Free for New York City tenants · Not legal advice
Is my apartment rent‑stabilized — and am I being overcharged?
Enter your address to see what public records say about your building. Then check your rent against every Rent Guidelines Board increase since 2001.
Try:
What “rent‑stabilized” means
Capped increases
Your rent can only go up by the percentage the Rent Guidelines Board (RGB) sets each year, unless the state approves a specific extra increase.
A right to renew
Your landlord must offer a renewal lease (1 or 2 years, your choice) except in narrow cases decided by a court or the state.
Which buildings
Mostly buildings with 6+ apartments built before 1974, plus newer buildings that take tax breaks like 421‑a or J‑51. Roughly 1 million NYC apartments are stabilized.
Rent calculator
Uses the official RGB apartment orders (#33–#58, leases starting Oct 1, 2001 – Sep 30, 2027). For rent‑stabilized apartments only.
Enter each lease from your lease papers or your DHCR rent history, oldest first. The first lease is the starting point; each later lease is checked against the RGB increase allowed when it began.
Read my lease or rent history for me AI · optional
Paste the text of one lease, renewal form (RTP‑8), lease rider, registration (RR‑2A) or DHCR rent history. A program on this server copies the dates and rents into a table for you to check. It doesn’t decide anything, and your text isn’t sent to any outside service.
This calculator can’t see state‑approved extra increases (Major Capital Improvements, Individual Apartment Improvements), pre‑2019 vacancy and longevity increases, or special programs (SCRIE/DRIE, Section 8, 421‑a affordable rents). It estimates; it doesn’t decide. Not legal advice.
Rent Guidelines Board increases, by lease year
Every June the RGB votes on the maximum increase for leases that start between October 1 and the next September 30. Find the row containing your lease’s start date.
| Order | Leases starting | 1‑year lease | 2‑year lease |
|---|
Source: NYC Rent Guidelines Board, Apartment Orders #1–#58 summary chart and full orders. Orders before 2019 also allowed vacancy increases, which the 2019 law (HSTPA) abolished. Loft and hotel guidelines differ.
How to get your rent history from DHCR
Your rent history is the official record of every rent registered for your apartment since 1984. It’s free, and it’s the best proof of whether you’re stabilized and what your legal rent is. Current tenants can request it; your landlord isn’t told.
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Open NYS Rent Connect
Go to rent.hcr.ny.gov/RentConnect, the state Homes and Community Renewal (HCR, formerly DHCR) portal, and choose the tenant option to request a rent history. The Rent Connect Assistant on that site can walk you through it.
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Have your details ready
Your full name as on the lease, building address, apartment number, and contact information. A copy of your lease helps but usually isn’t required.
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Or ask by phone or online inquiry
Call the HCR Rent Infoline at 1‑833‑499‑0343, or submit an “Apartment Rent History” inquiry at portal.hcr.ny.gov/app/ask.
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Read what comes back
Look for the status in each year (“RS” means registered as rent‑stabilized), the legal regulated rent, and any lower “preferential” rent. Gaps, a sudden large jump, or “permanently exempt” after a big increase are worth asking a lawyer about.
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Use it here
Enter the leases into the overcharge checker. If you find a problem, you can file an overcharge complaint with HCR (form RA‑89, or online) — or get free legal help first.
We link to official state pages only and never submit anything on your behalf. Processing times vary; if a rent history doesn’t arrive, follow up through Rent Connect. For other HCR records, the state uses form REC‑1 (Request for Records Access).
Free help for tenants
NYC Tenant Helpline · 311
Call 311 and ask for the Tenant Helpline or “Right to Counsel.” Free legal advice and, if you’re facing eviction, a free lawyer (income limits may apply).
Housing Court Answers
Hotline for questions about Housing Court, repairs and rent: 212‑962‑4795. Information desks in every borough’s Housing Court.
Office of Civil Justice
NYC’s free legal services for tenants, including Right to Counsel in eviction cases, in every ZIP code and regardless of immigration status.
NYS Homes & Community Renewal
The state agency that runs rent stabilization: rent histories, overcharge complaints, service complaints, fact sheets. Rent Infoline 1‑833‑499‑0343.
Met Council on Housing
Tenant union with a free tenants’ rights hotline and guides on stabilization, repairs and organizing your building.
JustFix · Who Owns What
Nonprofit tools to see your landlord’s other buildings, send repair letters, and document problems.
Think you’ve been overcharged?
We’re building a free, opt‑in referral to vetted tenant lawyers. You’d never pay us; lawyers would cover the cost. It isn’t live yet — for help today, call 311 for the Tenant Helpline.