Can I Sue My Landlord in New York?

Yes — in many situations. These are the main claims New York tenants bring, what the law lets you recover, and where to file. Each rule links to the statute or official source. Most claims under the small claims limit can be filed without a lawyer.

Before you sue

Write down what happened, with dates, and keep photos, texts, emails and receipts.
Send your landlord a written demand (templates below) and give a reasonable deadline.
Check the deadline to sue and the court's dollar limit (below).
If the amount is over the small claims limit, or you are facing eviction, talk to a lawyer or legal aid first.

Your security deposit wasn't returned

Penalty for withholding	Missing the 14-day deadline forfeits the landlord's right to keep any part of the deposit. Violators owe actual damages; a willful violation adds punitive damages of up to twice the deposit. Lease clauses waiving these rights are void. Source: N.Y. Gen. Oblig. Law § 7-108(1-a)(e), (g)
Deposit return deadline	14 days after the tenant vacates Landlord must return the deposit and/or an itemized statement within 14 days of move-out. Source: N.Y. Gen. Oblig. Law § 7-108(1-a)(e)

Free New York security deposit demand letter

You were locked out or your utilities were cut off

Lockouts & utility shutoffs	Self-help eviction is illegal: no force/threats, cutting off essential services, removing belongings or the door, or changing/disabling locks to remove an occupant who has lived there 30+ days or has a lease. Owner must restore the occupant. Penalties: class A misdemeanor; civil penalty of $1,000-$10,000 per violation plus up to $100/day (max 6 months) for failing to restore. NY AG guide states an unlawfully evicted tenant may recover triple damages (RPAPL § 853). RPL § 235: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/RPP/235 Source: N.Y. RPAPL § 768; RPL § 235 (willful failure to furnish water, heat, light, power, etc.)

Lockouts & utility shutoffs

Self-help eviction is illegal: no force/threats, cutting off essential services, removing belongings or the door, or changing/disabling locks to remove an occupant who has lived there 30+ days or has a lease. Owner must restore the occupant. Penalties: class A misdemeanor; civil penalty of $1,000-$10,000 per violation plus up to $100/day (max 6 months) for failing to restore.

NY AG guide states an unlawfully evicted tenant may recover triple damages (RPAPL § 853). RPL § 235: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/RPP/235

Source: N.Y. RPAPL § 768; RPL § 235 (willful failure to furnish water, heat, light, power, etc.)

Your landlord retaliated after you complained

Landlord retaliation	Landlord may not serve a notice to quit, sue for possession, or substantially alter the tenancy (including refusing to renew or an unreasonable rent increase) because the tenant made a good-faith complaint to the landlord or a government agency about health/safety, habitability, or housing law violations, took good-faith action to enforce lease or legal rights, or joined a tenants' organization. Retaliation is presumed if the action occurs within one year after the protected act. Presumption is rebuttable (landlord must show non-retaliatory motive by preponderance). Remedies: damages, attorney's fees, injunctive relief; retaliation is a defense in an eviction case. Does not apply to owner-occupied buildings with fewer than 4 units. Source: N.Y. RPL § 223-b

Landlord retaliation

Landlord may not serve a notice to quit, sue for possession, or substantially alter the tenancy (including refusing to renew or an unreasonable rent increase) because the tenant made a good-faith complaint to the landlord or a government agency about health/safety, habitability, or housing law violations, took good-faith action to enforce lease or legal rights, or joined a tenants' organization. Retaliation is presumed if the action occurs within one year after the protected act.

Presumption is rebuttable (landlord must show non-retaliatory motive by preponderance). Remedies: damages, attorney's fees, injunctive relief; retaliation is a defense in an eviction case. Does not apply to owner-occupied buildings with fewer than 4 units.

