New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has introduced a program designed to expedite housing court cases involving critical building-wide conditions. The initiative, which went into effect on July 16, aims to reduce the lengthy wait times tenants experience for decisions and necessary repairs.
During a press conference held at Manhattan Housing Court, Mamdani stated that individuals living in substandard conditions often face weeks or months of delay before their cases are heard and repairs are completed. "Today we take a critical step towards ending that," he said.
The program operates under an order from Hon. Shahabuddeen A. Ally, administrative judge of New York City Civil Court, and prioritizes lawsuits concerning conditions affecting at least a third of the units in a building. These conditions include buildings with at least one-third of units under a vacate order, or where one-third or more of units have "immediately hazardous" violations from the city's Department of Housing Preservation and Development related to essential services like heat and hot water. Buildings where all elevators are out of order also qualify.
City Hall framed the program as part of the administration's broader agenda to hold negligent landlords accountable and enhance renter power through initiatives like the "Block by Block" housing plan and Rental Ripoff hearings.
However, landlord advocacy groups have criticized the program. Ann Korchak, president of Small Property Owners of New York, characterized it as another "anti-landlord policy." She argued that small building owners often fall behind on repairs not due to neglect, but because of lengthy non-payment eviction proceedings that allow tenants to remain in units without paying rent. Kenny Burgos, CEO of the New York Apartment Association, suggested that while most property owners may not be directly affected, the inclusion of elevator outages as a criterion could inadvertently penalize more landlords, as elevator repairs can be subject to part availability and service provider timelines.
Cases where tenants seek the appointment of a third-party manager for buildings with hazardous violations from the Department of Buildings or HPD will also be eligible for expedited processing. Under the program, court clerks are tasked with assigning eligible cases to a judge on the same day they are filed. Parties involved are required to appear in court within five days, with expedited timelines for all subsequent appearances and filings.
A spokesperson for City Hall indicated that the administration collaborated with the state Unified Court System to implement the program and that court staff are currently undergoing training, which explains why it has not yet been applied to any cases. Supervising Housing Court Judge Jack Stoller defended the initiative, stating it balances the need for swift resolution of urgent matters with the guarantee of due process for all parties. He affirmed the court's commitment to ensuring safe housing for vulnerable New Yorkers while upholding landlords' rights to present their arguments.