Heat and hot water problems are the most common complaints to the city’s 311 hotline.
In fact, about a quarter of all rentals on the market as of Sept. 22, 2019, had at least one heat or hot water complaint in the building in the last 12 months, according to an analysis from home search platform Localize.city.
Cranking up indoor heat might be far from your mind given the summer-like weather we’re seeing this fall. But if you’re getting ready to move now, now’s the time to arm yourself with knowledge on home search platform Localize.city and get the full history of a building’s heat and hot water violations so you can avoid spending this winter in frigid temps. New York City’s “heat season,” the period when landlords are required to heat homes, officially started Oct. 1, lasting through May 31.
In the past 12 months there were 221,858 heat-related 311 complaints from New Yorkers at 32,436 unique addresses. Based on home search platform Localize.city’s predictive AI algorithm, more than 8,400 of these buildings are at risk of having these heat or hot water issues again. You can also find out if your building is at risk for heat or hot water issues at Localize.city.
“It’s just so frustrating, coming home every night to no heat. Never knowing which mornings you’ll be able to take a shower,” said Ben Saldinger, 28, currently a resident of Greenpoint. “I had some really serious heat issues with an apartment in Ridgewood. I had similar issues with my next apartment in Bushwick. It was so bad I had to break my lease. And these were newly renovated units, there was no way to know I’d have to deal with this.”
These aren’t just inconveniences, according to the World Health Organization “cold indoor temperatures have been associated with increased blood pressure, asthma symptoms and poor mental health.” This is a nuisance that can really harm you.
“Not having heat or hot water is not only a hardship but also illegal,” says Nir Gonen a data scientist at Localize.city.” Heat and hot water are basic needs, and not having heat and hot water is the single most frequent housing-related complaints made to 311.. We’re seeing this all across the city. That’s why Localize.city tracks complaints and violations, to make sure New Yorkers know everything there is to know about a building before they move in.”
Heat & Hot Water Complaints by the Numbers…
Complaints by borough
| Borough | No. of Complaints | No. of Buildings with complaints |
| Bronx | 73,607 | 7,790 |
| Brooklyn | 67,554 | 11,053 |
| Manhattan | 48,583 | 7,039 |
| Queens | 29,787 | 5,888 |
| Staten Island | 2,327 | 666 |
Top neighborhoods with complaints
| x | Neighborhood | Addresses with Complaints |
| 1 | Crown Heights | 1,264 |
| 2 | Harlem | 1,024 |
| 3 | East New York | 994 |
| 4 | Bedford Stuyvesant | 988 |
| 5 | Washington Heights | 953 |
| 6 | Bushwick | 806 |
| 7 | East Flatbush | 805 |
| 8 | Upper East Side | 728 |
| 9 | Upper West Side | 722 |
| 10 | Astoria | 668 |
Buildings with most complaintsBuildings with most complaints
| Address | Neighborhood | Borough | Complaints in last 12 months | |
| 1 | 89-21 Elmhurst Ave. | Elmhurst | Queens | 3,174 |
| 2 | 9511 Shore Rd. | Bay Ridge | Brooklyn | 1,026 |
| 3 | 1711 H. Tubman Ave. | Bedford Stuyvesant | Brooklyn | 863 |
| 4 | 2750 Homecrest Ave. | Brighton Beach | Brooklyn | 855 |
| 5 | 2040 Bronxdale Ave. | Pelham Parkway | Bronx | 795 |
| 6 | 1425 MLK Blvd. | Highbridge | Bronx | 727 |
| 7 | 266 Bedford Park Blvd. | Bedford Park | Bronx | 619 |
| 8 | 381 Vernon Ave. | Bedford Stuyvesant | Brooklyn | 583 |
| 9 | 72-10 41st Ave. | Elmhurst | Queens | 579 |
| 10 | 2101 Albemarle Rd. | Flatbush | Brooklyn | 521 |
| x | Address | Neighborhood | Complaints in last 12 months |
| 1 | 36 Sherman Ave. | St. George | 168 |
| 2 | 37 Richard Ln. | Bulls Head | 56 |
| 3 | 1000 Targee St. | Grasmere | 43 |
| 4 | 90 Richmond Hill Rd. | Heartland Village | 38 |
| 5 | 280 Park Hill Ave. | Park Hill | 36 |
