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HOUSING SERVICES

The Cooper Square Committee provides the following housing services to area residents. All services are free of charge.

Eviction Prevention

The Cooper Square Committee provides housing counseling to tenants facing the threat of eviction. We can advise you about how to respond to a holdover or dispossess proceeding. If you live in the Lower East Side, call us at (212) 228-8210 to request assistance. If you live in another area, we recommend that you read two documents prepared by Brooklyn South Legal Services: Tenant's Guide to Housing Court and NYC Housing Court Information.

Housing Organizing Assistance

The Cooper Square Committee assists tenants interested in forming a tenant association. If you live in a building with many housing code violations, sporadic heat and hot water, poor maintenance or a landlord who harasses you, you can work with the other tenants to get building-wide repairs and improvements. To find out how to go about organizing your building, contact us at (212) 228-8210.

We have two experienced tenant organizers who can advise you about the following:

How to have productive communication and negotiations with your landlord.

How to take your landlord to court to get repairs.

How to file complaints with the Division of Housing and Community Renewal if you believe you are being overcharged, harassed, experiencing declining building services, etc.

Help with Entitlement Assistance

If you are eligible for housing subsidies, our Housing and Social Service staff can assist you in applying for Section 8. If you are a person with AIDS, you may obtain assistance in applying for Division of AIDS Services (DAS) rental support. If you are income-eligible, and need assistance in applying for low/moderate-income housing developed under an NYC-HPD housing program, you can obtain assistance from one of our staff.

General Housing Related Advice

The Cooper Square Committee gives advice to tenants on such questions as how to legally sublet his or her apartment or how to challenge a Major Capital Improvement (MCI) rent increase.