For a rental, you rarely need to pay for a building report in New York City. The records these reports compile, including HPD violations and complaints, Department of Buildings permits and violations, 311 complaints, ownership filings and eviction records, come from city agencies that publish them for free. The Building Health X building lookup pulls them onto one page at no cost. Money is better spent on a licensed inspection when you are buying, or when you need someone to judge the physical condition of a specific apartment, because no records report can tell you that.
What a Building Report Draws On
A building report is a summary of what city agencies have recorded about a property. The underlying sources are public, and each agency runs its own free lookup.
HPD Online
The city's housing agency runs HPD Online, where you can search any address for complaints and violations, property registration, charges and litigation, block and lot information, and vacate orders. HPD's violation data also updates daily on NYC Open Data. Since September 2025, HPD Online also shows violations issued to NYCHA buildings after court-ordered inspections.
Department of Buildings Systems
The Buildings Information System keeps a profile page for every property in the city, listing job filings, occupancy information, complaints, violations and inspections. It holds permits and applications from before the department launched DOB NOW, and newer filings live in the DOB NOW public portal.
Ownership, Complaints and Court Records
ACRIS, the city register's document system, holds deeds, mortgages and liens for Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens. 311 service requests, marshal evictions, rodent inspections and a long list of other datasets sit on NYC Open Data. If you rent a stabilized apartment, you can request its registered rent history from DHCR, the state housing agency.
Free Sources at a Glance
| Source | What it shows | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| HPD Online | Complaints, violations, registration, litigation, vacate orders | Free |
| DOB Building Information System | Older permits and job filings, complaints, violations, occupancy | Free |
| DOB NOW public portal | Newer permits, filings, certificates of occupancy | Free |
| ACRIS | Deeds, mortgages and other recorded documents | Free to search |
| NYC Open Data | 311 requests, marshal evictions, rodent inspections and more | Free |
| Building Health X lookup | All of the above for one building on one page | Free |
When a record you need is not online, you can request it under New York's Freedom of Information Law. HPD takes those requests through NYC OpenRecords or by mail, not by email, and asks you to check its open data first.
What a Paid Report Adds
Paid services mostly sell convenience. The common extras are a single formatted PDF, alerts when a new violation or complaint appears, and a score or grade that ranks the building. Some services add commentary or pull in records a free lookup skips.
Before you pay, check the sample report against the free sources above. If every section cites HPD, DOB, ACRIS or 311, you are paying for packaging. That can be worth it if you track many buildings, such as an agent or an investor watching a portfolio. For one apartment search it rarely is. Our free report already covers HPD violations, complaints, registration and legal actions; DOB violations, complaints, permits and ECB violations; ACRIS sales and filings; executed marshal evictions; rodent and bed bug records; rent stabilization status; and 311 complaints near the address.
Questions to Ask Before You Pay
- Which agencies does the report draw on, and does it name them for each section?
- How often does the service refresh its data, compared with the daily updates on NYC Open Data?
- Does it show apartment-level detail, such as the unit number on each violation, or only building totals?
- Is it a one-time report or a subscription that renews unless you cancel?
- Does the score or grade explain how it weighs each record, so you can check it against the raw data?
If the answers point back to the same public sources you can search yourself, the report costs you money without telling you anything new.
Records Versus a Physical Inspection
A records report tells you what inspectors and residents reported to the city. It cannot tell you whether the windows seal, whether the radiator in the bedroom works, or whether water is getting behind a wall right now. For that you need a licensed building inspector in the apartment.
New York licenses home inspectors through the Department of State. The American Society of Home Inspectors describes a home inspection as an examination and objective assessment of a home's current condition, which describes the property without passing or failing it. That service makes sense when you buy a house, a co-op or a condo unit, or when you plan to sign a long lease on an apartment with visible problems. For a unit purchase, ask the inspector to cover the apartment's own systems, such as electrical, plumbing fixtures, appliances and windows, since the building's shared systems fall under the board.
What No Records Report Shows
City records only capture what someone reported and an agency logged. Plenty of what makes an apartment livable never reaches a database:
- Noise from neighbors, the street or a bar downstairs.
- How fast the super answers a call about a leak or a lockout.
- Pests that tenants dealt with themselves instead of calling 311.
- Water pressure, cell reception and how the building smells in summer.
Visit at a different time of day, knock on a neighbor's door, and ask current tenants how the landlord handles repairs.
Checking a Rental Without Paying
- Search the address in the building lookup and read the summary of open violations by class.
- Open the violation list and check the status of anything in Class C, especially heat, lead paint, mold and pests. Open HPD violation statuses such as "NOV Sent Out" and "False Certification" tell you how the owner handles repairs.
- Look at 311 complaint volume for heat, noise and pests over the past year.
- Review executed evictions and HPD legal actions for patterns, such as repeated harassment cases.
- Check ACRIS for a recent sale, which can mean a new owner and new management.
- Walk the apartment and the building yourself, and ask the landlord in writing about any open Class C violation in the unit.
Your costs to rent have also changed. Under the FARE Act, which took effect in June 2025, landlords can no longer make renters pay a broker fee for a broker the landlord hired, and they must give you a written itemized list of every fee before you sign the lease. State law separately limits background and credit check fees to the actual cost or $20, whichever is less, and the landlord must waive them if you bring a check run in the past 30 days.
When Paying Makes Sense
- Buying. Pay for a licensed inspection of the unit or house, and have your attorney review the building's financials and board records.
- Tracking many buildings. Paid alerts save time when you manage or invest in several properties.
- A specific physical worry. Hire an inspector or specialist if you see signs of leaks, mold or electrical trouble during a viewing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is HPD Online Free to Use?
Yes. HPD Online lets anyone search an address for complaints, violations, registration, litigation and vacate orders without an account or a fee.
How Current Is NYC Building Data?
HPD updates its violation data on NYC Open Data daily, including new violations and status changes. A very recent inspection can take time to appear, so ask the landlord about any problem you see in person.
Does a Building Report Replace a Home Inspection?
No. A report summarizes city records. A home inspection is a licensed professional's assessment of the physical condition of a specific home, and it catches problems nobody has reported to the city.
Should I Pay for a Report on a Co-op or Condo I Plan to Buy?
The city records behind any report are the same free public data. Put the money toward a licensed inspection of the unit and an attorney's review of the building's finances and board records.
Does the Building Health X Report Cost Anything?
No. Search any NYC address and the building report opens with its violations, complaints, permits, sales, evictions and 311 activity at no charge.
Can a Landlord Charge Me for a Building Report or Application Review?
No. New York law bars landlords from charging a fee for processing or reviewing a rental application, or any other fee before the tenancy starts, apart from background and credit checks, which are capped at the actual cost or $20.
How Do I Get a Building Record That Is Not Online?
File a Freedom of Information Law request with the agency that holds it. HPD accepts these through NYC OpenRecords or by mail, and the Department of Buildings also routes requests through NYC OpenRecords.
What Should a Renter Check First?
Start with open Class C violations in the apartment you want, heat and hot water complaints from the last winter, and any false certifications. Those three tell you the most about how the owner handles serious problems.
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