How to Remove a Roommate Who Won't Leave in NYC

First: is the person a roommate or a sub-tenant?

New York law draws a sharp distinction:

• Roommate — a person who shares the apartment with the primary tenant but is not on the lease. They have no direct landlord-tenant relationship with the building owner.
• Sub-tenant — a person who has taken over the apartment (or a room) from the primary tenant under a sublease, paying rent to that tenant. They may have more formal legal standing.

If you are the building owner: the roommate is technically the tenant's problem, not yours. Your proceeding would be against your tenant. If you are the primary tenant trying to remove a roommate, this guide is for you.

What you cannot do

Do not change the locks while the roommate is out, remove their belongings, or cut off utilities. Under New York Penal Law § 241 (unlawful eviction), doing so is a criminal offense that can result in arrest — even if the person is not on the lease and owes you money.

Step 1: Give written notice

As the primary tenant (and the roommate's de facto landlord), you must give the roommate a written notice to vacate. The notice period mirrors the length of their occupancy:

• Less than 1 year → 30 days
• 1 year but less than 2 years → 60 days
• 2 or more years → 90 days

This requirement was introduced by the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (HSTPA) and applies even to informal roommate arrangements with no written sub-agreement.

Step 2: File a licensee holdover in Housing Court

If the roommate does not leave after the notice expires, you file a "licensee holdover" proceeding in NYC Housing Court. A "licensee" is the legal term for someone who occupies with permission (express or implied) but without a lease — which is exactly what an informal roommate is.

You file in the borough where the apartment is. The filing fee is the same as for a standard holdover (currently $210). The proceeding is between you (the primary tenant) and the roommate.

What if they claim they have rights?

Roommates in NYC have limited but real protections. Key points:

• Right to one roommate — under Real Property Law § 235-f, a tenant has the right to have one roommate regardless of what the lease says. The landlord cannot evict a tenant for this.
• No lease, no rent stabilization — an informal roommate typically cannot claim rent-stabilization protections themselves.
• Domestic partnership / family — if the person qualifies as a "family member" under the rent stabilization code (including unmarried partners who can prove a two-year companionship), they may have succession rights. This is a more complex situation requiring an attorney.

In most straightforward roommate disputes the licensee holdover proceeding resolves in 60–120 days with a judgment for possession.

Tips for a smoother process

• Keep all text messages and emails — courts treat these as written communication.
• Document rent payments (or the lack thereof) with bank records.
• Do not accept any "rent" from the roommate after you have served the notice to vacate — it can be construed as waiving the termination.
• If the roommate is also the registered leaseholder on a sublease, the proceeding is more complex; consult an attorney.

Counsel's NYC Roommate/Licensee workflow generates the required notice and guides you through the filing checklist step by step.