Source: N.Y. RPL § 223-b

Your landlord won't make repairs

Repair and deduct	No specific statute. Per the NY Attorney General, under the warranty of habitability tenants may, in extenuating circumstances, make necessary repairs and deduct reasonable repair costs from rent; keep receipts and records. Remedy is judge-made/limited; there is no statutory dollar cap or notice procedure. Source: N.Y. RPL § 235-b (warranty of habitability); NY AG Residential Tenants' Rights Guide
Withholding rent	No statutory withholding procedure. Every residential lease includes a non-waivable warranty of habitability; a tenant who withholds risks a nonpayment case but may counterclaim/defend for breach of the warranty and seek a rent abatement. Rent-regulated tenants may instead file a rent-reduction complaint with DHCR. Withholding description from NY AG guide: https://ag.ny.gov/publications/residential-tenants-rights-guide Source: N.Y. RPL § 235-b
Mold	No statewide mold statute — the warranty of habitability applies. Every residential lease includes a non-waivable warranty that the premises are fit for human habitation and free of conditions dangerous, hazardous, or detrimental to life, health, or safety. New York has no statewide mold disclosure or remediation standard for private rentals. Local housing codes (including New York City's) may impose additional requirements. Source: N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 235-b
Pests & bed bugs	In multiple dwellings, the owner must keep the building and its lot, yards, and passages clean and free from vermin, dirt, filth, and garbage; tenants are answerable for conditions they cause. Failure to rid an apartment of an insect infestation is an example of a breach of the warranty of habitability. No statewide bed-bug disclosure statute. The Multiple Dwelling Law applies automatically in cities of 325,000 or more (New York City) and in localities that adopt it; the Multiple Residence Law covers smaller cities, towns, and villages. Local codes may add bed-bug disclosure or extermination rules. Source: N.Y. Mult. Dwell. Law § 80; N.Y. Mult. Resid. Law § 174; N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 235-b
Heat	Yes, in multiple dwellings: from October 1 through May 31, the owner must heat all living areas to at least 68°F from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. when it is below 55°F outside, and at least 55°F from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. when it is below 40°F outside. Local regulations may require higher temperatures. Local regulations, including New York City's Housing Maintenance Code (Admin. Code § 27-2029), may require higher temperatures. Single-family and two-family rentals are governed by the warranty of habitability and local codes. Source: N.Y. Mult. Dwell. Law § 79; N.Y. Mult. Resid. Law § 173

Free New York repair request letter to landlord

Your landlord entered without notice or invaded your privacy

Landlord entry notice	No statute. Per the NY Attorney General, a landlord may enter with reasonable prior notice at a reasonable time, with consent or as the lease allows (e.g., repairs, inspections, showings); in an emergency, entry without notice or consent is allowed. No specific number of hours' notice is set by statute. Source: No statute; NY Attorney General Residential Tenants' Rights Guide
Cameras & privacy	No landlord-specific camera statute. Unlawful surveillance in the second degree (class E felony) includes using or installing an imaging device to surreptitiously view, broadcast, or record a person dressing or undressing or their intimate parts where they expect privacy, or to surreptitiously record in a bedroom, bathroom, changing room, or shower with no legitimate purpose (device use in those rooms creates a rebuttable presumption of no legitimate purpose). Tenants have a right to privacy within their apartments; landlords may enter on reasonable prior notice at reasonable times, or without notice in emergencies. Source: N.Y. Penal Law § 250.45

Landlord entry notice

No statute. Per the NY Attorney General, a landlord may enter with reasonable prior notice at a reasonable time, with consent or as the lease allows (e.g., repairs, inspections, showings); in an emergency, entry without notice or consent is allowed.

No specific number of hours' notice is set by statute.

Source: No statute; NY Attorney General Residential Tenants' Rights Guide

Cameras & privacy

No landlord-specific camera statute. Unlawful surveillance in the second degree (class E felony) includes using or installing an imaging device to surreptitiously view, broadcast, or record a person dressing or undressing or their intimate parts where they expect privacy, or to surreptitiously record in a bedroom, bathroom, changing room, or shower with no legitimate purpose (device use in those rooms creates a rebuttable presumption of no legitimate purpose).

Tenants have a right to privacy within their apartments; landlords may enter on reasonable prior notice at reasonable times, or without notice in emergencies.

Source: N.Y. Penal Law § 250.45

You were refused or treated differently because of Section 8 or other income

Statewide ban on refusing Section 8 / source of income	Yes, statewide. Refusing to rent, or setting different terms, because of a person's 'lawful source of income' is an unlawful discriminatory practice. The definition includes child support, alimony, foster care subsidies, Social Security, any federal, state, or local public assistance or housing assistance, including Section 8 vouchers (whether or not paid directly to the landlord), and any other lawful income. Definition: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/EXC/292. Source: N.Y. Exec. Law § 296(5)(a); § 292 (definition of 'lawful source of income')

Statewide ban on refusing Section 8 / source of income

Yes, statewide. Refusing to rent, or setting different terms, because of a person's 'lawful source of income' is an unlawful discriminatory practice. The definition includes child support, alimony, foster care subsidies, Social Security, any federal, state, or local public assistance or housing assistance, including Section 8 vouchers (whether or not paid directly to the landlord), and any other lawful income.

Definition: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/EXC/292.

