An aerial view of the four apartment buildings known as the Grand Putnam Portfolio (Google Maps)
Four bankrupt rent-stabilized apartment buildings in Clinton Hill could have a path to deregulation, thanks to an obscure exemption intended to repair run-down properties.
Rosenberg & Estis, the attorneys for the bankrupt properties, filed an adversary proceeding on Jan. 7, arguing that because the previous owner rehabilitated the buildings in 2002, 46 of their total 128 units should be deregulated.
A little-used “substantial rehabilitation” provision allows landlords to deregulate units — even, at least theoretically, under the new rent law — if a building is found to be dilapidated, and 75 percent of the building-wide systems are completely replaced.