Atleast 68 degrees

Real Estate Weekly, Jan 13, 1999

Try to think of your residential tenants when the temperature drops and you're watching NYPD Blue on the tube in your nice warm house.

Until May 31st, between the hours of 6 a.m and 10 p.m., when the outside temperature falls below 55 degrees, city residential building owners must maintain a temperature of at least 68 degrees in the apartments. Between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., when the outside temperature falls below 50 degrees, the inside of apartments must be at least 55 degrees.

The Department of Buildings is expediting emergency plumbing repairs to heating systems through March 15th. You can hand deliver or overnight mail the requests, along with a certified check or money order for the permit and a SASE. Flag it with "Emergency Heat Repair" written on the envelope and in the comments portion of the permit application.

Now that we're seeing the great white stuff, remember that city law requires that if the snow stops falling between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. the snow must be shoveled within four hours. If it is frozen so hard that chipping at it would damage the sidewalk, the owner must put out ash, sand, kitty litter or other gritty substances to help pedestrians traverse the area, and so they won't fall and sue you.