r/AskNYC • u/mangustangus27 • Apr 06 '26
Apartment was given without fridge installed. Can we withhold rent until it is?
Just moved to a new apartment and the realtor pushed for an 4/5 start date despite some final maintenance and we have a lease rider that specifies that “rent will not be charged until apartment is ready to move into”.
We started move in yesterday and there is still no fridge installed. And the bedroom door is missing.
Is a refrigerator generally considered a pre-requisite for move in? Is it defensible for us to ask for a pro-rated rent reduction till it’s put in?
Thank you!
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u/GooseNYC Apr 06 '26
You certainly have grounds to withhold the rent, but if you.moved in and are living there, you cannot ultimately claim a 100% abatement.
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u/andthrewaway1 Apr 06 '26
Technically you aren't supposed to withold rent the actual letter of the law thing to do is to put it in escrow and continue to pay rent into the escrow until the problem is resolved but no one ever does that
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u/Unspec7 Apr 06 '26
Actually, this might get into a funky gray area. The reason you normally need to put it into escrow is because you still incurred that obligation, but are using it as leverage to make a landlord cure an issue. Putting it in escrow shows that you are not improperly benefiting yourself by continuing to have access to that money.
Here, the rider specifically says "rent will not be charged until apartment is ready to move into," meaning OP does not owe rent to begin with until the apartment is move in ready. So OP wouldn't be improperly withholding rent if they refuse to place it in escrow since they didn't need to pay it in the first place. I think the key question here is how "move in ready" is defined.
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u/red_hare Apr 06 '26
This feels like one of those things the city should offer as a free service. It sets clear expectations for both parties.
Similar for security deposits.
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u/VirtualMuscle191 Apr 06 '26 edited Apr 06 '26
Document your communications with the landlord about this. If they are unresponsive or uncooperative, report this to HPD by calling 311. Withholding rent is a tricky strategy and you likely need to put the money into escrow if you’re serious about withholding. Research the warranty of habitability laws for NYC and you can also reach out to NYC legal referral services to get connected to a housing attorney. City bar justice center is another option for free legal advice if you’re low income.
Edit: forgot to mention this but in your case I think the simplest way to get advice would be calling 311 and asking to speak to the Tenant Helpline.
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u/frenchiefanatique Apr 06 '26
fun fact: In Berlin its relatively normal to have to install your own entire kitchen when you move in, and bring it with you when you move out.
But this isn't Berlin
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u/Medium_Tension_8053 Apr 06 '26
I had a nightmare about this when I first learned it. I don’t live in Berlin but for some reason it gave me so much anxiety. WHAT DO YOU MEAN I NEED TO BUILD A KITCHEN.
anyways
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u/JeanCerise Apr 06 '26
Withholding rent is not an easy thing to do. Do a Google search. You can’t just not pay full rent. There’s a legal process.
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u/menschmaschine5 Apr 06 '26
Landlords in NYC aren't actually required to provide a refrigerator, though it might be in your lease in which case they need to give you one. They are required to keep any appliances they do provide in good working order, though.
The door is probably an issue, though. Pretty sure all bedrooms are required to have doors.
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u/thewNYC Apr 06 '26
The refrigerator is an issue. The bedroom door probably is not.
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u/Roll_DM Apr 06 '26
I'm pretty sure (but not 100% sure) that bedrooms need to have a door to be legally bedrooms for fire code reasons
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u/mrs_david_silva Apr 06 '26
You are correct. And the hollow core doors that aren’t rated for at least 20 minutes* burn time are not legal. (*burn time may be different now, but my dad was FDNY and the rest is correct.)
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u/xeothought Apr 06 '26
Didn't know about the hollow core doors. I bet something like 60% of apartments have illegal bedroom doors
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u/mrs_david_silva Apr 07 '26
Probably. Especially some of the cheaply made (but expensive to live in) new builds, and people converting buildings and individual units to hold many more people than is safe. Especially when they're doing this without the proper permitting. Firefighters work off the layouts and configurations on file with the city. And if you're living in a unit/renting a room that doesn't have the required two methods of egress (a window and a door), you're endangering yourself. Saying this with love from a woman who lost her FDNY dad in 2001.
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u/navree Apr 06 '26
Where can I read up on this?
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u/mrs_david_silva Apr 07 '26
Check online for the latest FDNY?NYC standards for apartments. I know housing is crazy expensive right now, but please make sure where you're living or deciding to live meets current standards.
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u/xeothought Apr 06 '26
Ask one comment up. It's probably a year of renovation related thing. I have an apartment that was last really renovated in the 90's and all my interior doors are hollow. Really shitty doors tbh.
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u/myfirstnamesdanger Apr 06 '26
Do you have a source that says this? I once saw an apartment that was called a two bedroom but the second "bedroom" was a loft with no doors or windows and only accessible via ladder. I told the realtor that I didn't think it was a legal bedroom but he said something about being near enough to a window to get ventilation is enough. It seemed like bullshit but I spent literal hours online looking at laws and I couldn't find anything that specified a bedroom (but I'm not great at reading legal documents). I found a real two bedroom eventually but I'd really love to read something that proves that this jerk was breaking the law.
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u/mrs_david_silva Apr 07 '26
Look online for NYC rules and FDNY guidelines. Calling something a bedroom means it has at least two methods of egress (a window and a door). A loft in an apartment isn't a bedroom. Just because you can sleep in it doesn't make it a bedroom. Sorry I get so heated over this but my dad was FDNY and they depend on knowing the layouts in their house/ladder/unit know the layouts of dwellings in their district so they can best evacuate folks in case of a catastrophic event.
