A building owner’s right to evict tenants protected by the New York City rent control laws is governed by section 26-408 of the Administrative Code of the City of New York. Section 26-408 (a) lists seven grounds for evicting rent-control tenants "for cause” (Administrative Code § 26-408 [a] [1]-[7]), and section 26-408 (b) delineates the other circumstances in which owners of rent-controlled apartment units may regain possession, including situations where the owner has an "immediate and compelling need [to recover the premises] for his or her own personal use” or wishes to regain control of a unit that has been sublet (id., § 26-408 [b] [1], [2]). Also included in this category are situations in which the owner plans an immediate "substantial” renovation or complete demolition of the building (id., § 26-408 [b] [3], [4]).
Where a section 26-408 (b) eviction is sought, the landlord must apply for and obtain a "certificate of eviction,” which "the city rent agency [now the DHCR ] shall issue * * * in accordance with its rules and regulations” (id., § 26-408 [b] [emphasis supplied]). When the specific ground for eviction is the owner’s "good faith” intention to demolish the building, a certificate cannot be issued unless "[the] agency determines” that the new building will contain a greater number of apartment units than the demolished building, "[the] agency determines that the issuance of such certificate is not inconsistent with the purpose” of the rent control laws and the owner complies with the agency’s regulations regarding relocating tenants and furnishing appropriate stipends for that purpose (id., § 26-408 [b] [4] [a]-[d]). The Sound Housing Law adopted in 1974 (L 1974, ch 1022) also requires a landlord seeking to withdraw a rent-controlled unit from the marketp