NYC Renter Guides
Built From Real Building Data.
Tenant rights, building violations, lease traps, pest issues, and how to research any NYC building before you sign, covering all 5 boroughs.
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NYC Heat Complaint Records to Check Before Renting
Before you sign a lease, pull the building's heat and hot water record on HPD Online, NYC Open Data, or a free address lookup, then read it for recent violations, not just a raw complaint count.
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NYC Heat Season Laws
NYC heat season runs October 1 to May 31 with fixed indoor temperature minimums, day and night. Here is what the law requires, who it covers, what it costs a landlord to break it, and what changed in 2026.
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NYC Rent Guidelines Board Increases by Lease Year
The Rent Guidelines Board sets a different increase every year, and which one applies depends on your lease start date. Here is the order in effect now, the freeze starting October 1, and how to tell which applies.
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NYC Trash Bin Rules for Apartment Buildings
Buildings with 1 to 9 units must now use the official NYC Bin, and enforcement already started. Larger buildings are moving to on-street Empire Bins on a rolling, borough-by-borough schedule through 2031.
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Open HPD Violations and What Each Status Means
An open HPD violation is still active on the city's record, whether or not the landlord has made the repair. Learn how violations open and close, what each status code means, and how to judge them before you rent.
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Pre-War and New Construction Violation Rates in NYC
Pre-war buildings average about three times as many HPD violations per apartment as newer stock, but two in five have none at all. Here is what the city's own records show, era by era.
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Short-Term Storage in the Bronx
Bronx renters between leases or mid-renovation have three real storage options. Here is how to size a unit, what actually drives the price, what to check in the contract, and what New York law lets a facility do if you fall behind.
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The NYC Worst Landlords Watchlist and How to Search It
Search the NYC Public Advocate's Worst Landlord Watchlist by address or name, see how the ranking works, and check three other HPD enforcement lists it leaves out.
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Can Old Violations Still Affect My Apartment Today?
Can old violations still affect my apartment today? Discover how past building code, safety, health, and zoning issues resurface via inspections or co...
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How Many 311 Complaints Is Normal for a NYC Building?
Discover how many 311 complaints are normal for NYC buildings by size, type, and borough using Open Data. Learn averages, top issues like noise and pe...
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What Red Flags Should I Look for in Building Data?
What red flags should you look for in building data? Learn to spot missing datasets, inconsistent formats, outliers, time jumps, flatlines, and imposs...
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Are Buildings with Zero Violations Actually Better?
Are buildings with zero violations actually better? Uncover proactive strategies, safety benefits, financial perks, marketability gains, and real-worl...