Leases: leasehold estates, standard provisions, and rent-stabilized renewals

Question 1

Which leasehold estate has a definite beginning and ending, even when its duration is less than a year?

Accepted Answer

Estate for years

Answer

Periodic tenancy

Answer

Tenancy at will

Answer

Tenancy at sufferance

Question 2

A tenant rents a storage unit from April 1 through September 30, with no provision for repeating terms. Which estate does the agreement create?

Accepted Answer

Estate for years

Answer

Periodic tenancy because rent is paid monthly

Answer

Tenancy at will because the term is under a year

Answer

Tenancy at sufferance because the space is used for storage

Question 3

A rental agreement continues from month to month until properly terminated. What is this estate called?

Accepted Answer

Periodic tenancy

Answer

Estate for years

Answer

Tenancy at sufferance

Answer

Fee simple estate

Question 4

An owner permits a friend to occupy a cottage indefinitely. There is no fixed term and no arrangement for successive rental periods. Which classification best fits?

Accepted Answer

Tenancy at will

Answer

Tenancy at sufferance

Answer

Estate for years

Answer

Periodic tenancy

Question 5

Which statement best distinguishes an assignment from a sublease?

Accepted Answer

An assignment transfers the entire remaining leasehold interest; a sublease leaves a retained interest.

Answer

An assignment transfers ownership of the building; a sublease transfers possession.

Answer

An assignment retains a return interest; a sublease transfers the entire remaining leasehold.

Answer

An assignment changes the rent schedule; a sublease changes the permitted use.

Question 6

A tenant has 18 months left on a lease and transfers possession to another person for six months, reserving the right to return for the remaining 12 months. What is the transfer?

Accepted Answer

Sublease

Answer

Assignment

Answer

Surrender

Answer

Conveyance of the fee

Question 7

A tenant assigns the entire remaining leasehold and says, 'The transfer alone proves I no longer owe anything under my lease.' What is the best evaluation?

Accepted Answer

Incorrect, because an assignment does not by itself establish release of the original tenant.

Answer

Correct, because a transfer of possession substitutes for a release.

Answer

Incorrect, because retaining liability makes the transaction a sublease.

Answer

Correct, because the assignee becomes the owner of the premises.

Question 8

A New York residential lease says the tenant waives the warranty of habitability in exchange for lower rent. Which conclusion is correct?

Accepted Answer

The waiver is void despite the agreed rent reduction.

Answer

The waiver is valid because the tenant receives lower rent.

Answer

The waiver is valid if separately initialed.

Answer

The waiver is valid for common areas but not the apartment.

Question 9

Which area is included in New York's residential warranty of habitability?

Accepted Answer

A common hallway used with the rented apartment

Answer

A tenant's separately leased commercial warehouse

Answer

A separate building the same landlord owns nearby

Answer

Damage inside the unit caused by the tenant's own misconduct

Question 10

A New York tenant deliberately destroys the apartment's heating controls and claims that the resulting lack of heat is the landlord's breach of the warranty of habitability. Which fact most directly defeats that claim about this condition?

Accepted Answer

The condition was caused by the tenant's own misconduct.

Answer

The lease is residential rather than commercial.

Answer

The heating controls are inside the apartment.

Answer

The lease was agreed to orally.

Question 11

Maya is the sole named tenant of a New York apartment and occupies it as her primary residence. She wants one unrelated adult roommate and that roommate's dependent child to live with her. The lease says 'named tenant and immediate family only.' How should that clause be evaluated?

Accepted Answer

It cannot defeat the qualifying occupancy protected by New York's roommate law.

Answer

It bars the roommate because the adult is unrelated.

Answer

It permits the adult but excludes the adult's dependent child.

Answer

It permits the roommate only after Maya moves out.

Question 12

In New York's single-named-tenant roommate rule, whose primary residence can satisfy the stated residence condition?

Accepted Answer

The tenant's or the tenant's spouse's residence

Answer

The additional occupant's residence alone

Answer

The landlord's residence in the building

Answer

The property manager's residence in the building

Question 13

An ordinary New York residential tenant owes $800 monthly rent. Payment remains unpaid beyond five days after it was due. What is the statutory maximum late fee?

Accepted Answer

$40

Answer

$50

Answer

$80

Answer

$90

Question 14

An ordinary New York residential tenant's monthly rent is $1,600 and remains unpaid beyond five days after the due date. What is the statutory maximum late fee?

Accepted Answer

$50

Answer

$80

Answer

$130

Answer

$160

Question 15

An ordinary New York residential lease calls for a $25 late fee two days after rent is due. The tenant has not paid. Which analysis is correct at that time?

Accepted Answer

The fee is premature because the five-day waiting period has not elapsed.

Answer

The fee is lawful because it is below $50.

Answer

The fee is lawful if the tenant signed the lease.

