No heat, no hot water, no repairs? Every NY lease guarantees habitability, whether the landlord likes it or not.
Real Property Law 235-b writes a warranty of habitability into every residential lease and makes it non-waivable. A documented attorney demand starts the record that wins rent abatements.
Flat fee $499, signed by a licensed New York attorney, draft within 48 hours, mailed on your approval.
Reviewed by Daniel Hochman, Esq. · Last updated November 1, 2026
Every residential lease in New York carries a warranty of habitability under RPL § 235-b, and no lease clause can waive it. When heat, hot water or repairs fail, the remedy is a rent abatement for the period the conditions lasted, and a dated written demand fixes the start of that record. For a dangerous condition, call 311 and file with HPD the same day; both are free.
Best for specific, documented conditions: upload photos and dates at intake. Cosmetic complaints, tenant-caused conditions, and disputes that are really about rent arrears are screened out at attorney review as the terms describe. Background reading from the firm: landlord won't make repairs.
The warranty is automatic and non-waivable
Premises must be fit for habitation and free of conditions dangerous to life, health, or safety, and any lease clause waiving that warranty is void as against public policy.
RPL § 235-b(1)-(2)
The remedy is rent-based
Courts reduce rent for the period the conditions persisted. Your dated demand letter fixes the start of that record, which is why sending it early matters.
311, HPD, and HP actions pair with the demand
Violations of record strengthen the abatement case; the letter instructs preservation of the complaint history and puts the landlord on notice that the record is being built.
Before you spend a dollar: there is a free route
311 and an HPD complaint are free, create official violations of record, and are the right first call for any dangerous condition, and an HP action in Housing Court (also free to file) can force repairs directly. This letter doesn't replace those; it builds the dated record that wins rent abatements alongside them. If your situation is an emergency, use the free channels today.
Questions before you start
No heat in my NYC apartment. What does the law require?
From October 1 to May 31, an NYC landlord must keep the apartment at 68°F or warmer from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. whenever it is below 55°F outside, and at 62°F or warmer overnight in any weather. Hot water must reach 120°F all year. NYC Admin. Code §§ 27-2029, 27-2031. Call 311 first; the letter puts the landlord on notice in writing and dates the start of your abatement claim.
Does NYC have a thermostat rule for apartments?
The rule sets the temperature the apartment has to reach, not a setting on a thermostat, so what counts is a thermometer reading in your rooms. During heat season, October 1 to May 31, that is 68°F or warmer from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. whenever it is below 55°F outside, and 62°F or warmer overnight in any weather, under NYC Admin. Code §§ 27-2029 and 27-2031. Hot water must reach 120°F all year.
Can I just withhold rent instead?
Withholding invites a nonpayment case where habitability becomes your defense. Sending the demand first is the safer sequence, and it strengthens that defense if it comes to it.
What if conditions are dangerous right now?
Call 311 and file with HPD in parallel; where health or safety is at immediate risk, an HP action may be needed alongside the letter, and the letter builds the abatement record either way.
Statutes cited on this page
Real Property Law § 235-b (Real Property Law)
Each link opens the official text at the New York State Senate's Open Legislation site (federal sections: Cornell Law School's U.S. Code).