My Landlord Won't Fix Anything: A Step-by-Step Guide to Forcing Repairs in NYC

Landlord & Tenant Law · Sep 23, 2026

New York tenants have a real legal foundation for getting apartments repaired — it just takes knowing the right sequence of steps. Here's how it actually works, from a first phone call to what happens if it ends up in Housing Court.

If you're dealing with a gas smell, fire, carbon monoxide alarm, or anything that feels like an immediate danger, call 911 or the relevant utility first. Everything below is for repair problems that need fixing, not emergencies that need a first responder right now.

The law behind this

Under New York Real Property Law § 235-b, every written or oral residential lease in New York City automatically includes a warranty of habitability — a guarantee that your apartment, and the areas shared with other residents, will be fit for human habitation and free from conditions dangerous, hazardous, or detrimental to life, health, or safety. It applies whether you're market-rate, rent-stabilized, or rent-controlled, and a landlord can't waive it by writing something different into your lease.

That doesn't mean every minor annoyance rises to a legal violation — but a lack of required heat or hot water, unsafe electrical conditions, significant leaks, qualifying mold or pest conditions, and similar serious problems generally do.

Step one: put it in writing

Tell your landlord or super about the problem, and do it in a way you can prove later. A phone call is a fine start, but follow up in writing — a text, an email, or a letter, ideally something time-stamped. For anything serious, certified mail creates a paper trail that's hard to dispute. Note the date, describe the condition specifically, and keep dated photos or video. This documentation matters at every later stage — an HPD complaint, a court filing, and any rent-related claim all depend on being able to show when the problem started and that your landlord knew.

Step two: call 311

If nothing happens, call 311 to file a complaint with HPD. From there, HPD first tries contacting your building's managing agent directly, and will also try calling you back to check whether the condition got fixed. If it wasn't corrected, or HPD can't reach you, they'll send a uniformed Code Enforcement inspector — the owner isn't told in advance when that inspection will happen. If you live in NYCHA housing, you can also report repairs directly through NYCHA's own channels, since NYCHA procedures work a bit differently from private housing.

If the inspector confirms a real problem, HPD issues a Notice of Violation classified by severity. The owner's time to correct it, counted from when they receive the notice, depends on the class:

• Class A (non-hazardous) — 90 days.
• Class B (hazardous) — 30 days.
• Class C (immediately hazardous) — the most serious tier, covering conditions like lack of heat or hot water, dangerous electrical or gas conditions, and certain lead-paint, mold, or pest issues, depending on the specific facts. Most Class C conditions carry a 24-hour window; lead-based paint, window guards, mold, and mice/rat/cockroach violations get 21 days; self-closing door violations get 14 days. For heat and hot water specifically, HPD's own guidance lists the correction period as immediate.

An open violation doesn't mean a fine gets charged automatically the second a deadline passes — but an owner who doesn't correct and certify it stays exposed to civil penalties and further enforcement the longer it sits open.

For immediately hazardous conditions specifically, HPD also has the Emergency Repair Program: if the owner doesn't act, HPD can arrange for the repair itself and bill the property owner, through the city's Department of Finance, for the work plus related fees. An unpaid charge becomes a tax lien against the property — one more reason serious complaints tend to get real attention. (If HPD is already doing emergency repair work at your address, you can check the status by calling 212-863-5510.)

If you're in a rent-regulated apartment (rent-stabilized or rent-controlled), there's also a separate rent-reduction path through HCR: file Form RA-81 for a decrease in services within your own apartment, Form RA-84 if the issue affects the whole building, or Form HHW-1 specifically for a lack of heat or hot water. A successful complaint can reduce your legal rent until the service is restored. This process is generally for rent-regulated apartments specifically — market-rate tenants still have full access to everything above (311, HPD, and Housing Court), just not this particular rent-reduction route.

Step three: if it's still not fixed, file an HP Action

If the landlord still hasn't acted, the next step is an HP Action in Housing Court — a case filed in the Housing Part specifically to get a repair order. You don't need a lawyer to start one. Go to the Housing Court clerk's office serving your borough and ask for the current HP proceeding packet — the clerk provides the forms (an Order to Show Cause, a Verified Petition, and an inspection request). There's a court filing fee — confirm the current amount with the clerk, since it can change — and if you can't afford it, you can apply to proceed as a poor person, which waives the fee.

Once a judge signs your Order to Show Cause, follow its service instructions exactly. You'll generally need to serve the signed papers on the owner (or managing agent) and on HPD by the deadline it states; if you were granted poor-person status, it may also require serving the NYC Corporation Counsel. After that, file an Affidavit of Service confirming you did it, and bring copies of everything — plus your documentation — to the hearing. Filing the initial paperwork doesn't complete the case on its own.

HPD may participate in the case, but it's worth understanding their role — they're enforcing the housing code as a city agency, not acting as your personal attorney. Many HP cases resolve through a stipulation or consent order, reviewed by the judge, that spells out exactly what gets fixed and by when. If the two sides can't agree, the judge holds a hearing.

If your landlord still doesn't comply with a court order, you can go back to court to seek enforcement — including, in appropriate circumstances, a contempt finding. Whether fees or additional penalties are available depends on the specific order and the facts of the case.

Where to get help — including for free

You don't have to navigate any of this alone, and you don't need money to get real help:

• Call 311 and ask for Right to Counsel. Tenants facing eviction in Housing Court or a NYCHA proceeding may qualify for a free lawyer — this is free, available in every ZIP code, and available regardless of immigration status.
• Housing Court Answers offers free information and assistance at (212) 962-4795 or (718) 557-1379.
• If you're not facing eviction but want general guidance on your situation, 311 can also connect you to a legal services organization that handles your borough and case type.

A word about withholding rent

You don't necessarily need a prior court order to raise habitability as a defense, or to seek a rent reduction, if your landlord later brings a nonpayment case against you. But stopping rent payments on your own initiative is still genuinely risky: it can trigger that nonpayment case in the first place, and you'd then need to prove the habitability problem to defend it. If you're considering this, document the conditions thoroughly, keep the withheld money set aside rather than spending it, and talk to an attorney if you can before you stop paying.

You have retaliation protections — with real limits

New York law protects tenants from retaliation for complaining about conditions in good faith, taking action to enforce their rights, or participating in a tenant organization. If a landlord serves a notice to quit, starts a proceeding to recover the apartment, or substantially alters your tenancy terms within a year of a protected action like this, the law creates a rebuttable presumption of retaliation — placing the burden on the landlord to prove, by a preponderance of the evidence, that they had a legitimate, non-retaliatory reason.

Two limits worth knowing: this protection doesn't apply in owner-occupied buildings with fewer than four units, and it doesn't apply if the condition you complained about was actually caused by you, someone in your household, or your guest. It's also worth knowing that raising a retaliation defense doesn't erase rent you otherwise owe — the two issues are handled separately.

A related warning: a repair complaint never gives a landlord permission to force you out informally. Changing your locks, removing your belongings, shutting off essential services, or threatening you to make you leave is illegal — an unlawful lockout is a crime in New York. If this happens to you, call 911 immediately, and also reach out to Housing Court Answers or 311.

Summing It Up

You don't need to hire a lawyer to document conditions, call 311, or start learning about an HP Action — all of that is designed to be usable on your own. Legal advice tends to matter most once things get more complicated: an eviction or nonpayment case, a rent abatement claim, alleged retaliation or harassment, a landlord who's already ignored a court order, or a dispute over who's actually responsible for the condition. If you reach that point, look for an attorney whose practice actually includes tenant-side Housing Court work, and make sure their fees and communication style are clear to you before you agree to anything.

← Back to the blog