Tenants, elected officials and community advocates gathered in Sunnyside Monday morning for a rally against real estate firm Bronstein Properties to demand repairs and safe conditions at a six-story building on 47th Avenue.
Assembly Member Claire Valdez, representatives for Council Member Julie Won, the Queens Tenant Coalition and the Bronstein Tenant Union gathered outside 42-09 47th Ave. on Feb. 2 to highlight conditions inside the 84-unit building.
Residents accused Bronstein of neglecting tenants in the building by ignoring calls for repairs within the building or only making “superficial” repairs that do not address long-standing issues, allegations which Bronstein strongly denies.
Sonu Kumari, who moved into the building in 2019, also took elected officials on a tour of her two-bedroom apartment on the sixth floor to highlight some of the issues she has been facing since moving in. The tour revealed a significant roach and fly infestation in Kumari’s kitchen, while a ceiling in one of her bedrooms has caved in on multiple occasions during heavy rainfall, making the room uninhabitable.
Kumari said she suffered a bacterial infection that left her hospitalized as a result of mold infestations caused by persistent leaks.
Kumari accused Bronstein of only making surface-level changes to the apartment and alleged that the company has been slow to react to requests for repairs. She charged that Bronstein took three years to repair a hole in a kitchen cupboard, which she said was the source of a roach, mice and insect infestation.
She further alleged that a former building super demanded payment to address issues within her apartment. Fellow tenants made similar allegations.
Kumari said she has been sleeping on a mattress on the floor alongside her husband due to the frequent ceiling collapses in one bedroom, while her children have been sleeping in the living room. She said she stopped paying rent in late 2024 to protest against the conditions in her apartment.
A spokesperson for Bronstein pushed back strongly against the allegations, stating that the company has undertaken “significant capital improvements” at the property. The real estate firm also accused tenants, including Kumari, of failing to provide access to apartments to facilitate repairs.
However, tenants argued that Bronstein frequently arranges apartment inspections when residents are not home. Kumari alleged that Bronstein can then claim that residents failed to provide access.
“They just say that I’m not giving them access. That’s their only excuse,” Kumari said through tears at Monday’s rally. “We’ve been giving them time to come and do the repairs.”
A Bronstein spokesperson also argued that the real estate firm has asked tenants to outline specific concerns so that they can be addressed but said tenants have failed to do so.
“Instead, the group continues to organize rallies that do not meaningfully involve or represent residents of Bronstein-managed buildings, in furtherance of a broader legislative agenda,” a company spokesperson said.
Tenants pushed back strongly, stating that they have long been demanding specific repairs at the building.
Yvette Allen-Janis, a resident at the building, said she moved into her apartment in 2013 and noticed a leaky ceiling within six months, adding that the leak has not yet been repaired.
Allen-Janis was in tears at a rally outside the building as she discussed Kumari’s living conditions, stating that the issue has been “horrific.”
“It just keeps getting worse and worse,” Allen-Janis said.
In response, Bronstein officials said the company completed repairs to the ceiling in Kumari’s apartment in August 2025 and have not received any communication since. Company officials said ongoing roach infestations are the result of sanitation issues in the apartment, including “improper” disposal of trash.
Kumari strongly refuted the argument, stating that she never leaves food exposed to avoid any infestations. On a tour of her apartment, Kumari highlighted several holes in a bedroom ceiling as well as suspected mold build-up. She again described Bronstein’s efforts to address the issues as “superficial,” accusing the company of failing to address long-standing issues responsible for frequent leaks. She also accused the company of merely painting over suspected mold rather than removing it entirely.
Residents at 42-09 47th Ave. are not the first Bronstein tenants in Sunnyside to rally against the real estate firm.
In November, residents at the nearby 43-09 40th St. rallied to demand what they described as long-overdue repairs at the 72-unit, prewar building. Tenants alleged at the rally that some units had been without gas for seven months, while some tenants embarked on a rent strike on Oct. 1.
Bronstein said at the time that it was working to restore gas at the building, stating that the issue relates to a defect requiring the company to re-pipe all 13 riser lines throughout the building at a cost of around $300,000. Bronstein said at the time that the re-piping project was 95% complete and added that all tenants will receive a 15% rent abatement from the shutoff date until gas is restored.
However, residents who joined Monday’s rally in solidarity with tenants at 42-09 47th Ave. said gas has not yet been restored to all units in the building.
Dalia, a tenant at 43-09 40th St., said at Monday’s rally that the 15% rent abatement was “not enough” and said work to restore gas is “not done.”
Again, Bronstein strongly pushed back, stating that six units remain without gas because a “single tenant” had blocked access to facilitate repairs.
“Bronstein Properties remains committed to addressing verified issues promptly and to working cooperatively with residents, city agencies, and elected officials to ensure safe and habitable living conditions,” the company said in a statement.
But tenants and elected officials strongly criticized the company, noting that tenants across the firm’s 138-property portfolio have lodged over 42,000 complaints with the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD).
Attendees at Monday’s rally held placards with slogans such as “Don’t Rent from Bronstein,” while protesters also continuously chanted “no repairs, no rent” during Monday’s event.
Farah Salam, Won’s chief of staff and a tenant at another Bronstein-owned property in Sunnyside, said the company “continues to fail tenants” across its New York City portfolio.
“They refuse to make repairs to apartments,” Salam said. “They refuse to maintain apartments so that they’re livable.”
She further accused Bronstein of raising rents by up to $400 on market-rate apartments while forcing tenants to live in “substandard” conditions. Kumari, at the time when she decided to stop paying rent, was paying $3,070 per month for the two-bedroom apartment.
“Think twice before you rent from Bronstein,” Salam said.
In a statement, Won noted that Bronstein has received over 18,000 HPD violations since 2017 and described the firm as one of the most “notorious and predatory” landlords in the city. She also noted tenant allegations claiming that Bronstein has responded to complaints with harassment and intimidation.
“No one should live without heat or gas, with mold and mice infestations or under constant threats of retaliation and displacement,” Won said in a statement. “Bronstein must immediately restore all essential services, complete repairs across all Sunnyside buildings using unionized labor, stop tenant harassment and maintain affordability so tenants can stay in their homes.”
Bronstein has previously described claims of tenant harassment as “unsubstantiated.”
Valdez, meanwhile, said tenants at Bronstein properties “demand justice” after raising a litany of complaints against the real estate firm.
“We demand that Bronstein come to the table, make the repairs, stop acting like they should not have to invest in these properties and start treating their tenants with dignity and respect,” Valdez said. “Tenants are starting to withhold their rent. This is the final, most powerful tool that tenants have.”
