Rental Property Rules in Rochester, NY (2026)
4 verified rental property rules for Rochester, New York, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
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.
Rochester Adopts New York's Good Cause Eviction Law
Significant RestrictionsRochester City Code § 10-13
§ 10-13. Good Cause Eviction Law. [§ 1, 12-17-2024 by L.L. No. 4-2025] The Good Cause Eviction Law enacted in Part HH of Chapter 56 of the 2024 Laws of New York (the "State Law") is hereby adopted by local law to apply in the City of Rochester. ... B. In accordance with Real Property Law § 213, Voluntary participation by local government outside the City of New York, as enacted in Section 1 of ...
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.
Rochester NY Tenant Relocation During Lead Work
Some RestrictionsRochester City Code § 90-59(A)(2), (A)(4)
(2) Occupants shall be temporarily relocated during hazard reduction activities and until a clearance examination has been successfully completed on the occupant's unit, and occupants who relocate to a unit not owned by their landlord shall not be liable for rent accruing during that time, except that relocation shall not be necessary if... (4) In addition to protections afforded elsewhere by l...
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.
Rochester Bans Source-of-Income Rental Discrimination
Significant RestrictionsRochester City Code § 63-5C
It shall be an unlawful discriminatory practice, based on the actual or perceived source of income, for the owner, lessee, sublessee, assignee, or managing agent of, real estate broker, real estate salesperson or other person having the right to sell, rent or lease housing, constructed or to be constructed, or any officer, agent or employee thereof: (1) To refuse to show, sell, transfer, rent, ...
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.
Rochester Rental Habitability and Repair Duty
Some RestrictionsRochester City Code §§ 90-5(A), 90-18(A)-(B)
§ 90-5. Applicability of provisions. A. The Property Maintenance Code of New York State shall be applicable in the City of Rochester to all existing land and structures and shall be enforced pursuant to Article IV of this chapter. ... § 90-18. Responsibilities of owners. A. Owners of premises shall be responsible for compliance with the provisions of this chapter and shall remain responsible th...
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County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Rochester city rules.
Rental Property Rules in Monroe County →