DHCR registration, renewal offers and the riders every lease needs
The annual registration, the 150-to-90-day renewal window, the rents the next order allows, and the riders and notices a stabilized lease must carry — with each one's law.
Annual registration
Register every stabilized unit each year with the rent in effect on April 1, by July 31, online in ORRA, and give each tenant a copy of their apartment's registration. An initial registration is due within 90 days of a unit becoming stabilized. Late registration carries a fine of $500 per unregistered unit for each month it is late, and an owner who has not registered cannot collect an increase above the last registered rent until it is registered.
Record each year as you file it — the occupancy on April 1, the registered rents, when it was filed and when the tenant got their copy. A year with nothing on file is a critical finding, and in July Seayora reminds you about every unit not recorded as filed.
The renewal
Offer a renewal on DHCR Form RTP-8, by mail or personal delivery, between 150 and 90 days before the lease expires, with the NYC Lease Rider; the tenant chooses one or two years and has 60 days to return it; the owner returns the signed copy within 30 days. Offered late, the tenant chooses whether the lease starts when it would have, or on the first rent date at least 90 days after the offer — and pays the lower of the two guideline rates.
Each unit shows its window — open, closing, late — and the one- and two-year rents under the order that will govern the renewal. The tenant chooses the term. If the order for that date is not verified yet, the rents are not shown.
Riders and notices
Which of these a lease needs depends on the unit, the building and the lease — a stabilized vacancy lease needs the DHCR lease rider, a building built before 1960 needs the lead paint notices, a building with gas stoves needs the stove knob notice. Seayora works out which apply to each lease and records whether each was provided, and when.
| Rider or notice | Law |
|---|---|
| NYC Lease Rider for Rent Stabilized Tenants (DHCR RA-LR1) (RA-LR1) | Rent Stabilization Code (9 NYCRR) § 2522.5(c); DHCR Fact Sheet #4 |
| DHCR Renewal Lease Form (RTP-8) (RTP-8) | Rent Stabilization Code § 2523.5(a); DHCR Fact Sheet #4 |
| The legal regulated rent written in the lease (preferential rent) | Rent Stabilization Law § 26-511(c)(14); DHCR Fact Sheet #40 |
| Pending-MCI clause in the vacancy lease | DHCR Fact Sheet #24 ("MCI Rent Increases and Vacancy and Renewal Leases") |
| Notice that stabilization ends with the tax benefit (J-51 / 421-a) | Rent Stabilization Code § 2520.11(o) and (p); Gersten v. 56 7th Ave. LLC, 88 A.D.3d 189 (1st Dep't 2011) |
| Good Cause Eviction Law notice (applicability or exemption) | N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 231-c |
| FARE Act itemized fee disclosure, signed before the lease | NYC Admin. Code § 20-699.22 (Local Law 119 of 2024) |
| Sprinkler system disclosure | N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 231-a |
| Flood history and risk disclosure | N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 231-b (effective June 21, 2023) |
| Window guard notice | NYC Health Code (24 RCNY) Article 131, § 131.15; NYC Admin. Code § 27-2043.1 |
| NYC lead-based paint notice (Local Law 1) | NYC Admin. Code § 27-2056.4 (Local Law 1 of 2004) |
| Federal lead-based paint disclosure and EPA pamphlet | 42 U.S.C. § 4852d; 24 C.F.R. Part 35, Subpart A; 40 C.F.R. Part 745, Subpart F |
| Bedbug infestation history (DHCR DBB-N) | NYC Admin. Code § 27-2018.1 |
| Stove knob cover notice | NYC Admin. Code § 27-2046.4 (Local Law 117 of 2018) |
| Smoking policy disclosure | NYC Admin. Code § 17-506.1 (Local Law 147 of 2017) |
| Indoor allergen hazards notice (Local Law 55) | NYC Admin. Code §§ 27-2017–27-2017.10 (Local Law 55 of 2018) |
Frequently asked questions
What if I miss the renewal window?
A late offer does not end the tenant's right to a renewal. The unit shows the window as late and what the law requires next; take advice on a renewal outside the window.
Does recording a rider as provided prove it was given?
"Provided" needs its date, and you can note where the signed copy is. The record is yours; keep the signed copy.
Related guides
- NYC rent stabilization — the legal rent, audited step by step
- How the legal-rent audit works — the orders, the steps and the findings
- Good Cause Eviction in New York City — coverage, the local rent standard and the notice
Related features and guides
- NYC rent stabilization — the legal rent, audited step by step — Documentation. Seayora keeps each rent-stabilized unit's rent history, works its legal regulated rent out lease by lease from the Rent Guidelines Board orders and the law, tracks DHCR registration and renewals, and flags what does not add up — with the citation beside every figure. It never files anything with DHCR.
- How the legal-rent audit works — the orders, the steps and the findings — Documentation. Each lease in a stabilized unit's history is checked against the Rent Guidelines Board order that governed it, in order, from the base date. The guideline compounds on the rent the previous step produced, preferential rents follow the 2019 rules, and every gap becomes a finding with its law.
- Good Cause Eviction in New York City — coverage, the local rent standard and the notice — Documentation. Which of your NYC units the Good Cause Eviction law covers, the exemptions and how each is decided, the highest presumptively reasonable rent increase, and the § 231-c notice every lease and renewal must carry.
- Lease Renewals & Amendments — Feature. Handle renewals, rent increases, and amendments against the original lease, with the right notices and a clean signed record of every change.
- Compliance Alerts & Required Filings — Feature. Seayora watches your properties for new violations and works out which recurring filings each building owes, turns both into a dated checklist, and emails you when something new appears. Live violation data for New York City; rule-based filing obligations across the NYC metro.
- Maintenance Requests & Work Orders — Feature. Tenants submit work orders with photos and video from their phone. Landlords triage, dispatch, and track every request to completion in one place.