The Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) administers their own SCRIE program for Mitchell-Lama residents and Housing Development Fund Corporation (HDFC) cooperative shareholders. If you are a Mitchell-Lama or HDFC tenant, you should contact HPD for help with renewing your benefit.
Your benefit expiration date depends on the type of apartment you have.
Landlords can raise the legal rent in accordance with guidelines put out by the New York City Rent Guidelines Board, Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) or Division of Housing and Community Renewal (HCR).
They must issue valid, current leases to all rent-stabilized tenants, or valid, current HCR-issued rental orders to all rent-controlled tenants. For DRIE Mitchell-Lama tenants, landlords are required to provide a letter specifying the start date and the amount of the rent increase.
Recalculating Frozen Rent Amount
If you applied to and were approved for the Rent Freeze program as a new applicant after July 1, 2015, your renewal application is subject to a 1/3 income eligibility check. When you renew, DOF will recalculate your benefit based on your household income and legal rent to make sure the frozen rent amount is 1/3 of your income.
If:
Rent Increase and Lease Issues
You can get help from the New York State Division of Homes and Community Renewal with rent or lease renewal problems, including if:
In general, tenants in rent-stabilized apartments must be offered renewal leases for one or two years.
An owner can refuse to renew a lease for several reasons, including:
However, when the owner doesn’t offer the tenant a renewal lease for one of these reasons, the owner must give the tenant written notice of non-renewal by mail or personal delivery 90 to 150 days before the existing lease expires.
You can learn more about the laws for rent stabilized and rent controlled apartments and how to contact HCR for more assistance on the Rent Regulated Apartments page.
If you haven’t been previously approved for five or more consecutive benefit periods, you must renew by completing the standard, universal renewal application.
Online
SCRIE
Download the SCRIE Renewal Application.
Download the SCRIE Renewal Application in Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, French, Haitian Creole, Korean, Polish, Russian, Spanish, and Urdu.
DRIE
Download the DRIE Renewal Application.
Download the DRIE Renewal Application in Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, French, Haitian Creole, Korean, Polish, Russian, Spanish, and Urdu.
By Mail
If you have been previously approved for five or more consecutive benefit periods, you will be mailed a pre-filled Short Form Renewal Application to renew your benefit instead of the regular renewal application. If you received the Short Form, you can complete and submit it; you don't also need to submit the regular application.
Proof of income isn't required unless your household income increased by more than $1,000 since your last renewal application. All renewal applicants still need to provide rent information and lease documents for their apartment type.
If you misplaced the Short Form or if the pre-filled information on the form is incorrect, you can download the form online. If you submit a Short Form Renewal Application and don’t qualify to use it, DOF will contact you.
In addition to updated income information for all household members, attach a copy of your new lease that has been signed by you and your landlord to your application. For hotel units, provide your rent increase letter.
The documents necessary to prove your income and rent are the same as ones required for applying. The list is on the renewal application, or you can visit the Rent Freeze Program for Seniors page and Rent Freeze Program for Tenants with Disabilities page for information.
If you receive a Major Capital Improvement Order (MCI) from your landlord around the time your lease is ready for renewal, you can also include that with your renewal application and documents.
If you live in a rent-controlled apartment and your SCRIE or DRIE benefit has expired, but you have not received a new MBR or Fuel Cost Adjustment, you should submit your renewal application without those documents. If your application is approved, your landlord will not get an increase in the tax abatement credits until the new MBR or Fuel Cost Adjustment is received by DOF and an adjustment is completed.
You can get help completing a Rent Freeze application. Make sure to gather the required documents before meeting with or contacting an assistor.
To renew SCRIE or DRIE, complete a renewal application and submit it by mail or in person at a SCRIE or DRIE Walk-In Center. Your completed, signed application should include the required documents for your household income and apartment type.
The mailing address for applications and documents requested through pending notices depend on whether or not you have a barcode on the application.
Address for Applications With Barcodes
Mail applications and Pending Notices along with the documentation requested to:
NYC Department of Finance
SCRIE/DRIE Unit
P.O. Box 3130
Union, NJ 07083
Address for Applications Without Barcodes
It may take up to 4 weeks from the mailing date for the application to be processed and its status to become available.
The Department of Finance (DOF) will review your application to determine your eligibility. Within 45 days, they will mail you a notice with the status of your application.
The status of your application could be approved, denied, or pending for additional information or documentation.
Approved Applications
If all necessary information has been received and your application has been approved, DOF will mail you an Approval Order.
DOF will also recalculate your frozen rent amount. If:
The Approval Order includes:
An Owner Approval Order with this same information will be sent to your landlord.
Pending Applications
If there’s anything missing in your application, you'll be mailed a Pending Notice which will list the additional information or documentation required.
Mail the Pending Notice along with the documentation requested to:
NYC Department of Finance
Attention: Rent Freeze Program
P.O. Box 3179
Union, NJ 07083
Revoked Applications
If upon renewal, you were found not to be eligible for the program anymore, DOF will send you a letter stating that your benefit has been revoked. You can appeal the revocation of your benefit. To learn more, go to the Rent Freeze Program Assistance page.
DOF updates SCRIE and DRIE tenant status reports on its website every week.
The report includes application status and information for current Rent Freeze Program participants and those active within the past year. It is organized by borough and docket number.
If you recently mailed an application, it may take up to 4 weeks from the mailing date for the application to be processed and for the status to be available.
When your SCRIE or DRIE expires, your landlord is required by law to grant you the benefits for an additional 6 months (180 days).
If you don’t renew your benefits during that time, they will be terminated and you will be responsible for paying your landlord back for the difference between your frozen rent amount and your legal rent amount for the 6-month grace period. That amount would be the difference between what you paid and the actual legal rent amount that was due for those months you were not actively in the program.
The Department of Finance sends Failure to Recertify (FTR) notices 90 days after the end of the lease to tenants whose benefits are being revoked because DOF did not receive the required renewal application and documents prior to the deadline. These notices are also sent to the tenants' representatives and landlords.
This notice indicates that in order to be eligible for reinstatement the tenant has an additional 90 days to submit:
If you don’t renew 180 days after the lease end date, you will need to reapply as an initial applicant and repay the landlord that portion of the full legal rent that was not paid during the 6-month grace period.
If you were unable to renew due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) you may be able to get an additional 6 month extension. Please submit your renewal application and any documentation you have as soon as possible and DOF will review on a case by case basis.
