H-3Heat · 311 complaint
How do you file a no-heat complaint in NYC?
To file an NYC no-heat complaint, tell the owner or super first, then report it to HPD through 311 by phone, online or the app, as an apartment or building-wide complaint.
Which building is yours?
- Prewar walk-upTell the super or owner, then file with 311. Rent-stabilized tenants can later add a DHCR complaint backed by HPD’s report.
- Brownstone or row houseA tenant tells the owner, then files with 311. A house lived in only by its owner’s household has no HPD heat complaint to make.
- Co-op or condo high-riseReport to the board or management company first, as 311 advises, then file with 311 if the building stays cold.
- Two-family houseThe tenant tells the owner first, then files with 311; the rented apartment is covered like any apartment building.
- New-build condoTell the board or management company first. If your heat comes from equipment inside your unit, the condo documents decide who repairs it.
Before you call, place your building. Tenants in a prewar walk-up or the rented floor of a two-family house report to the owner and then to HPD. Residents of a co-op or condo high-rise start with the board or management company, as 311 advises. Public housing has its own channel: NYCHA heat problems go through the NYCHA maintenance complaint page, not the HPD heat complaint.
| Building | First report | Then |
|---|---|---|
| Prewar walk-up | Super or owner | 311 to HPD; DHCR if rent-stabilized |
| Brownstone with a tenant | Owner | 311 to HPD |
| Co-op or condo high-rise | Board or management company | 311 to HPD |
| Two-family house, rented floor | Owner | 311 to HPD |
| New-build condo | Board or management company | 311; condo documents for in-unit equipment |
Who should you tell first?
The owner, super or management company. HPD’s heat and hot water page asks tenants to contact the landlord before filing, and many outages are fixed at that stage. Write down the date, the time and the indoor reading each time it is cold, so you can tell 311 what you measured against the heat season rules.
How do you file with 311?
By phone, online or through the 311 app; online forms were down when we checked on 11 Nov 2026. The 311 heat or hot water article offers two types: Apartment, for your own unit, and Building-Wide, for the whole building. An apartment complaint needs your contact details. Hot water problems use the same complaint; the temperatures owed are on hot water rules.
Can you complain anonymously?
Yes. HPD accepts anonymous heat complaints, but the inspector then picks an apartment in the building at random to try to inspect, which may not be yours.
What happens after you file?
HPD tries to reach the owner or management company, then calls you back. If you say the heat is back, the complaint closes. If not, or if HPD cannot reach you, a uniformed Code Enforcement inspector is sent, and the owner is not told the date. If nobody is home, the inspector leaves a card and tries another apartment. When a building sends in many complaints at once, HPD’s tenant guide says the inspector will not check every unit.
An inspector who finds the apartment too cold writes a Class C violation, to be corrected immediately. For violations issued on or after December 8, 2023, daily penalties run $350 to $1,250 for a first violation and $500 to $1,500 for a repeat. HPD’s heat page still lists lower, older amounts.
You will not be the only caller. HPD logged 344,437 heat complaints in the 2025–26 season, against 282,606 the season before, and 6,144 on February 8, 2026 alone, according to the statistics box on its heat page.
Legend: the numbers on this plate
- $350–$1,250Daily penalty, first heat violation issued since Dec 8, 2023Admin Code §27-2115(k)
- $500–$1,500Daily penalty for a repeat within two seasonsAdmin Code §27-2115(k)
- 2Complaint types: Apartment and Building-Wide311 article KA-01036
- Jun 1–Sep 30Only window for excessive-heat complaints311 article KA-01036
What if the cold keeps coming back?
HPD has three tools beyond a single violation. Its Emergency Repair Program can hire contractors and bill the owner when heat is not restored. Each year HPD selects 50 buildings that consistently fail to provide heat for its Heat Sensors Program; owners there install a sensor in each unit and face inspections at least twice a month from October 1 to January 31. And repeated interruptions of heat can count as harassment, 311 says.
What can rent-stabilized tenants add?
A complaint to New York State’s housing agency, DHCR. Its FS-15 guide lists form HHW-1 for one apartment and RA-84 for building-wide heat or hot water, and either must come with an HPD report finding the lack. If DHCR finds the owner failed to provide heat, a rent reduction "shall be ordered" for rent-stabilized apartments. Only a DHCR order can reduce the rent; rent-stabilized repairs covers the forms.
Can you take the owner to Housing Court?
Yes, through an HP action, which asks the court to order repairs and services such as heat and hot water. HPD’s Housing Court page says it starts at the Housing Court clerk’s office and needs no lawyer. HPD calls an HP case safer and faster than withholding rent, which it warns may lead to eviction.
Look up your own building
Questions people ask
Will the landlord know who complained?
You can file anonymously, though the inspector then picks an apartment at random. An apartment complaint needs your contact details so HPD can call you back and arrange the visit.
Does the owner get warned before the inspector comes?
No. HPD does not tell the owner the inspection date. The inspector takes the outdoor temperature on each visit, since the daytime rule depends on it.
What if nobody is home when the inspector arrives?
The inspector leaves a card and tries another apartment in the building. You can follow the complaint and any violation on HPDONLINE.
Can a tenant complain about too much heat?
Not in winter. 311 accepts excessive-heat complaints only from June 1 to September 30.
Does this complaint work in NYCHA housing?
No. 311 sends NYCHA public housing heat problems to the NYCHA maintenance complaint page. Residents of privately managed NYCHA buildings report to their management company first.
How this plate was drawn
The steps follow what 311 and HPD publish: the 311 heat complaint article, HPD’s heat, Heat Sensors and Housing Court pages, and its January 2024 tenant guide, plus DHCR’s FS-15, all looked at on 11 Nov 2026. On that day 311 marked its online forms unavailable, so try the web route before counting on it. HPD’s complaint counts cover the whole city; we found no borough split. Penalty amounts hold as of the same date.
Sources
- HPD’s Heat and Hot Water information page · tell the landlord first, anonymous complaints, inspector’s card, complaint totals · checked 11 Nov 2026
- NYC311 portal — Heat or Hot Water Complaint in a Residential Building · complaint types, what HPD does next, NYCHA, excessive heat, harassment · checked 11 Nov 2026
- Heat Sensors Program — HPD · 50 buildings a year, sensors, inspection schedule, penalties · checked 11 Nov 2026
- ABCs of Housing, tenants’ guide (January 2024) — HPD · inspections in buildings with many complaints; HPD on withholding rent · checked 11 Nov 2026
- Homes and Community Renewal — FS-15, heat and hot water · HHW-1, RA-84, rent reduction · checked 11 Nov 2026
- Housing Court and HP actions — HPD · HP actions for heat and hot water · checked 11 Nov 2026
Plate H-3 · revised 11 Nov 2026