New York Attorney General Letitia James and RuthAnne Visnauskas, Commissioner of New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR), have filed a lawsuit against Peak Capital Advisors, LLC and its operators for the illegal deregulation of at least 159 rent stabilized apartments in Brooklyn and Queens. The lawsuit targets Peak Capital Advisors, LLC, a real estate development company based in New York City, along with its operators Juan David Gomez, Alex Rabin, Amnay Labou, Michael Lohan, Bryan Anderson, Alex Kaskel, and Alex Mendik.
The lawsuit alleges that Peak and its operators misled tenants, investors, lenders, and state housing regulators about the legal status of these units. The suit seeks to recover overcharged rents plus treble damages, restore the units’ rent stabilized status, impose penalties for legal violations, and appoint an independent administrator to audit all Peak properties for additional illegal activity.
Attorney General James stated: “It is no secret that New York City is already battling an affordable housing crisis, and yet Peak and its operators still chose to line their own pockets at New Yorkers’ expense. As these bad actors illegally raked in profits, affordable housing in New York grew even more scarce, and that is unacceptable. Let this lawsuit be a warning: when corporate developers and bad landlords try to cheat housing laws, my office will always take aggressive action to stop them.”
Commissioner Visnauskas commented: “HCR’s Tenant Protection Unit, in partnership with the Office of the Attorney General, conducted an extensive investigation resulting in a lawsuit against Peak Capital Advisors for improperly deregulating dozens of buildings in New York City. The investigation showed that none of these Peak properties met legal requirements for deregulation. We look forward to returning these buildings to their proper status under the rent stabilization law. HCR’s Tenant Protection Unit and the Office of the Attorney General will not allow unlawful profiteering and deregulation.”
A joint investigation by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) and HCR’s Tenant Protection Unit found that since 2019 Peak acquired dozens of buildings—many rent stabilized—and claimed exemptions from rent regulation by citing “substantial rehabilitation.” This exemption applies only if a building was previously substandard or seriously deteriorated before undergoing comprehensive renovations. Investigators determined none of Peak’s properties met those criteria; records showed they were already in average or good condition when purchased.
The OAG and HCR allege that Peak sought out buildings with potential for increased revenue in neighborhoods such as Sunnyside, Astoria, Long Island City, and Greenpoint by using loopholes intended for rehabilitating dilapidated buildings. According to investigators’ findings summarized above—Peak’s renovations did not meet legal standards required for deregulation.
Further deceptive tactics described include reassigning apartment numbers after renovations to obscure lawful rents from tenants and regulators; providing misleading rent projections to investors; submitting fraudulent affidavits claiming building systems were substandard; deceiving new tenants about their rights under rent stabilization; and requiring lease agreements falsely stating apartments were deregulated.
The 31 affected buildings are located throughout Brooklyn (including addresses on Middagh Street, Greenpoint Avenue, Manhattan Avenue) and Queens (including addresses on 41st Street, Skillman Avenue).
Attorney General James and HCR are asking the court to require reregulation of all illegally deregulated units; payment of treble overcharge penalties; return of unlawfully obtained profits; and imposition of penalties for consumer protection violations.
The OAG acknowledged collaboration from members of the Tenant Harassment Prevention Task Force—including HCR’s TPU as well as several New York City agencies—in pursuing this case.
Senior Enforcement Counsel Rachel Hannaford and Special Assistant Attorney General Stephanie Cunningham are leading the case under Housing Protection Unit Chief Brent Meltzer.
