How does a commercial non-payment case work in New York City?

This page explains New York law for landlords of stores, offices, restaurants and other commercial space in New York City: the summary non-payment proceeding under Article 7 of the Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law (RPAPL) and the New York City Civil Court's procedure. KOR Law LLP's landlord representation practice handles summary non-payment proceedings to recover unpaid rent and possession of commercial and residential premises, along with holdovers, lease enforcement and claims against lease guarantors. Residential cases carry extra statutory rules, which are noted where they matter.

What has to happen before the case is filed?

A non-payment proceeding requires that the tenant "has defaulted in the payment of rent, pursuant to the agreement under which the premises are held," and that "a written demand of the rent has been made with at least fourteen days' notice requiring, in the alternative, the payment of the rent, or the possession of the premises," served the way the statute requires for a petition (RPAPL 711(2)). The demand is a precondition: a case filed without a proper demand is open to dismissal.

The rent demand is not the same thing as a notice to cure. In 170 Tillary Corp. v Gold Tillary Realty (2025), the Second Department held that a landlord's 15-day commercial notice demanding rent was "a statutory rent demand serving as a prerequisite to a summary nonpayment proceeding, not a notice to cure." That distinction matters later if the tenant runs to court for a Yellowstone injunction, explained in what a Yellowstone injunction means for the landlord.

For a residential unit, RPAPL 711(2) also requires the 14-day demand to include the notice described in Real Property Law 231-c, stating whether the unit is covered by the Good Cause Eviction Law. That law applies to "housing accommodation," defined as residential premises, including residential units in mixed-use buildings (Real Property Law 211(1)), so a landlord of a building with both stores and apartments should treat the two kinds of tenancies separately.

How does the case run, step by step?

1. Rent demand. Serve a written demand for the rent with at least 14 days' notice, requiring payment or possession (RPAPL 711(2)).
2. Petition. If the rent is not paid, prepare a verified petition stating the landlord's interest, the tenant's interest and relationship, the premises, the facts and the relief sought, which may include a judgment for rent due (RPAPL 741). The landlord or lessor, among others, may bring the proceeding (RPAPL 721).
3. File in Civil Court. The New York City Civil Court has jurisdiction over summary proceedings to recover possession of real property in the city and to render judgment for rent due "without regard to amount" (New York City Civil Court Act 204).
4. Serve the papers. The notice of petition and petition must be served at least 10 and not more than 17 days before the hearing date (RPAPL 733(1)), by personal delivery, delivery to a person of suitable age and discretion, or affixing or placing under the door, with mailing by certified or registered and regular mail within one day for the substitute methods (RPAPL 735(1)). For a corporate tenant, the mailing also goes to its principal office if the landlord has written information about it (RPAPL 735(1)(b)).
5. File proof of service. Proof of service is filed within three days; substitute service is complete only on that filing (RPAPL 735(2)).
6. First court date. Commercial summary proceedings are returnable in the Part 52 courtroom and are heard by Civil Court judges, with one judge handling applications during the calendar call and commercial motions (NYC Civil Court). The tenant may answer orally or in writing at the hearing, with any legal or equitable defense or counterclaim (RPAPL 743).
7. Adjournment and trial. When issue is joined, either side can get an adjournment of at least 14 days, and a later request is in the court's discretion; a party may demand a jury (RPAPL 745(1)). Trial-ready cases go to back-up judges (NYC Civil Court).
8. Judgment and warrant. The court enters a final judgment, with costs to the winner (RPAPL 747), and issues a warrant to the marshal or sheriff (RPAPL 749(1)). In the Civil Court, the warrant may be signed by the clerk (New York City Civil Court Act 204).

Can the tenant stop the eviction by paying?

Yes, and that is the defining feature of a non-payment case. Before a warrant is issued, a tenant holding over after a rent default can stay it by depositing the rent due and the costs of the proceeding with the clerk, or by giving an undertaking approved by the court to pay within ten days (RPAPL 751(1)). Even after a judgment, "the court shall vacate a warrant upon tender or deposit with the court of the full rent due at any time prior to its execution, unless the petitioner establishes that the tenant withheld the rent due in bad faith" (RPAPL 749(3)). In other words, the remedy is built to get the landlord paid, and possession follows only if the rent is not.