Answer

The fee is premature because late fees require a full month of nonpayment.

Question 16

A residential month-to-month tenant outside New York City elects to terminate. What notice does Real Property Law § 232-b require from that tenant?

Accepted Answer

At least one month before the expiration of the term

Answer

At least five days after the next rent due date

Answer

Notice at the moment the tenant removes the last belongings

Answer

At least one year before the expiration of the term

Question 17

A salesperson reads the one-month tenant notice rule in New York Real Property Law § 232-b and tells an Albany residential landlord that it establishes the landlord's notice period too. What is the flaw?

Accepted Answer

The salesperson has applied the tenant rule to a residential landlord whom that language does not cover.

Answer

Albany is inside New York City for purposes of this rule.

Answer

Section 232-b deals with late fees rather than termination.

Answer

Month-to-month tenants are treated as tenants for a definite term under this rule.

Question 18

A New York apartment tenant remains after the right to possession has ended. The owner has no court order or governmental vacate order and changes the locks without giving the tenant a key to force departure. Which conclusion is correct?

Accepted Answer

The lock change is prohibited self-help eviction.

Answer

The lock change is authorized by the owner's title.

Answer

The lock change is authorized if the lease term expired.

Answer

The lock change creates a new periodic tenancy.

Question 19

Who is the lessee in a lease?

Accepted Answer

The tenant receiving the right to possession and use

Answer

The landlord granting the right to possession and use

Answer

The lender holding a mortgage on the building

Answer

The broker arranging the rental for the owner

Question 20

A commercial tenant pays a stated rent while the landlord generally pays property operating expenses. Which lease label best fits that expense arrangement?

Accepted Answer

Gross lease

Answer

Net lease

Answer

Percentage lease

Answer

Sublease

Question 21

A shop tenant must pay base rent plus the property taxes and insurance specified in the agreement. Which lease category best describes that expense allocation?

Accepted Answer

Net lease

Answer

Gross lease

Answer

Percentage lease

Answer

Tenancy at sufferance

Question 22

A retail lease calls for base rent plus an additional amount tied to the store's sales. Which term identifies that rent feature?

Accepted Answer

Percentage lease

Answer

Gross lease

Answer

Assignment

Answer

Tenancy at will

Question 23

A lease is titled 'Gross Lease,' but an express clause requires the tenant to pay a specified utility bill. The tenant says the title proves the landlord must pay that bill. What is the best response?

Accepted Answer

The actual utility allocation must be read; the label does not settle every expense.

Answer

The title overrides the utility clause.

Answer

A tenant-paid utility makes the lease a percentage lease.

Answer

A gross lease cannot contain an enforceable rent obligation.

Question 24

Which set of terms most directly determines whether a tenant may operate a bakery in the leased space?

Accepted Answer

The permitted-use provisions

Answer

The rent due date provisions

Answer

The renewal term provisions

Answer

The security deposit return provisions

Question 25

An eligible New York rent-stabilized tenant is entitled to an ordinary renewal, with no lawful exception involved. Which choice generally belongs to the tenant?

Accepted Answer

A choice between one-year and two-year renewal terms

Answer

A choice between month-to-month and six-month renewal terms

Answer

A choice between a three-year and a five-year renewal term

Answer

A choice between ownership shares and a proprietary lease

Question 26

A New York owner says an eligible rent-stabilized tenant loses renewal protection merely because the current lease reaches its ending date. No lawful ground for nonrenewal is identified. What is the best assessment?

Accepted Answer

Expiration alone does not eliminate rent-stabilized renewal protection.

Answer

A definite ending date removes the apartment from stabilization.

Answer

Renewal protection applies to commercial percentage leases instead.

Answer

The tenant must first become a tenant at will to claim renewal protection.

Question 27

A New York landlord plans to deregulate a rent-stabilized apartment solely because its rent and the tenant's income exceed former luxury-deregulation thresholds. Which advice is correct?

Accepted Answer

High-rent and high-income deregulation were repealed in 2019, so those former thresholds do not support the plan.

Answer

The plan works if both former thresholds are exceeded.

Answer

The plan works once the current lease expires.

Answer

The plan works if the tenant chooses a two-year renewal.

Question 28

Which statement correctly describes rent increases in an ordinary New York rent-stabilized renewal?

Accepted Answer

The renewal rent is subject to applicable lawful rent-increase limits.

Answer

The owner may replace the regulated rent with any advertised market rent.

Answer

The rent must remain unchanged because renewal is protected.

Answer

The tenant's income determines a percentage increase chosen by the owner.

Question 29

An eligible New York rent-stabilized tenant wants a two-year renewal. The owner offers only a one-year renewal because the owner prefers a shorter commitment. No lawful exception applies. Which response best reflects the tenant's ordinary renewal protection?

