Department of Buildings (DOB) Violations
A DOB violation issued for a condition the Department of Buildings determines is immediately life-threatening or presents imminent danger to occupants or the public.
A DOB violation issued for a major but not immediately hazardous condition — still serious enough to require permits or formal corrective action.
A violation issued for failure to file a Façade Inspection & Safety Program (FISP) report for a building more than six stories tall, or for failing to address Unsafe or SWARMP cond…
A penalty imposed on a covered building (25,000+ sqft, or co-located buildings totaling 50,000+ sqft) for exceeding its annual greenhouse-gas emissions limit under Local Law 97.
A DOB violation issued when a building's boiler (over 350,000 BTU/hr input) fails its annual inspection, or when the annual Boiler Inspection Report (BIR) is not filed within 45 da…
A DOB violation for failing Category 1 (annual) or Category 5 (5-year) elevator inspection, or for failing to file inspection results with DOB within required timeframes.
Housing Preservation & Development (HPD) Violations
An HPD housing maintenance code violation issued for a condition that poses immediate danger to the life, health, or safety of a tenant — the most serious class of HPD violation.
An HPD housing maintenance code violation for conditions that are hazardous but not immediately dangerous to life or health — typically required to be corrected within 30 days.
An HPD Class C violation issued when lead-based paint is present in deteriorated condition in a dwelling unit where a child under 6 resides, in a building constructed before 1960 (…
Environmental Control Board / OATH (ECB) Violations
A summons issued by a city agency (DOB, FDNY, DSNY, DEP, HPD) that is adjudicated at the Office of Administrative Trials & Hearings (OATH, formerly Environmental Control Board).
Frequently Asked Questions
How many NYC violation types are there?
NYC has dozens of distinct building violation codes across DOB, HPD, ECB/OATH, FDNY, DEP, and DSNY. This catalog covers the 10 most commonly encountered types — which together account for the overwhelming majority of violations issued against NYC buildings each year.
What's the difference between a DOB and an HPD violation?
DOB (Department of Buildings) violations focus on the physical building — construction code, permits, structural safety, mechanical systems, façades. HPD (Housing Preservation & Development) violations focus on housing maintenance conditions inside occupied apartments — heat, hot water, paint, leaks, vermin. Many buildings carry both simultaneously. An ECB/OATH violation is the administrative hearing track that adjudicates citations from multiple agencies (DOB, FDNY, DSNY, DEP) and imposes monetary penalties.
Do violations show up on title searches?
DOB and HPD violations themselves do not appear on title searches directly — but the ECB penalty lien that results from unpaid fines does. Once an unpaid ECB penalty has been docketed as a judgment at DOF, it appears on the title abstract and must be satisfied before the property can be sold or refinanced.
Which violations are most common?
By volume, HPD Class A and B violations (housing maintenance) are the most common, followed by ECB/OATH administrative summonses (DOB construction, DSNY sanitation), then DOB Class 2 (major). Immediately hazardous (DOB Class 1, HPD Class C) are less frequent but carry the highest penalties and fastest cure windows.
How do I check what violations my building has?
Search any NYC address on RegWatch. You'll see every current DOB, HPD, ECB, and FDNY violation with its class, issue date, status, and associated penalty — aggregated from the authoritative agency records (DOB NOW, HPD Online, OATH portal) and updated daily.
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