Is your landlord one of the worst in NYC? Here’s who you should avoid
- Public Advocate Williams released the annual list of NYC’s 100 worst landlords
- Tenant attorneys advise renters to steer clear of these buildings if they can
The annual list ranks property owners with a high number of housing violations, including heating problems, rodents, and crumbling infrastructure.
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Your New York City landlord might not be great, but are they one of the worst in the city?
Public Advocate Jumaane Williams released the annual list of the worst 100 landlords in NYC on Wednesday—a ranking of property owners who have a high number of housing violations including heating issues, rodents, and crumbling infrastructure.
“The people on this list are at best dangerously negligent, and at worst, actively choosing to profit off the pain of New Yorkers living in unsafe, deplorable conditions,” Williams said in a statement.
The landlords named on Williams’ list own nearly 400 buildings with thousands of apartments across the five boroughs. The city’s worst landlord, Barry Singer, had an average of 1,804 open violations at his properties from December 2023 through November of last year, including 121 complaints for a lack of heat and hot water. (An attorney for Singer did not immediately respond to a request for comment.)
The takeaway for renters? Steer clear of these apartments if you can, advised four NYC tenant attorneys.
“These people are abusive, they take advantage, and they know how to operate the system,” Justin Brasch, founding partner of landlord-tenant law firm Brasch Legal, said. “It can turn into a nightmare.”
Be wary of moving here
Landlords end up on Williams’ list because tenants have complained about building problems, leading the Department of Housing Preservation and Development to slap violations on the property, which can cost thousands of dollars per day. The 399 buildings on the list had an average of 146 HPD violations per property.
If you decide to move into one of these buildings, you might find yourself filing similar complaints, said Alex Jacobs, an attorney at Legal Services NYC.
“It’s not like these issues are imagined,” Jacobs said. “In order for it to be on this list, there has to be systemic, building-wide issues that are just completely impacting everybody’s ability to live a good life there.”
How to know if a landlord is on the list
You can search a landlord’s name and building address to see if either appears on Williams’ list.
But make sure to check both; landlords often hide their properties under limited liability companies, making it difficult to identify building owners. Case in point: This year’s list erroneously included a lawyer who represents landlords, rather than the property owner, The Real Deal reported.
You can also research your building by using HPD’s renter-facing website to look for building violations, or by checking other city and apartment review websites.
What to do if your building is falling apart
If you’re experiencing problems at one of these properties—or any NYC apartment building—there are a few ways you can get your landlord to make repairs.
First, reach out to your landlord for a fix. If the property owner fails to take action, you can call 311 or make a report online. These steps are crucial to create a record of your complaint, but may not be enough to force your landlord to solve the problem in some cases, Jacobs said.
You may want to file an HP Action—a case in housing court to force a landlord to make repairs, said Altagracia Pierre-Outerbridge, an attorney and founder of Outerbridge Law (and a Brick sponsor FYI). You can reach out to your other tenants to complain collectively, hire a lawyer, contact your local city council member, or seek out free legal counsel, she added.
“Know your rights,” Pierre-Outerbridge said. “Organizing is huge. It gives you a platform from which you can reach out to attorneys who could get results.”
You should also check to see if your apartment is rent stabilized, which can make it easier to get a rent reduction while you wait for repairs, said Ronald S. Languedoc, a partner at Himmelstein McConnell Gribben & Joseph.
All of these steps can get results, such as the HPD making repairs to your building, or even taking it over in some cases. Just last year, one of the city’s worst landlords—who made the 2023 list—was sentenced to Rikers Island after allegedly failing to make hundreds of court-mandated repairs at two of his buildings in Washington Heights.
