How to Legally Raise Rent in New York in 2026

Raising rent in New York means three different rule sets depending on the unit. Below: the 30/60/90-day notice rules, the Good Cause Eviction caps for covered units, the stabilized vs market-rate distinction, and a sample notice you can adapt.

No state makes rent increases more procedurally complex than New York. The notice period depends on how long the tenant has lived there. The permissible amount depends on whether the unit is stabilized, market-rate, or covered by the Good Cause Eviction law. Get one element wrong — even the delivery method — and the notice is defective, which restarts the clock or, in a stabilization context, risks regulatory enforcement. This guide walks through each scenario.

The notice rules (30/60/90-day based on tenancy length)

New York's general notice requirements for rent increases (and non-renewals) are set under Real Property Law §226-c, which applies statewide to both market-rate and stabilized tenancies. The notice period scales with how long the tenant has occupied the unit:

These are calendar days, not business days. If you're increasing rent effective February 1, and the tenant has lived there for 18 months, you must deliver the notice by December 3 of the prior year (60 days before February 1). Miss that window and the increase is invalid for that period — you're stuck with the old rent until you give proper notice for the following period.

The notice period applies regardless of the size of the increase. Even a 1% rent increase on a market-rate unit requires 30/60/90 days' advance notice based on tenancy length. Many landlords assume short notice is fine for small increases. It is not.

Renewals vs. mid-term increases: You cannot raise rent mid-lease on a fixed-term tenancy unless the lease expressly permits it with a specific formula. The notice rules apply to rent at lease renewal or, for month-to-month tenancies, the proper advance notice before the increase takes effect.

For month-to-month tenants, count the notice period backward from the first day of the first rent period in which the new rent will apply. If rent is due the 1st of each month and you want the new rent to apply March 1, for a 2-year tenant you need notice by January 1 or earlier.

GCE caps where applicable

For market-rate units covered by New York's Good Cause Eviction (GCE) law — buildings of 6 or more units, buildings not built within the last 30 years, and units where the owner doesn't occupy the building — rent increases are subject to a reasonableness standard.

The GCE rent cap formula:

• The lower of (a) 5% above the prior legal rent, or (b) 3x the most recent 12-month NYC CPI
• In practice, for 2025–2026, this works out to roughly 8–10% depending on the actual CPI reading

This cap matters for the following reason: if you offer a renewal at an increase above the GCE threshold, and the tenant refuses the renewal, you cannot simply serve a holdover petition as you could before GCE. The tenant can argue in housing court that your non-renewal (triggered by their refusal of an unaffordable increase) lacked good cause. Courts are still developing this doctrine, but the risk is real.

What GCE does NOT cap:

• Initial rents for new tenants moving into a unit that had a turnover
• Rent increases below the threshold (these are not challenged under GCE)
• Rent in exempt buildings (under-6-unit buildings, buildings less than 30 years old, owner-occupied 1–4 unit buildings)

For a full explanation of which buildings are covered and which are exempt, see our guide to Good Cause Eviction for NYC landlords.

Practical guidance: On covered units, calculate the GCE cap before issuing your renewal offer. If your proposed increase is within the cap, provide the notice. If it's above the cap, either reduce the increase to stay within it or consult an attorney before proceeding.

Rent-stabilized vs market-rate

These are fundamentally different regulatory worlds in New York, and confusing them is one of the costlier mistakes a landlord can make.

Rent-stabilized units:

• Governed primarily by the Rent Stabilization Law and Code, administered by the New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR)
• Rent increases at renewal are set annually by the NYC Rent Guidelines Board (RGB) — landlords must use the RGB-approved percentages. For 2025 lease years, the RGB set 1-year increases at 2.75% and 2-year increases at 5.25% (verify current RGB orders)
• Renewal must be offered on the same terms as the prior lease unless you have DHCR approval for a change
• The renewal offer must be made 90 to 150 days before lease expiration using a DHCR-approved renewal form
• You cannot raise rent above the RGB guideline without specific DHCR-approved increases (e.g., individual apartment improvement (IAI) increases, major capital improvement (MCI) increases)
• DHCR audits compliance. Overcharging leads to rent rollback orders and repayment obligations

Market-rate units (not stabilized, not covered by GCE):

• No cap on the amount of the increase, subject only to the 30/60/90-day advance notice
• You are free to offer any renewal rent, and if the tenant refuses, you can decline to renew (subject to GCE if that law applies)
• Increases are purely a negotiation between you and the tenant

Market-rate units covered by GCE:

• Must comply with the 30/60/90-day advance notice
• Increases above the GCE cap carry the litigation risk described above
• You must include GCE disclosure language in the notice

How to determine which category a unit falls in:

• Check DHCR's Rent Registration database (accessible through the HCR online portal) to see if the unit is registered as rent stabilized
• If you acquired a building and are unsure, do a DHCR building search — this is not optional
• Buildings with 6+ units built before 1974 are presumptively stabilized unless exempt under specific rules (421-a/Affordable NY, ETPA exemptions, etc.)

For NYC landlords managing stabilized and market-rate units simultaneously, the property management software that handles NYC-specific workflows differs meaningfully from general-purpose tools — stabilization compliance requires DHCR renewal form generation, RGB guideline tracking, and rider management that most national platforms don't handle natively.

