Year-End Compliance Checklist: What NYC Co-op and Condo Boards Must File by December 31
Several of New York City’s building inspections and filings close out on December 31, and a few more come due in January. Here is what is due, who it applies to, and what to schedule now, while there are still about ten weeks left.
1. Gas Piping Inspections (Local Law 152)
Buildings in Community Districts 4, 6, 8, 9, and 16, in every borough, are due for their periodic gas piping inspection between January 1 and December 31, 2026. Your community district number, not your neighborhood name, decides your year; your managing agent can confirm it. A Licensed Master Plumber, or someone working under one, must do the inspection. The plumber gives the owner an inspection report within 30 days, and the owner must file the certification with the Department of Buildings within 60 days of the inspection. If the plumber finds conditions that need repair, the building has more time to file a corrected certification. A one-time 180-day extension is available online, but the inspection must still happen before it runs out. Missing the filing can bring a $5,000 civil penalty. One- and two-family homes are exempt. Book your plumber now: inspections that find leaks can lead to gas shut-offs and repairs, and December schedules fill fast.
2. Energy Audits and Retro-Commissioning (Local Law 87)
Local Law 87 applies to buildings over 50,000 gross square feet, and to tax lots or groups of condominium buildings that together exceed 100,000 square feet. Each covered building files an Energy Efficiency Report once every ten years, in the year that matches the last digit of its tax block number. In 2026, that means buildings whose tax block ends in 6. The report requires an energy audit and retro-commissioning by qualified professionals, which take time, so a building that hasn’t started is already behind. If you need more time, the Department of Buildings has an extension process, and buildings under ten years old or recently rehabilitated may qualify for a deferral, which must be requested by December 31.
3. Annual Boiler Inspection
The Department of Buildings’ boiler inspection cycle runs from January 1 to December 31, so this year’s inspection must happen by New Year’s Eve. The report is due within 14 calendar days of the inspection. A late filing costs $50 per month, per boiler, up to $600. If the report still isn’t filed after that, the inspection is considered expired and the penalty becomes $1,000 per boiler. With heat season underway, schedule the inspection alongside routine boiler maintenance. Our article Keeping the Heat On covers both.
4. Elevator Safety Test (CAT1)
Every elevator needs its annual no-load safety test, known as CAT1, between January 1 and December 31. The results must be filed within 21 days of the test to avoid late fees, and the Department of Buildings will not accept CAT1 filings after January 21 of the following year; buildings that miss it receive failure-to-file violations. Confirm with your elevator contractor that this year’s test is booked, and that the filing will be submitted promptly afterward.
5. Annual Bed Bug Report (HPD)
Owners of rental residential properties must file a bed bug report with the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) between December 1 and December 31. It covers November 1, 2025 through October 31, 2026, and asks for four numbers: total units, units with an infestation, units where eradication measures were used, and units that were infested again afterward. Buildings must file even if they had no bed bugs. HPD’s filing page names cooperatives and condominium corporations among the owners that must file online, so ask your managing agent how this applies to your building. Filing is free; HPD has warned owners about private companies charging to submit it. After filing, the owner must give the filing receipt to tenants with new leases and renewals, or post it in a prominent place in the building, along with the Health Department’s bed bug guide.
6. Window Guard Annual Notice (January)
Between January 1 and January 15, the Health Department requires landlords to give every tenant or occupant the annual notice asking whether a child age 10 or younger lives in the apartment. It can go out with the January bill if it is delivered between December 15 and January 16. If no response comes back by February 15, the apartment must be inspected. If access is refused and the inspection isn’t done by March 1, the Health Department must be notified. In buildings with three or more apartments, window guards must be installed wherever a young child lives. The Health Department’s guidance is written for landlords and tenants, so confirm with your managing agent how your co-op or condo handles owner-occupied apartments. Use the current form, which was revised in 2024.
Coming Up Next
Two more dates are worth putting on the 2027 calendar now. February 15 is the deadline for owners to file for the co-op and condo property tax abatement; see our article Don’t Miss It: The February 15 Co-op/Condo Tax Abatement Deadline. And under Local Law 97, covered buildings must file an annual emissions report by May 1 each year, so the report on 2026 emissions is due May 1, 2027. Gathering utility data in January makes that filing far easier; our article Local Law 97 in 2026 covers where boards stand.
Your Board’s Action Plan
Confirm your building’s community district and tax block number. Book the Licensed Master Plumber now if you are in a 2026 gas piping district. If your building is over 50,000 square feet with a tax block ending in 6, check where the energy audit stands. Confirm the boiler inspection and elevator CAT1 test are scheduled, and make sure someone is responsible for filing each within its window. Put the bed bug report on the calendar for early December. Have the window guard notices ready to go out with January billing. Keep copies of every report and filing receipt in one place, and ask your managing agent for a written status update on each item before the December board meeting.
- Gas Piping Inspections — NYC Department of Buildings
- LL87: Energy Audits & Retro-Commissioning — NYC Department of Buildings
- Boiler Compliance — NYC Department of Buildings
- Elevator Compliance — NYC Department of Buildings
- Bed Bugs — NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development
- December 2025 Bulletin to Property Owners — NYC HPD
- Window Guards: Information for Building Owners — NYC Health Department
- LL97: Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reductions — NYC Department of Buildings
- 2026 Compliance Checklist: Local Law Deadlines — The Cooperator
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