DHCR FACT SHEET #15
Division of Housing and Community Renewal

HEAT AND HOT WATER

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 68 degrees
     Fahrenheit when the outside temperature falls below 55
     degrees;

     Between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. heat must register 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.

The Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) is
authorized to reduce the rent of any apartment when these
required heat and hot water services are not maintained. Tenants
should file TENANT'S APPLICATION FOR RENT REDUCTION BASED UPON
THE OWNER'S 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, simply attach a schedule to the HHW-1 form or
file STATEMENT OF COMPLAINT OF DECREASE IN BUILDING WIDE SERVICES
[DHCR form 84]. If the owner is found negligent, they can not
collect any additional rent increases until the service is
restored, and in the case of rent control, no fuel surcharges can
be collected for one year after services are restored.

Rent controlled and rent stabilized tenants in New York City with
heat and/or hot water complaints should call the NYC Central
Complaint Bureau's Hot Line (212) 824-4328. A NYC 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.

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DHCR Fact Sheets (series of thirty) are issued by the New York
State Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) as plain-
english informational publications.  For official agency
policies, see DHCR Policy Statements, Advisory Opinions and
Operational Bulletins. Also refer to the Rent Stabilization Code,
the Rent Stabilization Law and various Rent Control Statutes.

Electronic versions of these documents on TenantNet are for
informational purposes only and there is no guarantee they will
be accepted by any court (or even DHCR) as true copies of DHCR
policy. The reader may obtain true copies of these documents from
DHCR.

Every attempt has been made to conform to the original Fact
Sheets as issued by DHCR; TenantNet makes no
representation the enclosed material is current or will be
applied as written.  The reader is advised that DHCR often fails
to properly apply, interpret or enforce housing laws.  Since
housing laws are complex and often contradictory, it is
recommended the reader obtain competent legal advice from a
tenant attorney or counseling from a tenant association or
community group. (rev. 3/13/96) DHCR documents
are public documents; the electronic version of such documents
have been developed by TenantNet and any added value, enhancements
and/or proprietary features are copyright 1994, 1995 and 1996 by
TenantNet. These documents may be freely distributed provided they
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For more information or assistance, call the DHCR Rent Infoline
at (718) 739-6400, or visit your Borough Rent Office.

Queens Central Office
92-31 Union Hall St. 4th Fl.
Jamaica, NY 11433
(718) 739-6400

Bronx
One Fordham Plaza
Bronx, NY 10458
(718) 563-5678

Brooklyn
250 Schermerhorn St.
3rd Floor
Brooklyn, NY 11201
(718) 780-9246

Lower Manhattan
156 William Street
9th Floor
NY, NY 10038
(212) 240-6011, 6012
South side of 110th St. and below

Upper Manhattan
163 W. 125th St.
5th Floor
NY, NY 10027
(212) 961-8930
North side of 110th St. and above

Staten Island
350 St. Mark's Place
Room 105
Staten island, NY 10301
(718) 816-0277

Nassau County District Rent Office
50 Clinton Street, 6th Floor
Hempstead, NY 11550
(516) 481-9494

Westchester County District Rent Office
55 Church Street, 3rd Floor
White Plains, NY 10601
(914) 948-4434

Rockland County District Rent Office
94-96 North Main St.
Spring Valley, NY 10977
(914) 425-6575

Albany Regional Office
119 Washington Avenue
Albany, NY 12210
(518) 432-0596

Buffalo Regional Office
Ellicot Square Building
295 Main St., Room 438
Buffalo, NY 14203
(716) 856-1382

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