What the notice must contain

A rent increase notice in New York must include specific elements to be valid. Missing any of them gives the tenant grounds to challenge.

Required elements for a market-rate or GCE-covered unit:

• Full legal name(s) of all tenants on the lease
• Property address, including unit number
• Current rent amount
• New rent amount
• Effective date of the new rent
• Date the notice is being sent
• Landlord's name, address, and signature (or authorized agent's)
• For GCE-covered units: A statement identifying the good-cause ground for any non-renewal, or for a renewal notice, acknowledgment that the unit is covered under GCE

For rent-stabilized units, the required form is the DHCR Renewal Lease Form (RTP-8 for most circumstances). You cannot use your own notice template — the DHCR form is mandatory.

Sample language for a market-rate notice (adapt with attorney review):

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Date: [Date]

To: [Tenant Full Name(s)] Re: [Property Address, Unit Number]

Dear [Tenant Name]:

This notice is provided pursuant to New York Real Property Law §226-c. Your current monthly rent for the above-referenced unit is $[current amount].

Effective [date at least 30/60/90 days from notice date], your monthly rent will increase to $[new amount].

[For GCE-covered units: This unit is subject to the Good Cause Eviction law (Chapter 56 of the Laws of 2024). The proposed increase is within the applicable rent reasonableness standard.]

Please contact [Landlord name, address, phone] if you have questions.

Sincerely, [Landlord name and signature]

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This is a template — have your attorney review it before use, particularly for GCE-covered or stabilized units.

Delivery and proof

How you deliver the notice matters as much as what's in it. A defectively delivered notice is a defective notice.

Acceptable delivery methods under New York law:

• Personal delivery — hand it to the tenant directly, and note the date and circumstances in writing
• Certified mail with return receipt — the gold standard for proof; keep the green card
• Regular first-class mail — acceptable but less provable. If you use this method, add a few days to your notice period calculation since delivery isn't guaranteed on day one
• Substituted service — leaving with a person of suitable age and discretion at the premises plus mailing. This follows the same rules as court process service
• Conspicuous place posting — affixing to the door when personal delivery and substituted service can't be completed, plus mailing

Electronic delivery: Email and text message are generally not sufficient under New York law for rent increase or non-renewal notices unless the lease explicitly provides for electronic notice and the tenant has agreed. Don't rely on email alone.

What to keep:

• A copy of the notice with the date it was sent
• Proof of delivery (certified mail receipt, notarized affidavit of service, or your own contemporaneous written record)
• The envelope with postmark if mailing

If this ever reaches housing court — in a holdover proceeding or a challenge to the increase — you need to be able to prove delivery on a specific date. "I mailed it sometime in November" won't hold up.

When tenants can challenge

Tenants in New York have several avenues to challenge a rent increase or a non-renewal.

For rent-stabilized tenants:

• A tenant who believes a renewal rent exceeds RGB guidelines can file an overcharge complaint with DHCR
• DHCR will investigate and order a rollback if overcharging is confirmed
• Willful overcharges carry a penalty of three times the overcharged amount for each year of overcharge
• Tenants can also challenge the basis of any IAI or MCI rent increase at DHCR

For market-rate tenants under GCE:

• A tenant who receives a non-renewal can raise the absence of good cause as a defense in housing court
• A tenant who believes an offered renewal increase is above the GCE reasonableness standard can argue this in a holdover proceeding if they decline the renewal and face eviction
• Tenants can also pursue a rent reduction order if the landlord fails to maintain services

For all tenants:

• Tenants can file a habitability complaint with HPD, which triggers an inspection and potential order to correct conditions
• A landlord who retaliates against a tenant for filing a complaint faces a presumption of retaliation in any subsequent eviction proceeding, which the landlord must rebut

The practical consequence: If a tenant declines your renewal or challenges your increase, the case lands in Housing Court. NYC Housing Court has specialized judges who hear these matters routinely. An improperly documented notice, incorrect delivery method, or above-GCE-cap increase will be scrutinized carefully. Build the record before you send the notice, not after.

FAQ

Can I raise rent on a month-to-month tenant? Yes. Provide the required 30/60/90-day advance notice (based on tenancy length) before the effective date of the increase. The increase takes effect at the start of the first rent period after the notice period expires.

Do I need to give notice if I'm just renewing at the same rent? No. If the rent is unchanged, no advance notice is legally required (though it's good practice to provide a renewal lease in advance). The 30/60/90-day notice requirement under RPL §226-c is specifically tied to rent increases.

Can I raise the rent mid-lease? Only if the lease expressly allows it — for example, a clause tying rent to CPI or specifying a mid-term adjustment. Without such a clause, the rent is fixed for the lease term.

My tenant is on a month-to-month and I want to increase by 20%. Is there anything stopping me? The only cap is GCE if the unit is covered. For uncovered market-rate units, 20% is permissible if you give proper advance notice. A 20% increase on a covered unit would likely exceed the GCE reasonableness standard and create litigation risk if the tenant refuses.

What happens if I gave the notice but got the delivery method wrong? If the delivery was defective, the notice period doesn't run. If you proceed to a holdover proceeding based on a defectively served notice, the tenant can raise the defect as a defense and the case may be dismissed. Re-serve correctly and restart the clock.

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This isn't legal advice. Consult an attorney licensed in your state.