The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development is increasing oversight, pressure and enforcement on the state’s most decrepit apartment buildings.
“Landlords across the city need to know that if they don’t do right by their tenants, we will take action,” said HPD commissioner Adolfo Carrión, Jr.
HPD is increasing enforcement through its Alternative Enforcement Program.
Created in 2007, AEP identifies 250 apartment buildings every year that have excessive housing code violations, including mold and heat outages.
The program aims to identify buildings with violations that suggest the owner is failing to provide basic standards of living.
“All New Yorkers deserve safe, well-maintained homes and our AEP is one of our sharpest tools for improving the lives of people who live in the most distressed buildings across the city,” said Carrión, Jr.
Brooklyn tops this year’s list with the most buildings in the program. AEP has identified 117 buildings in Brooklyn, representing 1,605 homes, that are considered to have excessive housing code violations.
The remaining 133 buildings have been identified in the following boroughs:
- 33 buildings in Manhattan representing 733 homes
- 75 buildings in The Bronx representing 2,006 homes
- 25 buildings in Queens representing 537 homes
All of the identified buildings have open housing code violations, which includes 10,428 violations for immediately hazardous conditions such as:
- Mold
- Evidence of rodents
- Lead-based paint
- Inoperable self-closing doors
The buildings possess another 21,081 violations are for other hazardous conditions such as leaks or holes in the plaster or sheet rock.
Owners of buildings in this year's program owe the city nearly $3.4 million for failing to address immediately hazardous violations in a reasonable time. This requires HPD’s Emergency Repair Program to step in and bill the owners.
In addition, HPD’s Housing Litigation Division is seeking repairs in housing court against owners of 46 of the buildings selected for the program.
When a building owner in the program must address violations within the first four months or the owners can face significant fees and Orders to Correct.
Orders to Correct may require the owners to replace building systems and address most of their violations, including all heat and hot water violations and at least 80% of hazardous mold and pest violations.
Owners are required to pay for any outstanding charges related to emergency repairs or enter a payment agreement with the city to be discharged from AEP. For owners who fail to comply with the Correct Order in a timely manner, HPD may bring the owner to Housing Court.
Many buildings are discharged from the program within a few months once the problems have been addressed. Buildings that are discharged from the program continue to be monitored by HPD for at least one year.
For more information and a full list of apartment buildings on the 2023 AEP list, click here.
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