The first rent freeze lawsuit is here.
A group of landlords filed a petition and complaint Thursday seeking to send the rent freeze decision back to New York’s Rent Guidelines Board for an increase. Here’s a closer look at some of the players in the case.
Judge Ralph Porzio
Plaintiffs filed this case in state court in Staten Island. Ralph Porzio, the judge assigned to the case, is a Republican with a history of more conservative decisions.
In 2022, Porzio ruled that the city’s health commissioner was wrong to fire sanitation workers who failed to get the Covid-19 vaccine, calling the requirement “arbitrary and capricious.”
He made a similar ruling about the New York City order that children over two years old wear masks, although his decision was struck down by an appeals court.
Also in 2022, Porzio ruled that a city law that would have given non-citizen lawful residents the right to vote in municipal elections was unconstitutional.
Earlier this week he sided with Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s administration, saying that Mamdani’s decision to disband Eric Adams’ charter revision commission was lawful, Politico reported.
Randy Mastro
The lead attorney for the petitioners is the pugnacious Randy Mastro, of Dechert. Mastro has a history in public service. He was chief of staff and a deputy mayor for then-mayor Rudy Giuliani in the 1990s. In 2025, he was appointed first deputy mayor by Eric Adams.
Mastro has been no friend of the Mamdani administration. As the mayor was campaigning, Mastro told Bloomberg Law, “I will never work for a socialist.”
Last month, he joined the effort to prevent the city from moving a homeless intake center from the Bellevue 30th Street Shelter to the East Village. A Manhattan judge ultimately dismissed the suit.
Mastro also led Mayor Adams’ charter revision commission and took part in the aforementioned suit against the Mamdani administration for dissolving it.
The petitioners
The plaintiffs in the case are a group of LLCs that own rent-stabilized properties. Absent are large landlord lobbies and associations, although the Small Property Owners of New York has said the plaintiffs are members of its organization.
The complaint and petition outline some details about who exactly is behind the companies.
Kenilworth Holdings LLC is tied to landlord Michael Fazio. The company owns two fully rent-stabilized Staten Island buildings totaling six units.
Landlord Violet Zharku is the representative for three of the LLCs (21-45 23rd St. LLC, 39-12 62nd St. LLC, and 42-59 Bowne St. LLC). These companies together own three fully rent-stabilized buildings in Queens, totaling 50 units, according to the petition.
A married couple, Demetrios Antonopoulos and Sophia Hepheastou, own and manage a 21-unit, fully rent-stabilized building in the Bronx through 1369 College LLC.
The complaint doesn’t elaborate on the ownership of the two other companies party to the suit.
But city records show that plaintiff 593 Park Place Management is connected to landlord Janice Hamilton, who signed mortgage documents for the eight-unit rent-stabilized building in Brooklyn.
Plaintiff 43rd Street Associates LLC is tied to landlords Carmela and Thomas Muratore, who signed mortgage documents for the 23-unit, rent-stabilized building in Astoria, Queens.
Who’s not involved
The New York Apartment Association represents specifically rent-stabilized property owners in the city. Jay Martin, NYAA’s executive vice president, told The Real Deal in May the organization had “discussed potential legal avenues and how much that would cost.”
After this week’s suit went live, Martin told me NYAA supports the principles of the case and is “continuing to explore our options.”
The current suit aims to send this latest decision back to the board for another vote. But Martin appears to have bigger ambitions for any future legal action.
“We should be moving toward a system that is based on a formula,” he said. “Once and for all they need to reform the system.”
NYAA, under a different name and before a merger, sued over a rent freeze enacted by then-Mayor Bill de Blasio’s board. That suit was eventually dismissed.
What we’re thinking about: I reported Thursday that Mamdani is backing an effort by affordable developer Spatial Equity Co to take over 38 Manhattan buildings in foreclosure. Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants director Cea Weaver says the buildings are cash-flowing. The city can also offer financing and property tax relief. But what’s the likelihood of success here for Spatial Equity to both acquire and improve these buildings? Send thoughts to lilah.burke@therealdeal.com.
A thing we’ve learned: New York City’s hundreds of former newsstands are legally required to carry periodicals and sell only prepackaged snacks and drinks for under $10. A City Council bill introduced earlier this year would raise the $10 price cap and allow operators to sell accessories such as handbags and hair clips, but it wouldn’t lift the restriction on selling fresh food.
— Spencer Davis
Elsewhere…
— The American Museum of Natural History will display the championship trophy given to the New York Knicks after their historic win at the NBA Finals last month, Gothamist reports. The trophy will be on display beginning this Monday through Jan. 3, 2027, in the museum’s “For the Win” exhibit, which contains 70 objects across more than 15 sports to show how precious metals and gemstones are used as symbols of achievement.
— Mayor Zohran Mamdani began notifying property owners that they may be subject to the new pied-à-terre tax via mail. The tax will affect one- to three-family homes worth at least $5 million and co-ops and condominiums valued at $1 million or more that are unoccupied, non-primary residences. Owners will have 30 days to appeal to the city’s Tax Commission.
— Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy told Senators in a letter Wednesday that the Trump administration will direct Amtrak to rename Penn Station, the New York Daily News reports. Duffy said last August that Trump Station “has a nice ring to it,” while President Trump earlier this year told Senator Chuck Schumer that he would restore withheld funding for the Hudson River Tunnel project if Penn Station and Dulles Airport were renamed after him.
— Spencer Davis
Closing time
Residential: The most expensive residential sale recorded Thursday was $14.4 million for a 4,004-square-foot sponsor-sale condominium at One High Line, 500 West 18th Street in Chelsea. Deborah Kern and Steve Gold of Corcoran had the listing.
Commercial: The most expensive commercial transaction was $6.4 million for a 12,590-square-foot mixed-use property at 236 Broadway in South Williamsburg.
New to the Market: The highest price for a residential property hitting the market was $12.75 million for a 3,698-square-foot condominium at 1 Central Park South. Christopher E. Franklin and Brian J. Manning with Brown Harris Stevens have the listing.
Breaking Ground: The largest new building permit filed was for a proposed 856,969-square-foot, 527-unit project at 2108 Surf Avenue in Coney Island. Yevgeniy Mekhtiyev with IMC Architecture filed the permit on behalf of Rybak Development.
— Matthew Elo