The Second Department relied on those protections in Tillary, noting that a statutory rent demand "generally cannot form the basis of a Yellowstone injunction" because the tenant can protect its lease by paying under RPAPL 751(1). Where it was uncertain whether some charges could be collected in a non-payment proceeding, the court allowed Yellowstone relief as to those charges.

What the case does not do is resolve everything. Rent that came due during the case, damages beyond rent, and claims against a guarantor may need a separate plenary action. Claims against a guarantor are separate, and the defenses a guarantor may raise in New York are discussed in what defenses a personal guarantor has when a New York lender sues.

What changes the answer?

• The lease's own notice terms. Leases often add notice periods or methods; the statutory 14-day demand is the floor (RPAPL 711(2)).
• Who the tenant is. Corporate tenants receive the follow-up mailing at the premises and at a known principal office (RPAPL 735(1)(b)).
• Whether the court uses RPAPL 732. Where appellate division rules adopt it for a court, non-payment petitions are returnable before the clerk within ten days, and a trial is set three to eight days after an answer (RPAPL 732).
• The type of charge. Charges that cannot be collected in a non-payment proceeding may support a Yellowstone injunction (170 Tillary Corp.).
• Repeated adjournments. In New York City, after two adjournments at the tenant's request or 60 days, the court may order the tenant to deposit ongoing rent or use and occupancy, subject to listed defenses (RPAPL 745(2)(a)).
• Residential units in the same building. They follow the Good Cause Eviction Law notice rules and other residential protections (RPAPL 711(2); Real Property Law 211, 231-c).

For example: a restaurant three months behind in Brooklyn

Common mistakes

• A demand for the wrong amount. The demand is for rent due under the agreement; padding it with disputed charges invites a defense.
• Treating the rent demand as a notice to cure. They serve different purposes (170 Tillary Corp.).
• Serving outside the 10 to 17 day window. Timing is set by RPAPL 733(1).
• Forgetting the follow-up mailing or the proof of service. Substitute service is incomplete until both are done (RPAPL 735).
• Refusing rent tendered before execution without a bad faith showing. The court must vacate the warrant on full payment unless bad faith is shown (RPAPL 749(3)).
• Ignoring the guarantor. A guaranty claim is a separate lawsuit and has its own deadlines.

What to do this week

1. Pull the lease, every amendment, the guaranty and the rent ledger.
2. Calculate the exact base rent due, separately from taxes, utilities and other charges.
3. Check the lease for notice addresses and any notice or cure periods.
4. Prepare and serve the 14-day rent demand by a permitted method, and keep proof.
5. Identify the tenant entity's principal office for the mailing.
6. Speak with counsel about the petition, a guaranty demand and any use and occupancy request.

If the issue is not unpaid rent but a tenant who stays after the lease ends, see what notice a New York landlord must give before starting a holdover case.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a dollar limit in Civil Court for rent?

Not in a summary proceeding. The Civil Court may "render judgment for rent due without regard to amount" in summary proceedings for property in New York City (New York City Civil Court Act 204).

Can I lock out a commercial tenant instead?

The safer course is the court process. RPAPL 711 provides that residential tenants and lawful occupants may be removed only in a special proceeding, and the summary proceeding gives a commercial landlord a judgment and a warrant enforced by an officer (RPAPL 749).

What happens after I win?

The officer serves at least 14 days' written notice and executes the warrant on a business day between sunrise and sunset (RPAPL 749(2)(a)). The details are in what happens after a New York landlord wins: the warrant and the eviction notice.

Can I collect the money judgment from the tenant's bank account?

A money judgment for rent is enforced with the ordinary judgment tools, such as restraining notices and executions; see what happens after a money judgment is entered in New York for how those devices work.

Can I recover my legal fees?

For commercial premises, that depends on the lease. The residential rule is different; see whether a New York landlord can recover attorney's fees from a tenant.

What about the tenant's security deposit?

A deposit is held in trust and is not the landlord's money until properly applied (General Obligations Law 7-103). The rules are in a New York landlord's security deposit obligations.