Today, it was decided that the rent increases for rent stabilized apartments in New York will be 3% on 1 year leases and 6% on 2 year leases. These rent increases are down from last year but definitely higher than rumored earlier this month. The topic has attracted much publicity in the New York area over the past few weeks. It had been thought that the rent increases would be denied and the current rental rates for this year would freeze for the time being. Now that the increase has been approved, landlords for Rent Stabilized buildings can begin to prepare for offering their renewal leases with the increased rates.
We will post more about this topic in the next week. If you are a landlord in a rent stabilized building and need assistance preparing a renewal lease or commencing eviction proceedings, please feel free to call (516) 858-2620 to speak with a Landlord Tenant Attorney!
Residency Requirements
Not just anyone can get divorced in a New York State Court. Only litigants meeting the residency requirements set out in the New York State Domestic Relations Law Section 230 will fall within the jurisdiction of a New York State Court. If litigants do not meet these residency requirements, their divorce cases will not be heard by a New York State Court.
Domestic Relations Law Section 230 sets out five possible ways of meeting the residency requirement. If satisfied, any one of these requirements will ensure that a litigant’s divorce case falls within the jurisdiction of a New York State Court. But, in order to avoid wasting time or other resources, it is important to ensure that at least one of these requirements is met before beginning a case.
Requirement #1
(1) One spouse lived in New York State on the date the divorce action began, and
(2) for at least one continuous year immediately prior to the date the divorce action began, and
(3) the marriage was performed in New York State.
Requirement #2
(1) One spouse lived in New York State on the date the divorce action began, and
(2) for at least one continuous year immediately prior to the date the divorce action began, and
(3) the spouses at some point lived together in New York State as a married couple.
Requirement #3
(1) One spouse has been a resident of New York State for one continuous year immediately prior to the date the divorce action began, and
(2) the cause of action arose in New York State. (The “cause of action” is the event or series of events that gives one spouse grounds to seek divorce.)
Requirement #4
(1) The cause of action arose in New York State, and
(2) both spouses are residents of New York State at the time the action arose (no time requirement).
Requirement #5
Either spouse lived in New York State for at least two continuous years immediately prior to the date the divorce action began.
If you would like to pursue a divorce in New York, and have questions about residency requirements or other issues, the Law Firm of Vaughn, Weber & Prakope, PLLC, is here to assist you. Contact us at (516) 858-2620 to arrange a consultation with a divorce attorney.
New York Child Support Standards.
Child support in New York is governed by the New York Child Support Standards Act, Domestic Relations Law 240 Section 1-b and Family Court Act 413 (identical statutes). The Act assigns to courts a standard for allocating child support obligations between divorced parents. The purpose of the Act is to ensure that children of divorced parents receive the same standard of living they would have enjoyed had their parents remained together, while at the same time dividing financial obligations fairly.
Generally, the Act directs courts to take the following steps:
(1) Determine the combined total income of the parents.
Courts are directed to look at each parent’s gross income, but may make certain deductions or consider additional income sources or assets where appropriate. Additionally, if a court believes that a parent is misrepresenting income, it may assign a number it considers to represent the actual income of the parent.
(2) Calculate the children’s share of the parents’ combined total income.
Usually the court will determine the child or children’s expenses to be a statutorily assigned percentage of the parents’ total income, but some exceptions may be made in high-income cases.
(3) Assign a pro-rata share of the child/children’s expenses.
Generally, this means that each parent’s obligation to the child/children’s expenses will be in proportion to each parent’s share of the total combined income. Again, a court may assign an amount greater than the statutorily assigned proportion in high-income cases.
High income exceptions may be made at any step in this process, and a court may assign add-on expenses such a child care, medical expenses, or tuition. Tax issues also often arise in determining child support obligations.
As always, if you are have any questions regarding child support or you are having an issue with child support, please call (516) 858-2620 to speak with a Family Law Attorney today!
*Contributions of research and preparation for this blog were made by Jason Bernard Mays, J.D. (awaiting admission in NYS)
Fannie and Freddie set new short sale guidelines.
From Freddie
Freddie Mac’s new short sale timelines require servicers to make a decision within 30 days of receiving either 1) an offer on a property under Freddie Mac’s traditional short sale program or 2) a completed Borrower Response Package (BRP) requesting consideration for a short sale under HAFA or Freddie Mac’s traditional short sale program. (BRPs are standardized assistance applications developed as part of the Servicing Alignment Initiative.)
If more than 30 days are needed, borrowers must receive weekly status updates and a decision no later than 60 days from the date the complete BRP is received. This will help servicers who may need more time to obtain a broker price opinion or a private mortgage insurer’s approval on a BRP or property offer.
In the event a servicer makes a counteroffer, the borrower is expected to respond within five business days. The servicer must then respond within 10 business days of receiving the borrower’s response.
Freddie Mac will use the new timelines to evaluate servicer compliance with the SAI and its own servicing requirements.
From Fannie:
Under the new guidelines, servicers will be required to acknowledge receipt of a short sale offer within three business days and notify the borrower within five business days if the information is incomplete. Within thirty days, the servicer must send an evaluation notice or notify the borrower that the offer is still under review. If the offer cannot be fully evaluated within 30 days, the servicer must update the borrower on the status each week thereafter. Servicers will also be required to keep Fannie Mae apprised if a short sale evaluation takes longer than 30 days.
I was recently informed of a short sale that had been in contract for 18 months without a response from the lender/servicer. The buyer finally walked away. Hopefully, these new guidelines will help speed up the short sale process. However, a short sale may/may not be in your best interest. Call 516-858-2620 If you would like to speak with an attorney regarding short sales.
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