New York eviction laws · Free legal help in New York · Roommate rules in other states
General legal information, not legal advice. Laws change and local rules can differ; check the linked official source or talk to a lawyer about your situation.