Accepted Answer

The ordinary one-year or two-year choice belongs to the eligible tenant.

Answer

The owner controls the choice because the owner holds title.

Answer

The tenant's request converts the lease into a month-to-month tenancy.

Answer

The two-year request is an assignment requiring transfer of the leasehold.

Question 30

Two tenants each have a lease with an ending date. One apartment is rent-stabilized and its tenant is eligible for renewal. A trainee concludes that the identical estate classification makes their renewal rights identical. What is the best evaluation?

Accepted Answer

Incorrect, because regulatory renewal protections must be considered in addition to the estate's duration.

Answer

Correct, because estate classification controls every renewal right.

Answer

Incorrect, because a stabilized lease cannot have a definite term.

Answer

Correct, because regulation concerns deposits rather than renewals.

Question 31

A tenant entered lawfully, the right to possession ended, and the tenant remains without renewed permission. Which estate describes that status?

Accepted Answer

Tenancy at sufferance

Answer

Tenancy at will

Answer

Periodic tenancy

Answer

Estate for years

Question 32

A landlord grants a lease but does not sell the property. Which description correctly separates the parties' interests?

Accepted Answer

The tenant receives possession and use; the landlord retains ownership.

Answer

The tenant receives ownership; the landlord retains possession for the lease term.

Answer

The tenant receives a mortgage lien; the landlord receives a leasehold.

Answer

The tenant and landlord exchange fee ownership interests for the term.

Question 33

A New York landlord argues that the warranty of habitability cannot apply because the residential rental agreement is oral. Which response is correct?

Accepted Answer

The warranty applies to both oral and written residential rental agreements.

Answer

The warranty begins only when the oral agreement is reduced to writing.

Answer

The warranty applies to common areas but not the apartment under an oral agreement.

Answer

The warranty applies to oral agreements only if rent is based on sales.

Question 34

Lease A ends on December 31 and requires monthly rent. Lease B continues month to month until properly terminated. Which comparison is correct?

Accepted Answer

Lease A is for a definite term; Lease B is periodic.

Answer

Both are periodic because rent is paid monthly.

Answer

Both are estates for years because a year contains their rental periods.

Answer

Lease A is at will; Lease B is at sufferance.

Question 35

Before signing a lease, a tenant wants to know who must maintain the heating equipment and who must pay the fuel bill. Which review best answers those contractual questions?

Accepted Answer

Read the maintenance and utility-allocation provisions together.

Answer

Read the rent due date and assume it determines both responsibilities.

Answer

Read the renewal term and assume the longer term shifts both costs.

Answer

Read the assignment provision and treat permission to transfer as an expense allocation.

Question 36

A business tenant wants to transfer its entire remaining leasehold interest to a new operator. Which lease provisions most directly govern the proposed transfer?

Accepted Answer

Assignment and transfer-restriction provisions

Answer

Percentage-rent calculation provisions

Answer

Utility metering provisions

Answer

Renewal rent adjustment provisions

Question 37

A percentage lease requires monthly base rent of $2,000 plus 4% of that month's gross sales, with no breakpoint or exclusions. Gross sales are $30,000. What is the monthly rent?

Accepted Answer

$3,200

Answer

$1,200

Answer

$2,000

Answer

$3,280

Question 38

A New York residential lease contains both a lawful allocation of the tenant's utility bills and a clause waiving habitability rights. The owner says signing the lease makes both provisions enforceable. What is the best evaluation?

Accepted Answer

The lawful utility allocation does not validate the prohibited habitability waiver.

Answer

Both provisions are valid because both concern housing costs.

Answer

Both provisions are void because residential leases cannot allocate utilities.

Answer

The waiver is enforceable if placed in the maintenance section.

Question 39

One occupant stays with continuing permission and no fixed or periodic arrangement. Another entered lawfully but remains after the right to possession ended, without renewed permission. Which distinction best classifies them?

Accepted Answer

The first is at will; the second is at sufferance.

Answer

The first is at sufferance; the second is at will.

Answer

Both are periodic because neither currently has a fixed ending date.

Answer

Both are at will because each originally entered with permission.

Question 40

An ordinary New York residential lease demands a $60 late fee on the third day after $900 rent was due. Which review correctly identifies the provision's defects?

Accepted Answer

The timing is premature, and $60 exceeds the $45 maximum for this rent.

Answer

The amount is excessive, but the third-day timing is permitted.

Answer

The timing is premature, but $60 is permitted because the lease specifies it.

Answer

The timing and amount are permitted because the fee is below one month's rent.

Which leasehold estate has a definite beginning and ending, even when its duration is less than a year?

A tenant rents a storage unit from April 1 through September 30, with no provision for repeating terms. Which estate does the agreement create?

A rental agreement continues from month to month until properly terminated. What is this estate called?

