Two Brooklyn Realty Cos. Hit with Class Action Alleging ‘Decade-Long’ Discrimination Against Latino Tenants

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Seven plaintiffs have filed a proposed class action lawsuit against Little City Realty LLC, Little Boy Realty LLC and two individuals over the parties’ alleged decade-long practice of intentionally targeting and displacing Latino tenants from two buildings the defendants own and operate in Brooklyn’s Sunset Park neighborhood. The case charges that the defendants’ alleged pattern of conduct violates the Fair Housing Act, New York City Human Rights Law, the New York City Housing Maintenance Code, and rent stabilization statutes.

The plaintiffs allege the defendants, who include the realty companies’ chief officers, consistently harass Latino tenants residing in their buildings—the 601 building and the 614 building—with the goal of displacing them. According to the 45-page complaint, the defendants require only tenants perceived as being Latino to provide proof of legal immigration status upon signing a new lease. Moreover, the complaint claims the defendants also engaged in “frivolous eviction proceedings” against Latino tenants while “threatening and intimidating” proposed class members with statements the case says indicate Little City and Little Boy “do not wish to rent to Latino tenants and other tenants of color.” The lawsuit also charges that the defendants unlawfully increased the rent and misrepresented the rent regulatory status of their properties.