Manhattan Housing Legal Question of the Week #7- Manhattan Apartment Room Requirements

Manhattan Housing Legal Question of the Week #7- Manhattan Apartment Room Requirements

 

Does a room need to have a window to be considered a “room” for listing purposes?  If so, is there a minimum required size for the window?

 Yes.  For listing purposes, the NYC Administrative Code requires every “room” to have at least one window that opens onto a street, yard, or court on the same lot.  Furthermore, the window must have a total area of at least one-tenth the floor area of the entire room.  Closets, halls, stairs, laundry rooms, bathrooms, foyers and dining spaces are not considered “rooms” and therefore do not require windows.

Many Manhattan real estate brokers “cheat” on this because Manhattan apartments are so expensive.  Advertised 2 bedrooms can be listed as $2000-2500 but a REAL 2 bedroom would be an average of $3800 on the low end.  So don’t be fooled by this because at the end of the day renters pay for price per sq. ft. and walls can always be erected for “marketing purposes”.

 

 

To view a FAQ on the proper marketing of bedrooms and other rooms in a dwelling, Manhattan apartment room sizing.  Note that “bedrooms” and “living rooms” have different window size requirements than regular “rooms”.

 

 

Thanks to Neil B. Garfinkel, the REBNY Residential Counsel

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