How Rochester Handles Rental Property Rules: A Practical Guide

Rochester maintains 123 local ordinances across all categories, and 4 of those deal specifically with rental property rules. Here is a breakdown of what the city actually requires, what is prohibited, and where Rochester falls on the strict-to-permissive spectrum compared to other cities.

Just Cause Eviction

Rochester opted into New York's 2024 Good Cause Eviction Law by local law, effective citywide unless a unit is exempt. Landlords must show good cause in housing court before evicting a tenant or refusing to renew a lease, with the protection set to expire June 15, 2034.

Key details: Adopted: 12-17-2024, Local Law No. 4-2025. FMR exemption threshold: 245% of local fair market rent. Small-landlord exemption: 1 other unit statewide. Sunset date: June 15, 2034. State law incorporated: RPL Art. 6-A, §§ 211-218.

A landlord who files a nonpayment or holdover case in Rochester City Court against a covered unit without pleading a good-cause ground faces dismissal of the eviction petition under amended RPAPL §§ 711 and 741; a tenant can raise the absence of good cause as a defense. The law carries no separate fine schedule of its own, since it operates through the eviction proceeding itself rather than a code-enforcement penalty.

This is not one of those rules that cities tend to ignore. Rochester actively enforces its just cause eviction requirements.

Relocation Assistance

When a Rochester landlord performs lead-based paint hazard reduction work that requires occupants to leave their unit, the City's Property Conservation Code requires the landlord to relocate them and bars charging rent for the relocation period. If interior work runs past 60 days, tenants can terminate their lease outright and owe no further rent under it, per § 90-59 of the Code.

Key details: Governing section: City Code § 90-59(A)(2), (4). Rent during relocation: Not owed if unit isn't landlord-owned. Lease termination trigger: Interior work not done within 60 days. Tenant notice required: 3 business days before work starts. Enforcing code: Property Conservation Code, Article III.

Landlords who fail to relocate occupants, charge rent during a required relocation, or ignore the 60-day lease-termination trigger are violating the Property Conservation Code's lead-based paint provisions. Property Conservation Code violations referred to the Municipal Code Violations Bureau are fined under § 13A-11D, ranging from $100/$200 for a general violation up to $500/$1,000 for one classified as an immediate hazard.

Source-of-Income Discrimination

Rochester's Human Rights Code bars landlords, brokers and their agents from refusing to rent, or from treating a tenant differently in the terms of a lease, based on actual or perceived source of income, a term that by definition covers Housing Choice Vouchers (Section 8), pensions, Social Security, unemployment and other public or charitable subsidies, per § 63-5C and § 63-2.

Key details: Governing section: § 63-5C, Human Rights Code. Adopted: June 20, 2017 by Ord. No. 2017-163. Covers: Housing Choice Vouchers (Section 8) and other subsidies. Screening still allowed: Equal income/payment-history criteria for all applicants. Illegal-income exception: Landlord may refuse income from an illegal source.

A tenant or applicant who believes a landlord, broker or agent turned them away or treated them worse because of a voucher or other subsidized income can pursue a complaint under Chapter 63's Human Rights enforcement provisions; the City's general penalty structure in § 13A-11 also applies to violations referred to the Municipal Code Violations Bureau, with fines that escalate on repeat offenses.

This is one of the stricter rules in Rochester's municipal code. If you are unsure whether your situation complies, it is worth checking with the city before proceeding.

Repairs & Habitability

Rochester applies the New York State Property Maintenance Code to every existing building in the city and makes the owner, not the tenant, primarily responsible for compliance. In multiple dwellings, owners must properly install and maintain service facilities and furnish adequate heat and hot water wherever they have contracted to supply it, per City Code §§ 90-5(A) and 90-18.

Key details: Governing standard: NYS Property Maintenance Code, applied by § 90-5(A). Responsible party: owner, regardless of lease terms. Multiple dwellings: must furnish contracted heat and hot water. Agents/managers: treated as owner for compliance, § 90-18(C). Fine tiers: $100-$200 to $500-$1,000 by category.

Property Code violations, including habitability failures, are cited by the Department of Neighborhood and Business Development and heard at the Municipal Code Violations Bureau. Non-zoning Property Code violations fall into one of three fine tiers set by § 13A-11D of the Municipal Code: all other violations carry a $100 initial penalty and $200 on default; health and safety violations carry $250/$500; and immediate hazard violations carry $500/$1,000. A determination can be appealed to the Bureau's Appeals Board within 30 days.

The Bottom Line

Rochester is tougher than many cities when it comes to rental property rules. Out of the 4 rules covered here, 2 are rated strict. If you are a homeowner, renter, or business owner in Rochester, take the time to understand these requirements before they become a problem. Most violations come with fines, and some repeat violations can escalate.

These rules come from Rochester's publicly available municipal code. For complete penalty schedules, exemption details, and answers to common questions, see the individual ordinance pages throughout this guide.