FACT SHEET # 40
Preferential Rents
3 PAGES
SUMMARY AND HIGHLIGHTS
AT A GLANCE A preferential rent is a rent an owner agrees to charge that is lower than
This Fact Sheet explains the legal regulated rent they could lawfully collect. The Housing Stability
the circumstances under & Tenant Protection Act (HSTPA) of 2019 established that tenants paying
a preferential rent on or after June 14, 2019, will retain it as long as they
which rent stabilized
continue to rent the property.
tenants may pay less
than regulated rents.
Owner • Owners may charge the higher legal regulated
Responsibilities rent only when the tenant permanently vacates the
DEFINITIONS & Tenant Rights apartment.
Emergency Tenant Protection Act • An owner cannot use or enforce any clause in a lease
(ETPA): Outside New York City, rent to end a preferential or discounted rent if the tenant
stabilization is also known as ETPA, fails to pay the preferential or discounted rent on
short for the Emergency Tenant time.
Protection Act, and is applicable in • An owner cannot use or enforce any lease clause
select counties and localities (see that requires a discounted rent to be paid by a certain
Fact Sheet #8). method, such as electronic payment.
Housing Stability and Tenant
Protection Act (HSTPA) of 2019:
The act, which went into effect
on June 14, 2019, made changes
to how rents can be raised and
changed formulas for vacancy
leases, Major Capital Improvements
(MCI) and Individual Apartment
Improvements (IAI).
A PUBLICATION OF THE DIVISION OF HOUSING AND COMMUNITY RENEWAL OFFICE OF RENT ADMINISTRATION FS-40 (05/2024)
FACT SHEET #40: PREFERENTIAL RENTS PAGE 2 OF 3
FACT SHEET #40: IN DETAIL