If your lease is up for renewal, your landlord has likely told you that your rent is going up<\/span>. In New York City’s highly competitive rental market,<\/a>\u00a0landlords typically try to bring the rent for current tenants in line with what new ones would pay, especially if the market has shifted since you last signed a lease.\u00a0<\/p>\n The good news: New York’s<\/span>\u00a0Good Cause eviction law<\/a>\u00a0gives many market-rate renters the right to challenge a rent increase above the local rent standard of 5 percent plus the area’s Consumer Price Index, capped at 10 percent. For 2026, that works out to be to 8.38 percent.\u00a0<\/p>\n And NYC’s broker fee law\u2014which requires landlords to pay the brokers they hire\u2014may make some owners more open to favorable renewal terms. (More on that in\u00a0“FARE Act takes effect.”)<\/a><\/p>\n Even without those protections, staying polite and pointing to your record as a reliable tenant can go a long way, though don’t expect a corporate-managed building to budge on a rent increase.\u00a0<\/p>\n “Words matter, so using the right language and mindset is critical,” said Jules Garcia, a broker at Coldwell Banker Warburg.<\/a> “Thinking mainly in terms of ‘leverage’ could influence a mindset of a battle versus a constructive conversation, making any negotiation not as fruitful.”<\/p>\n [Editor’s note: A previous version of this article was published in<\/span>\u00a0March 2025.\u00a0We are presenting it with updated information for September 2026.]\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n What’s more, before you push back on an increase, it’s worth weighing the real cost of moving\u2014including\u00a0hiring movers,<\/a>\u00a0a new\u00a0security deposit,<\/a>\u00a0and potential broker’s fee\u2014against staying put, especially if you plan to be in NYC a while and like where you live.\u00a0<\/p>\n And if you’re tempted to keep paying your old rent without signing a new lease, so long as the landlord accepts your payments, this can turn you into a more flexible\u00a0month-to-month tenant, <\/a>but you’ll lose lease protections and could\u00a0<\/span>face eviction<\/a>\u00a0on short notice if the landlord wants you out.<\/p>\n Here’s what to know about negotiating a rent increase at lease renewal time.<\/span><\/p>\n As the name suggests, market-rate tenants are subject to supply-and-demand forces. When it’s time to renew, landlords can generally raise rents within the bounds of what renters are willing to pay, with the exception of buildings covered by<\/span>\u00a0Good Cause eviction law that now caps rent increases for some market-rate apartments at 8.38 percent. <\/span>Your landlord is supposed to inform you if your building is covered by Good Cause, but you can check for yourself.<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n Demand also drives the rent increase. When more renters are competing for units, landlords are less inclined to offer good deals on renewals. In slower markets, they’re more motivated to limit increases\u2014or even provide incentives to renew.<\/p>\n Rent-stabilized apartments<\/a>\u00a0work differently: The Rent Guidelines Board sets limits on rent increases, and in a historic vote this summer,\u00a0<\/span>the\u00a0board froze rent increases<\/a><\/span>\u00a0for both one- and two-year leases commencing October 1st, 2026, through September 30th, 2027. (Just be aware there is a pending lawsuit<\/a> to try to reverse that decision.)<\/p>\n Bottom line for market-rate tenants: While owners may consider a reasonable offer from a current, reliable tenant, they also know they may be able to rent the unit to an incoming tenant for more.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n1. Understand how market-rate units work\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n
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