Landlords
Landlords

Increasingly, landlords throughout New York are adopting no-smoking policies and realizing the benefits. According to a community survey of property owners in 6 upstate NY counties, 97% of landlords who have a no-smoking policy are satisfied with their decision. It’s clear why. No-smoking policies attract tenants, minimize maintenance costs, reduce fire risks and decrease the potential for legal liability due to non-smoking tenants’ exposure to secondhand smoke.

A no-smoking policy does not exclude smokers; it protects the health of all residents from harmful secondhand smoke. Just as you can restrict loud noise in your rentals, you can also have a no-smoking rule for individual units, common areas and even outdoors. A no-smoking policy requires smokers to smoke outdoors in areas specified in the lease.

Below you will find a New York State Landlord Toolkit which includes tips for implementation and enforcement as well as sample leases, surveys and tenant communications to help you successfully go smoke-free. You can also contact your local community partnership for free policy assistance and signage.

The U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) encourages no-smoking policies. As of May 2013, over 300 public housing authorities throughout the country and at least 14 in New York have adopted no-smoking policies for some or all of their units. If you are a public or affordable housing provider, you will find on this site helpful resources such as Housing Authority of Portland’s No-Smoking Policy Toolkit and HUD’s Smoke Free Housing Toolkit.

List smoke-free properties HERESmoke-Free Housing Toolkit
see what everyone is saying

“When we made the ‘official’ announcement that the property would be smoke free on January 1, the residents applauded. And that reaction was repeated at the next property and at the next property. We were giving the residents what they wanted.”

-Pamela Berger, Belmont Housing Resources for Western New York (Buffalo, NY)

“As our survey showed that over 95% of our residents wanted a smoke-free building, we knew it would provide a safe environment for our residents and employees. The policy was quick and painless to adopt!”

-Anthony Fiala, SEPP Management Company (Binghamton, NY)

“One month after designating two of our apartment buildings at Parkwood Village as smoke free, they were 100% occupied.”

-Emily Modan, Parkwood Village
(Albany, NY)

The information and materials contained on this website are for informational purposes only and are not offered or intended to be and should not be construed to be legal advice nor to be a substitute for obtaining legal advice from a licensed attorney.