197 Hester Street

Living conditions

Violations are issued by inspectors. Complaints are what residents reported; a complaint alone does not mean a problem was found.

Living here and something needs fixing? Ask for a repair in writing.

HPD housing code violations

“Closed” can mean the owner certified a repair, not that an inspector confirmed it.

Most recent open violations

• Aug 31, 2026 · open · Building-wide
  HPD Class B (hazardous) violation
  § 27-2005 ADM CODE PROPERLY REPAIR WITH SIMILAR MATERIAL THE BROKEN OR DEFECTIVE FIRE RETARDANT MATERIAL AT CEILING AND ALL WALLS AT BULKHEAD, ROOF
  Source

  Source

  NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development: Housing Maintenance Code Violations (wvxf-dwi5)

  Record

  19161096

  Record date

  Aug 31, 2026

  Retrieved

  Oct 9, 2026

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• Aug 31, 2026 · open · Building-wide
  HPD Class B (hazardous) violation
  § 27-2005, 2007 ADM CODE REMOVE THE ILLEGAL FASTENING ILLEGAL PANIC BAR INSTALLED AT BULKHEAD DOOR, ROOF, PREVENTING RE-ENTRY INTO BUILDING.
  Source

  Source

  NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development: Housing Maintenance Code Violations (wvxf-dwi5)

  Record

  19161095

  Record date

  Aug 31, 2026

  Retrieved

  Oct 9, 2026

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• Aug 31, 2026 · open · Building-wide
  HPD Class C (immediately hazardous) violation
  § 27-2005, 27-2007, 27-2041.1 HMC, §238, § 309; § 107 (2) ( C) MDL AND 28 RCNY §25-171: REPLACE OR REPAIR THE SELF-CLOSING DOORS THAT IS MISSING OR DEFECTIVE HINGES AT BULKHEAD DOOR , ROOF
  Source

  Source

  NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development: Housing Maintenance Code Violations (wvxf-dwi5)

  Record

  19161094

  Record date

  Aug 31, 2026

  Retrieved

  Oct 9, 2026

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• Aug 31, 2026 · open · Building-wide
  HPD Class B (hazardous) violation
  § 27-2005, 2007 ADM CODE REMOVE ALL ENCUMBRANCES CONSISTING OF CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL ON FLOOR AT PUBLIC HALL, 6TH STY.
  Source

  Source

  NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development: Housing Maintenance Code Violations (wvxf-dwi5)

  Record

  19161093

  Record date

  Aug 31, 2026

  Retrieved

  Oct 9, 2026

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• Aug 31, 2026 · open · Building-wide
  HPD Class A (non-hazardous) violation
  § 27-2013 ADM CODE PAINT WITH LIGHT COLORED PAINT TO THE SATISFACTION OF THIS DEPARTMENT CEILING AND ALL WALLS AT BULKHEAD, ROOF
  Source

  Source

  NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development: Housing Maintenance Code Violations (wvxf-dwi5)

  Record

  19161097

  Record date

  Aug 31, 2026

  Retrieved

  Oct 9, 2026

  Report a problem with this record or match

  What looks wrong?

  Please don't include names or contact details. PRA does not store who sent this.

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Mice, rats, roaches and bedbugs

• HPD inspectors cited mice and rats 4 times since Oct 2023, most recently Aug 27, 2026. 4 are still open. 9 pest violations from before Oct 2023 are also still open. Official record
• City rat inspectors checked this property 2 times since Oct 2023 and found no signs of rats. Official record
• HPD has an open violation for the owner not filing the yearly bedbug report. Official record
• Residents made 4 complaints to HPD about mice (3) and roaches (1) since Oct 2023. Official record

What residents reported to 311

In the last 12 months, residents called 311 most about heat and hot water (13), plumbing and leaks (4) and electrical (1). Derived by PRA

Heat and hot water

Derived by PRA Counted by PRA from 311 records. No “high” or “low” label is shown here; see “Compared with the neighborhood” near the top for how this building compares with others nearby.

Complaints to HPD

376 complaints to HPD since Feb 26, 2003, mostly heat and hot water and plumbing and leaks. Official record

HPD receives many housing complaints through 311, so these overlap with the 311 counts below. PRA never adds the two together.

Complaints to 311

134 service requests since Jul 14, 2020, by category. They overlap with the HPD complaints above.

• Heat and hot water59
• Other35
• Plumbing and leaks15
• Noise6
• Paint and plaster4
• Sanitation4
• Doors and windows3
• Pests3
• Electrical2
• Mold2
• Structural1

Housing court

2 repair cases brought by tenants in housing court, the latest opened Aug 11, 2026. Official record

Categories such as “Heat and hot water” are PRA's grouping of each agency's own complaint types; the original type is kept on every record.

Know your rights

Rules that apply to renters across New York City, not findings about this building. Each one names the law or rule it comes from.

Every renter

• Your landlord has to keep it livable

  Every lease in New York, written or spoken, comes with a promise that the apartment and shared areas are fit to live in and not dangerous to your health or safety. You can't sign that promise away.

  Official recordNY Real Property Law §235-b, checked Oct 19, 2026

• Put repair problems on the record

  A complaint to the city (311 in NYC) creates a dated record and can lead to an inspection. Those records are what PRA shows.

  Official recordNYC HPD / 311, checked Oct 19, 2026

• There's public money for repairs

  Owners can apply to city programs for repairs. J-51 lowers property taxes for renovating apartment buildings. HPD's lead program offers loans that can be forgiven, averaging $10,000 per apartment, for buildings built before 1960. Each program has its own rules.

  Official recordNYC Finance (J-51); NYC HPD owner resources, checked Oct 19, 2026

If your apartment is rent-stabilized

PRA can't tell yet which apartments are rent-stabilized. Ask the landlord, or check your lease.

• Apartment upgrades have a limit

  If your apartment is rent-stabilized, the owner can raise the rent to pay for work inside it, up to $30,000 of work. That's at most about $179 a month. For a vacant apartment the state approved first, the limit is $50,000, at most about $347 a month. These increases are permanent.

  Official recordNY HCR Fact Sheet 26 (rules since Oct 17, 2024), checked Oct 19, 2026

• Ask for the receipts

  If your apartment is rent-stabilized and your new rent includes an increase for apartment improvements, you can ask the owner for proof of the work by certified mail, when you're offered the lease or within 60 days of signing. The owner has 30 days to send it.

  Official recordNY HCR Fact Sheet 26, checked Oct 19, 2026

• Building-wide upgrades: 2% a year at most

  If your apartment is rent-stabilized, the state can approve a rent increase for work on the whole building, like a new boiler or roof. It's capped at 2% a year and comes off the rent after 30 years.

  Official recordNY HCR Fact Sheet 24, checked Oct 19, 2026

Ask for a repair

Fill in the blanks for a polite, dated message to the owner or manager. It names the problems, points to the law and asks for a date.

General information, not legal advice.

Who owns it

Who the records say owns and manages this building, how that changed, and what else those organizations appear on.

Owner of record

Quok Hing Propertiesinc

Official record Buyer on the most recent deed, dated unknown date.

No sale price on the an unknown date deed. Official record Prices as written on the recorded deeds. A deed with no price is often a transfer between related parties.

Landlord registration

Official record Expired Sep 1, 2025. Last filed Jan 21, 2025.

Rent

Asking rents

When PRA has a lawful source, this section will show observed asking rents with their dates and sample sizes. An advertised price is not a signed lease or the rent a tenant pays.