"The Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) responded to a record 161,773 unique heat and hot water problems in the 12 months that ended last June, according to the Mayor's Management Report released in mid-September. Heat and hot water violations were up 12 percent over the previous fiscal year, and 60 percent since 2016. Other housing code problems went up just 2 percent last fiscal year."
"'People will work with a lot of other repairs,' said Andrea Shapiro, director of program and advocacy at the Met Council on Housing. 'But heat and hot water [problems] get to people very fast. Especially if they have children.'"
"Just complaints for heat alone-excluding hot water-reached 250,000 between July 2024 and June 2025, according to a City Limits analysis. That's more than double the number of complaints in 2016. More complaints, a spokesperson for HPD said, could also just mean that tenant education efforts are working and more tenants are aware of the tools and resources they can use."
The Department of Housing Preservation and Development responded to a record 161,773 unique heat and hot water problems in the 12 months ending last June. Heat and hot water violations rose 12 percent over the previous fiscal year and 60 percent since 2016, while other housing code problems increased only 2 percent. The city's heat season runs Oct. 1 to May 31, when landlords must maintain 68°F during the day and 62°F at night. Complaints for heat alone reached 250,000 between July 2024 and June 2025, more than double 2016 levels. HPD issued over 9,000 violations for serious heat deficiencies in the past two fiscal years compared with an average of about 4,000 annually in the prior eight years. Tenant advocates note heat and hot water issues produce rapid hardship, especially for families with children, and some of the rise in complaints may reflect improved tenant awareness of available resources.
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