Source: N.Y. Exec. Law § 296(5)(a); § 292 (definition of 'lawful source of income')

Other claims tenants bring in New York

Constructive eviction (conditions forced you out)	Recognized. New York's highest court has held that a constructive eviction exists where, without physically removing the tenant, the landlord's wrongful acts substantially and materially deprive the tenant of the beneficial use and enjoyment of the premises — for example, loss of heat or water, or gas or foul odors that make the unit unfit to live in. To use it as a defense to rent, the tenant generally must actually move out of the affected space within a reasonable time; a tenant who stays in possession, even with greatly reduced use, cannot claim constructive eviction for that space. Fideor is a local trial-court decision applying the Court of Appeals rule to a commercial tenant. Residential tenants who stay in the unit can instead seek a rent reduction for breach of the warranty of habitability (Real Property Law § 235-b). If the unit becomes uninhabitable from fire or other damage the tenant did not cause, and the lease does not say otherwise, the tenant may move out and cancel the lease (Real Property Law § 227). Source: Barash v. Pennsylvania Terminal Real Estate Corp., 27 N.Y.2d 77, 83 (1970), as quoted in Fideor v. Stiewe, 2016 NY Slip Op 50973(U) (Webster Town Ct. 2016)
Injuries on the property	A lease may not exempt the landlord from liability for injuries to people or property caused by the negligence of the landlord or its employees or agents, and a lease may not waive the tenant's right to a jury trial in a personal-injury or property-damage suit between the parties. Landlords of multiple dwellings must keep apartments and public areas in good repair and keep electrical, plumbing, heating and other systems and landlord-installed appliances in good and safe working order; every residential lease carries a warranty that the unit is livable, safe and sanitary. Whether a landlord is liable for a particular injury is decided by the courts under negligence law. Talk to a lawyer about any injury claim — filing deadlines apply. Source: General Obligations Law § 5-321; Real Property Law §§ 259-c, 235-b; Multiple Dwelling Law § 78; Multiple Residence Law § 174 (as summarized in the NY Attorney General's Residential Tenants' Rights Guide)

Constructive eviction (conditions forced you out)

Recognized. New York's highest court has held that a constructive eviction exists where, without physically removing the tenant, the landlord's wrongful acts substantially and materially deprive the tenant of the beneficial use and enjoyment of the premises — for example, loss of heat or water, or gas or foul odors that make the unit unfit to live in. To use it as a defense to rent, the tenant generally must actually move out of the affected space within a reasonable time; a tenant who stays in possession, even with greatly reduced use, cannot claim constructive eviction for that space.

Fideor is a local trial-court decision applying the Court of Appeals rule to a commercial tenant. Residential tenants who stay in the unit can instead seek a rent reduction for breach of the warranty of habitability (Real Property Law § 235-b). If the unit becomes uninhabitable from fire or other damage the tenant did not cause, and the lease does not say otherwise, the tenant may move out and cancel the lease (Real Property Law § 227).

Source: Barash v. Pennsylvania Terminal Real Estate Corp., 27 N.Y.2d 77, 83 (1970), as quoted in Fideor v. Stiewe, 2016 NY Slip Op 50973(U) (Webster Town Ct. 2016)

Injuries on the property

A lease may not exempt the landlord from liability for injuries to people or property caused by the negligence of the landlord or its employees or agents, and a lease may not waive the tenant's right to a jury trial in a personal-injury or property-damage suit between the parties. Landlords of multiple dwellings must keep apartments and public areas in good repair and keep electrical, plumbing, heating and other systems and landlord-installed appliances in good and safe working order; every residential lease carries a warranty that the unit is livable, safe and sanitary.

Whether a landlord is liable for a particular injury is decided by the courts under negligence law. Talk to a lawyer about any injury claim — filing deadlines apply.

Source: General Obligations Law § 5-321; Real Property Law §§ 259-c, 235-b; Multiple Dwelling Law § 78; Multiple Residence Law § 174 (as summarized in the NY Attorney General's Residential Tenants' Rights Guide)

Where and when to sue

Small claims limit	$10,000 in New York City Civil Court; $5,000 in City Courts outside NYC and in the Nassau and Suffolk District Courts; $3,000 in Town and Village Justice Courts. Interest and costs are not counted. Claims are for money only. In NYC, the defendant must live, have a business office or be regularly employed in the city; a tenant may also sue the landlord there about a NYC rental. § 1801 last revised July 7, 2023. Other courts: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/UCT/1801 ; https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/UDC/1801 ; https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/UJC/1801 Source: NYC Civil Ct. Act § 1801; Uniform City Ct. Act § 1801; Uniform District Ct. Act § 1801; Uniform Justice Ct. Act § 1801
Small claims filing fee	NYC Civil Court and City Courts: $15 for claims of $1,000 or less and $20 for claims over $1,000. Town and Village Justice Courts: $10 and $15. A defendant's counterclaim costs $5 ($3 in justice courts) plus mailing costs. Commercial claims cost $25 plus mailing costs. City Courts: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/UCT/1803 ; Justice Courts: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/UJC/1803 Source: NYC Civil Ct. Act § 1803; Uniform City Ct. Act § 1803; Uniform Justice Ct. Act § 1803; NYC Civil Ct. Act § 1803-A
Deadline to sue on a written lease	6 years for an action on a contract, written or oral (express or implied), including suits for unpaid rent or lease damages. The same period applies to written and oral leases. Source: N.Y. CPLR 213(2)

How small claims court works in New York →

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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.