An owner permits a friend to occupy a cottage indefinitely. There is no fixed term and no arrangement for successive rental periods. Which classification best fits?

Which statement best distinguishes an assignment from a sublease?

A tenant has 18 months left on a lease and transfers possession to another person for six months, reserving the right to return for the remaining 12 months. What is the transfer?

A tenant assigns the entire remaining leasehold and says, 'The transfer alone proves I no longer owe anything under my lease.' What is the best evaluation?

A New York residential lease says the tenant waives the warranty of habitability in exchange for lower rent. Which conclusion is correct?

Which area is included in New York's residential warranty of habitability?

A New York tenant deliberately destroys the apartment's heating controls and claims that the resulting lack of heat is the landlord's breach of the warranty of habitability. Which fact most directly defeats that claim about this condition?

Maya is the sole named tenant of a New York apartment and occupies it as her primary residence. She wants one unrelated adult roommate and that roommate's dependent child to live with her. The lease says 'named tenant and immediate family only.' How should that clause be evaluated?

In New York's single-named-tenant roommate rule, whose primary residence can satisfy the stated residence condition?

An ordinary New York residential tenant owes $800 monthly rent. Payment remains unpaid beyond five days after it was due. What is the statutory maximum late fee?

An ordinary New York residential tenant's monthly rent is $1,600 and remains unpaid beyond five days after the due date. What is the statutory maximum late fee?

An ordinary New York residential lease calls for a $25 late fee two days after rent is due. The tenant has not paid. Which analysis is correct at that time?

A residential month-to-month tenant outside New York City elects to terminate. What notice does Real Property Law § 232-b require from that tenant?

A salesperson reads the one-month tenant notice rule in New York Real Property Law § 232-b and tells an Albany residential landlord that it establishes the landlord's notice period too. What is the flaw?

A New York apartment tenant remains after the right to possession has ended. The owner has no court order or governmental vacate order and changes the locks without giving the tenant a key to force departure. Which conclusion is correct?

Who is the lessee in a lease?

A commercial tenant pays a stated rent while the landlord generally pays property operating expenses. Which lease label best fits that expense arrangement?

A shop tenant must pay base rent plus the property taxes and insurance specified in the agreement. Which lease category best describes that expense allocation?

A retail lease calls for base rent plus an additional amount tied to the store's sales. Which term identifies that rent feature?

A lease is titled 'Gross Lease,' but an express clause requires the tenant to pay a specified utility bill. The tenant says the title proves the landlord must pay that bill. What is the best response?

Which set of terms most directly determines whether a tenant may operate a bakery in the leased space?

An eligible New York rent-stabilized tenant is entitled to an ordinary renewal, with no lawful exception involved. Which choice generally belongs to the tenant?

A New York owner says an eligible rent-stabilized tenant loses renewal protection merely because the current lease reaches its ending date. No lawful ground for nonrenewal is identified. What is the best assessment?

A New York landlord plans to deregulate a rent-stabilized apartment solely because its rent and the tenant's income exceed former luxury-deregulation thresholds. Which advice is correct?

Which statement correctly describes rent increases in an ordinary New York rent-stabilized renewal?

An eligible New York rent-stabilized tenant wants a two-year renewal. The owner offers only a one-year renewal because the owner prefers a shorter commitment. No lawful exception applies. Which response best reflects the tenant's ordinary renewal protection?

Two tenants each have a lease with an ending date. One apartment is rent-stabilized and its tenant is eligible for renewal. A trainee concludes that the identical estate classification makes their renewal rights identical. What is the best evaluation?

A tenant entered lawfully, the right to possession ended, and the tenant remains without renewed permission. Which estate describes that status?

A landlord grants a lease but does not sell the property. Which description correctly separates the parties' interests?

A New York landlord argues that the warranty of habitability cannot apply because the residential rental agreement is oral. Which response is correct?

Lease A ends on December 31 and requires monthly rent. Lease B continues month to month until properly terminated. Which comparison is correct?

Before signing a lease, a tenant wants to know who must maintain the heating equipment and who must pay the fuel bill. Which review best answers those contractual questions?

A business tenant wants to transfer its entire remaining leasehold interest to a new operator. Which lease provisions most directly govern the proposed transfer?

A percentage lease requires monthly base rent of $2,000 plus 4% of that month's gross sales, with no breakpoint or exclusions. Gross sales are $30,000. What is the monthly rent?

A New York residential lease contains both a lawful allocation of the tenant's utility bills and a clause waiving habitability rights. The owner says signing the lease makes both provisions enforceable. What is the best evaluation?

One occupant stays with continuing permission and no fixed or periodic arrangement. Another entered lawfully but remains after the right to possession ended, without renewed permission. Which distinction best classifies them?

An ordinary New York residential lease demands a $60 late fee on the third day after $900 rent was due. Which review correctly identifies the provision's defects?

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