Going back to housing court this Wednesday. Here is an e-mail I sent to Joel Charleston, the attorney for 545 W 146th St. Corp. in response to his request for information. Mr. Charleston is actually a very nice guy and I am feeling pretty hopeful about getting repairs and services in the near future. Then, maybe some roommates. Now I see a few typos. Please forgive those:
Mr. Charlston,
I am looking forward to our meeting at 111 Center Street RM 830 at 9AM on the 26th.
I received in the mail a request for some information which I will try to provide here now:
Overcharge Complaint--I arrived in NYC in August of 2003 having rented a room off Craigslist at this address
(545 W 146th Street Apt 47) sight unseen. A check had been sent to a man by the name of Cheik Tall in the amount of $1,000 US for first and last month's rent. When I arrived there were 3 other people living here (Vy Chum, Irene, a pedicab driver from Florida whose name I am hard pressed to recall) occupying the three bedrooms of Apt. 47. I was offered the choice of the dining room ($500) or the walled off living room ($600). Mr. Tall offered a $100 per month discount in exchange for borrowing my car. The next month an AmeriCorps friend of mine, Juliana Schwartz also moved in and rented the dining room so there were five people living in the apartment.
All together, I estimate that well over $2, 000 dollars US was collected for the apartment each month. In November of 2003, Irene moved out and Bernardo Masoko Moved in. I had been advised by neighbors (also renting from Cheik Tall) to check with DHCR and see what the rent history for the apartment was. I went to DHCR, acquired a rent history, and was advised to get a lease*. The 2003 rent history (which has disappeared) showed no leases recorded for years. If memory serves, the last and only lease recorded was for someone named Melody in 2001 at a rent of around $1, 000 per month. Using this as a guide, my neighbors, roommates and I estimated that the legal rent should be somewhere around $1,100-$1,200.
I know that Mr. Nabavi was aware of Check Tall and the four apartments he controlled in this building. I don't know how much Cheik Tall paid to 545 W 146th Street Corp. or if that payment was recorded. I do know that when I moved here in 2003 there were people living here and paying rent. However, None of them were named TAUE and their presence was not reported to DHCR when I checked the rent history in 2003 and 2004. In 2006, Judge FInklestein, looked at our case and found that the 2002 and 2003 rent report looked very suspicious since 545 had waited until November 2006 (right before our court date) to report any activity since 2001 to DHCR. Furthermore, when we returned to court in the summer of 2007, a different Judge, Judge Wendt again found that 545 had mis-reported to DHCR by reporting a second Masoko lease in 2006. Both Masoko and the attorney for 545 denied in court any knowledge of the second lease. In, light of this dubious reporting on the part of 545 W 146th Street Corp., I ask that the court return to the 2001 record of P Simon Daniella Daniel as the last recorded lease and also, that they not assume (or take 545's word as fact) that the apartment was ever vacant.
*In the winter of 2003-2004 Bernardo Masoko, and I asserted our right to a lease, (Vy Chum and Juliana Schwartz did not want to be named on a lease, but were still living in the apartment and paying rent.) Cheik Tall after some stressful negotiation said he did not mind if we had the lease and advised us not to accept Mr. Nabavi's first offer of $1,800 US per month. Mr. Nabavi agreed to offer us a lease of $1, 600 per month. Which we (or at least, I) believed to be an overcharge, but I had been advised to get a lease before filing a complaint with DHCR. Bernardo Masoko collected the rents every month and wrote checks for the whole amount to the Hempstead, Long Island address of 545 W 146th Street Corp.. In Fall of 2004 (I believe), I filed a complaint with DHCR about the conditions in the building and the overcharge. Much later, my letter was returned to me with a note from DHCR in Jamaica, saying that the complaint could not be recorded without receipts showing payment. Busy with work, unaware of a time limit and not on good terms with Bernardo, who had the receipts, I did not follow up until after our bathroom ceiling fell in in May of 2006. In December of 2006 DHCR sent notice that they had received the complaint along with 545's rebuttal which flatly denied any wrong doing. Unaware that I was supposed to respond, I waited for DHCR to decide whose version was a accurate reflection of reality. Since I did not respond, DHCR decided in favor of 545. I ask that the court review this decision. Furthermore, I would like to ask for the court's help in reviewing the rent history of all the apartments in the building as I believe many of my neighbors may be overcharged as well. I believe DHCR records will show a pattern on the part of 545 to ignore and circumvent state rent regulation laws in addition to ignoring building codes.
Off the top of my head...here is a list of Repairs Still Needed:
Floor surrounding radiator in living room repaired.
Rats removed from apartment
Bathroom light
Bathroom ceiling
Debris between ceiling of apartment 47 and floor of Apartment 57 removed.
Living room light fixture.
Hall light fixture
Kitchen light fixture
Dining room light fixture
Missing rain pipe replaced
Door buzzer
Services lacking:
Heat
Hot water
Elevator
Trash can lids
Recycling Container
Hall, stairs, and lobby should be cleaned regularly
Often, quiet enjoyment is made impossible by parties in apt #1.
Thank you for you help in resolving these matters. I am hopefully we can come to agreement in the near future.
