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Q & A; Handling A Dispute
On Parking
Q I own a co-op apartment and rent a parking space
from the co-op corporation for $48.83 a month, plus
taxes. On several occasions, I have come home during business
hours to find an employee of the co-op parked in
my spot. I have asked the management office on several occasions,
without success, not to park in my spot. Do I have any legal recourse
since I have a parking agreement with the co-op
and have not violated any parking rules? . . . Laura Ploetzke,
Mineola, N.Y.
A Aaron Shmulewitz, a Manhattan co-op lawyer, said that while the situation described by the letter writer might be unpleasant, it was probably not the kind that could be resolved through the legal process.
For example, Mr. Shmulewitz said, if the letter writer filed
a lawsuit for damages for loss of use of the space, she would
likely have a difficult time calculating and proving an amount
of monetary damage to which she might be entitled.
Another option -- withholding future payment for the space should
employees continue to park there -- could end up being counterproductive.
''Doing so would probably prompt the cooperative to terminate
her parking rights for nonpayment,'' Mr. Shmulewitz said, adding
that while the shareholder could take the co-op
to court over the issue, it would hardly be worth the attorney
fees she would end up paying.
Accordingly, Mr. Shmulewitz said, the best way to handle the situation
would be for the letter writer to exercise the same common sense
that she would use if she found a building employee lounging on
her doorstep.
''She would probably ask him or her to stop and confirm the request
in writing to the cooperative's managing agent and the board of
directors,'' he said, adding that yet another strategy might be
for the letter writer to raise the issue at the co-op's
annual meeting of shareholders. ''It is conceivable that other
shareholders may have had the same experience,'' he said. ''If
that is the case, then the board or managing agent might act more
responsively in the face of a large public protest.''
Tenant Can't Put New Stove In
Q The stove and refrigerator in my rent-stabilized apartment work fine, but I would prefer newer models. I am pretty sure that if the landlord installs new appliances, he can charge more rent. Do I have the right to buy and install a new stove and refrigerator myself? If so, would they belong to the landlord or me? . . . Morton Weiss, Brooklyn
A Colleen F. McGuire, a Manhattan landlord-tenant lawyer, said
that generally speaking, a rental tenant does not have the right
to install his or her own stove or refrigerator without the landlord's
consent. That, she said, is because such appliances are considered
fixtures in the apartment and because rent-stabilized leases typically
prohibit the replacement of any fixtures by a tenant without the
consent of the landlord.
She added that while landlords were generally required to provide
tenants with a working stove and refrigerator, there was no requirement
in the law that the appliances be new. And since the letter writer
indicates that the current appliances ''work fine,'' Ms. McGuire
said, it could be a serious breach of the lease agreement if the
tenant replaced them -- even at his own expense -- without the
consent of the landlord.