The lease was for raw space and rented "as is," although the intended commercial use was spelled out in the lease, the building is zoned for strictly residential usage. We are attempting to get our deposit back because we have been advised that the underlying lease is invalid--a landlord may not rent a building for a purpose that it is not zoned to accommodate. Landlord says that we should have checked the zoning and "as is" covers their responsibility. I maintain "as is" refers to structure, not underlying zoning. We are attempting to resolve this without attorneys. Is there a similar cases I can site to them and/or a specific NYC or NYS law that would clarify this issue once and for all? Thanks.