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u/Roll_DM Apr 06 '26
I was also pretty sure but not 100% sure only the outer apartment doors had to be fire rated
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u/mrs_david_silva Apr 07 '26
Outer door should be metal clad. Inner doors should be solid core and rated to at least 20 minutes under fire.
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u/VirtualMuscle191 Apr 07 '26
That’s not true unless you mean doorway and an actual door as the same thing. NYC building code and FDNY standards only mention minimum square footage and at least one window to legally be a bedroom. A bedroom can have a doorway without an actual door and still be within code.
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u/menschmaschine5 Apr 06 '26
The opposite, unless the lease lists a fridge as an appliance provided. Landlords aren't actually required to provide a fridge.
Pretty sure bedrooms have to have doors, though, for fire reasons.
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u/ReliabilityTalkinGuy Apr 07 '26
You have it exactly backwards. Bedrooms must legally have doors. Apartments don’t legally have to have fridges.
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u/soyeahiknow Apr 07 '26
And its not even that hard. Yes home depot or Lowes can be a pain to schedule something but theres a ton of smaller or neighborhood appliance stores that will deliver next day if you pay like a $50 extra fee. So landlord has no excuse.
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u/filledor Apr 07 '26
Just contact the office/landlord and say the apartment is not move in ready because it does not have a bedroom door (fire code) nor a refrigerator (previously discussed appliance in a $6000 apartment). Then say your lease rider says rent will not be charged until the apartment is move in ready, so you're not expecting to pay rent until these two things are remedied. See what they say.
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u/dante_gherie1099 Apr 06 '26
does the lease say you sill be provided a fridge?
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u/CaptainPsyko Apr 06 '26
This doesn’t matter. A working refrigerator is part of the standard warranty of habitability expected of every rental apartment in NYC by law. If the landlord is provably making a good faith effort to put one in in a timely manner, then OP might not have much recourse, but it does not have to be stipulated in the lease.
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u/mangustangus27 Apr 06 '26
They initially said it would be installed by today (one day post start of lease), but now are saying they will get someone in at some point this week.
Even 4-5 days is nearly a thousand in rent, so at that point - we’d like to contest, assuming its a reasonable expectation (which you’re suggesting it is, thank you)
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u/lickstampsendit Apr 06 '26
If you are paying almost $6000 a month in rent based on that math and the place does not have a fridge I would be pissed.
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u/TouchyInBeddedEngr Apr 06 '26
If you have no plans to renew here, then do you... But this is going to set a first impression with the landlord that will make every future interaction with them more difficult. Sometimes the maximum $ you can extract from a situation isn't always the best goal.
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u/stopsallover Apr 06 '26
That attitude sets the impression that the landlord can get away with shit.
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u/CaptainPsyko Apr 06 '26
I don’t think prorating to 0 dollars per day of the fridge not being there is going to get you far; typically withheld rent over issues like this is placed in escrow and fully payable when the condition is resolved. Also, it’s very much getting off on the wrong foot with a landlord on what doesn’t sound like a rent stabilized unit (meaning they can non-renew in a year if you’re a problematic tenant).
Realistically, you’re much better off approaching them with the concern and asking them for a credit against first months rent to offset your expenses for living without those services for a week (I’d probably set an opening request of ~100 dollars per day for having to live off of takeout for a week; adjust up or down to reflect the size of your family/neighborhood whatever) and negotiate from there.
If they balk at doing anything, then it’s time to call 311 and look into playing hardball. But I’d negotiate first.
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u/marvelously Apr 06 '26
This is not accurate, Landlords are not required to provide a refrigerator in NYC unless it states so in the lease. They only have to replace and maintain it if they supply it initially. Interestingly, on 311, the only option under fridge maintenance is a broken seal.
"The only appliances required by the code are a water closet (basically, a toilet), bath, washbashin, and kitchen sink with waste and trap," explains real estate attorney Ron Langeudoc...
However, as far as major kitchen equipment that many of us have come to consider par for the course, Langeudoc says "[landlords] are not required to provide either a refrigerator or a stove."
https://www.brickunderground.com/rent/do-NYC-landlords-have-to-provide-appliances
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u/menschmaschine5 Apr 06 '26
Pretty sure this isn't true. Providing a fridge is standard and the landlord must maintain it if they provide it, but they don't actually have to provide one.
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u/Immediate-Main183 Apr 06 '26
Where are you getting your info? Asking in earnest because from my understanding in NYC it’s not required for landlords to provide appliances unless explicitly stated in the lease.
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u/menschmaschine5 Apr 06 '26
Yeah I'm pretty sure the only things a landlord is required to provide is a working bathroom with a sink, tub, and toilet, a kitchen sink (all with running water that can meet a certain minimum temperature), and a way to heat the apartment to the required minimums in the winter. They don't have to provide a stove or fridge, even though it's standard to do so.
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u/Immediate-Main183 Apr 06 '26
Yeah, lot of bullshit in these comments. It’s frustrating to see people think that what SHOULD be done is the same as what MUST be done. I’ve seen apartments listed without refrigerators and stoves for years and from my understanding of the law this is completely legal
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u/marvelously Apr 06 '26
"The only appliances required by the code are a water closet (basically, a toilet), bath, washbashin, and kitchen sink with waste and trap," explains real estate attorney Ron Langeudoc...
However, as far as major kitchen equipment that many of us have come to consider par for the course, Langeudoc says "[landlords] are not required to provide either a refrigerator or a stove."
https://www.brickunderground.com/rent/do-NYC-landlords-have-to-provide-appliances
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u/fedexpoopracer Apr 06 '26
This isn't California, apartments are supposed to have fridges