Bailey: It is very difficult. We represent hundreds of landlords in hundreds of buildings. They all know they can’t charge rent if they can’t get their people in. But it gets more difficult. For example, we have one building where there is no power, but people are living there, so the state law pretty much goes anywhere between 5% to 15% for rent discounts.

GlobeSt.com: Do the same laws apply to commercial tenants in office buildings affected by power outages?

Bailey: Office is completely different. With commercial tenancies, it depends on the lease. If you are out because of utility power, you still have to pay your rent, and most leases say that.

GlobeSt.com: What about damage to commercial space?

Bailey: If it is a commercial space and there is damage, the commercial landlord would say review your insurance policy, contact them and have proof of insurance. However, if it is structural, the landlord has to fix it.

GlobeSt.com: What if the commercial tenant wants to cancel the lease? Is that possible?

Bailey: It depends on what the lease says. Most commercial leases don’t let you cancel easily. A lot of them have if you can’t get in for a long period of time, whether 30, 60 or 90 days, you turn it over to the landlord. The landlord then gives notice and then has to write back to you declaring that they are going to rebuild and fix. If they don’t do that, you can cancel, and if they do that, you have to wait. That’s a typical commercial lease.

GlobeSt.com: Let’s say a commercial building has power but no heat. Would there be a discount in the rent?

Bailey: The landlord could be nice and give it, but most commercial leases say if you have a utility problem, it is not their fault.

[For more helpful tips, Bailey has provided more post-disaster information for New Yorkers affected by the storm on the firm’s website, located here.]