General Information
Housing Trust Fund Corporation
Funding Information
Fact Sheet #15 - Heat and Hot Water
Heat and Hot Water for Buildings in New York City
By law, building owners must provide all tenants with the following levels of heat and hot water:
Heat (during the heating season, October 1 through May 31)
- * Between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., heat must register at least 68 degrees Fahrenheit when the outside temperature falls below 55 degrees;
- * Between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., heat must register at least 55 degrees Fahrenheit when the outside temperature falls below 40 degrees.
Hot Water (24 hours a day, 365 days a year)
- * Hot water must register at or above a constant temperature of 120 degrees at the tap.
- * If a tub or shower is equipped with an anti-scald valve that prevents the hot water temperature from exceeding 120 degrees, the minimum hot water temperature for that tub or shower is 110 degrees.
The New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) is authorized to reduce the rent of any rent regulated apartment in New York City when required heat and hot water services are not maintained. Tenants may file a "Tenant's Application for Rent Reduction based upon the Owners Failure to Provide and Maintain Heat and/or Hot Water Service(s)" (DHCR Form HHW-1). If more than one tenant wishes to file a complaint, the tenants must attach a schedule to the HHW-1 form or file "Statement of Complaint of Decrease in Building-Wide Services" (DHCR Form RA-84). Applications based upon lack of adequate heat or hot water must be accompanied by a report from the appropriate city agency finding such lack of adequate heat or hot water. If the owner is found by DHCR to have failed to provide adequate heat or hot water, a rent reduction shall be ordered for rent stabilized apartments and may be ordered for rent controlled apartments and the owner will be prohibited from collecting any additional rent increases until the service is restored. In New York City, where owners may obtain separate fuel cost adjustments for rent controlled apartments, no fuel surcharge may be collected until one year after DHCR issues an order finding that services are restored.
Rent controlled and rent stabilized tenants in New York City with heat and/or hot water complaints should call the NYC Citizen Service Center at 311.
A New York City Code Enforcement inspector will investigate your complaint and either issue a building violation or order emergency repairs to restore the services if they find the owner is not providing them.
If a tenant receives a rent reduction from DHCR and also receives another abatement or a rent credit because of the same conditions, the tenant cannot get both benefits at the same time.
Heat and Hot Water for Buildings Located in Nassau, Rockland and Westchester Counties
For most of the housing subject to ETPA, an owner must provide heat and hot water as a required service. If an owner is not obligated to provide heat and/or hot water, or the heat and/or hot water is paid for by the tenant, tenants should make sure that their guidelines increase is appropriate. The local Guidelines Board may have issued a separate guideline for those properties.
Heat
Owners of rental housing in ETPA municipalities must supply heat from October 1 through May 31 to tenants in multiple dwellings. While the heat and hot water requirements vary in these municipalities, they all require owners to supply heat from October 1 through May 31 to tenants in multiple dwellings if outdoor temperatures fall below 55 degrees Fahrenheit.
Nassau County
In Nassau County, each apartment must be heated between 6:00 AM and 10:00 PM to a temperature of at least 68 degrees Fahrenheit, and between 10:00 PM and 6:00 AM to a temperature of at least 65 degrees Fahrenheit.
Rockland County
In Rockland County, each apartment must have an inside temperature of 68 degrees Fahrenheit at all times.
Westchester County
In Westchester County, each apartment must have an inside temperature of 68 degrees Fahrenheit at all times.
Hot Water
The hot water temperature requirement for Nassau and Rockland County is 120 degrees Fahrenheit.
In Westchester County, the individual municipalities determine the temperature requirement.
To report a complaint for lack of heat or hot water, contact the local municipal building department or the County Health Department. If conditions persist over a sustained period of time, a decreased service complaint may be filed with the local DHCR Rent Office on "Tenant's Application For A Rent Reduction Based Upon the Owners Failure to Provide and Maintain Heat and/or Hot Water Service(s)" (DHCR Form HHW-1) for an individual apartment, or "Statement of Compliant of a Decrease in Building-Wide Services" (DHCR Form RA-84) for a building wide complaint. Applications based upon lack of adequate heat or hot water must be accompanied by a report from the appropriate county or municipal agency finding such lack of adequate heat or hot water.
If the owner is found by DHCR to have failed to provide adequate heat or hot water, a rent reduction may be ordered for rent stabilized and rent controlled apartments.
If a tenant receives a rent reduction from DHCR and also receives another abatement or a rent credit because of the same conditions, the tenant cannot get both benefits at the same time.
For more information or assistance concerning heat and hot water in New York City or in any of the ETPA counties, call the DHCR Rent Infoline, or visit your Borough or County Rent Office.
You may also contact your County Health Department or the branch of your municipality's government which deals with complaints of this nature, at the numbers that follow.
| COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENTS | |
|---|---|
| Nassau: | (516) 571-3678 |
| Rockland: | (845) 364-2585 Mon. - Fri., 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM (845) 364-2608 Evenings and Weekends |
| Westchester: | (914) 813-5000 |
| MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT NUMBERS | |
|---|---|
| Nassau (all 516 area codes) | |
| Baxter Estates | 767-0096 |
| Cedarhurst | 295-5770 |
| Freeport | 377-2241 or 2242 |
| Floral Park | 326-6300 |
| Glen Cove | 676-2004 |
| Great Neck | 482-0019 |
| Great Neck Plaza | 482-4500 |
| Hempstead | 489-3400 |
| Town of North Hempstead | 627-0590 |
| Long Beach | 431-1000 |
| Lynbrook | 599-8828 |
| Mineola | 746-0750 |
| Rockville Centre | 678-9248 |
| Russell Gardens | 482-8246 |
| Thomaston | 482-3110 |
| Rockland | |
| Spring Valley | (845) 573-5809 |
| Westchester (all 914 area codes) | |
| Dobbs Ferry | 693-2203 (ext. 220 & 221) |
| Eastchester | 771-3317 |
| Greenburgh | 993-1561 |
| Hastings-on-Hudson | 478-3400 (ext. 613) |
| Irvington | 591-8335 |
| Mt. Kisco | 241-0500 (ask for the Buildings Dept.) |
| Mount Vernon | 665-2483 |
| Larchmont | 813-5000 |
| Town of Mamaroneck | 777-7731 (days) |
| Village of Mamaroneck | 777-7731 (days) 777-1122 (evenings) |
| Peeksville | 734-4140 |
| Pleasantville | 769-1961 |
| Portchester | 939-5203 |
| New Rochelle | 654-2095 |
| North Tarrytown | 631-0233 |
| White Plains | 422-1269 |
| Yonkers | 377-6512 (days) 965-3331 (evenings) |
Revised 10/09
Last updated on 10/16/09