Pandemic Protection for Commercial Tenants’ Personal Assets Set to Expire
By Celia Young June 29, 2021 5:33 pm
reprints
A protection for commercial tenants that temporarily blocked landlords from going after a tenant’s personal assets if they fell behind on rent is set to expire on Wednesday.
The legislation suspended personal liability provisions in leases, Crain’s New York Business first reported. The provision, known as Intro. 1932, was voted by the New York City Council in May of last year to help businesses affected by the pandemic.
The policy was originally set to expire in September, but the council voted to extend it until March 31 and then June 30, according to Crain’s New York.
But, because Gov. Andrew Cuomo ended the state of emergency for New York after June 24, the council will likely be unable to extend the policy again, Crain’s New York reported. After its expiration, landlords will be able to go after personal assets if a tenant misses rent payments going forward, but tenants who missed rent during the moratorium’s run will still be protected, according to Crain’s New York.
Intro. 1932’s expiration comes as the state and federal government start to roll back emergency measures put in place to help people and businesses during the pandemic.
Last week, President Joe Biden’s administration pushed the deadline for the eviction moratorium — to help residential tenants struggling to pay rent due to the pandemic — once again, to July 31, in what the president intends to be the final extension of the policy. The moratorium was first put in place last year and has been extended multiple times and challenged in court.
The personal liability provisions suspension was similarly unpopular among landlords, including the Real Estate Board of New York, and a small group of landlords filed a lawsuit against it and other policies, though the suit was dismissed in November, Crain’s New York reported.
