Case Notes by

Thomas P. Higgins, Higgins & Trippett LLP

First published: Feb 2022
Nelson V. Board Of Managers Of The 32 East 1st Street Condominium

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW Unlike a co-op shareholder, a condo owner is not a lessee under a proprietary lease, and is not protected by the statutory warranty of habitability. Under this protection, a co-op shareholder can withhold rent if his or her apartment becomes unlivable due to damage, but a condo owner does not have that right. The condo owner can't withhold common charges, even if there is a damage claim for alleged water leaks. But note that the Judge, by holding the money judgment in abeyance, essentially gave the unit-owner a reprieve on paying common charges while the lawsuit was pending, undercutting the principle that was supposedly being exalted. It is a curious decision, one that properly states and applies the law but then, in a twist of fate worthy of M. Night Shyamalan, undoes it all in the penultimate sentence.

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