100
Worst
Landlords
In NYC
View Landlords

The Office of the Public Advocate’s Worst Landlord Watchlist is an information-sharing tool that enables tenants, public officials, advocates, and other concerned individuals to identify which residential property owners consistently flout City laws intended to protect the rights and safety of tenants.

Housing law protects your right as a tenant to meet with other tenants in a public space in the building. You should speak with other tenants who are facing similar problems and organize a meeting time in the building. The meeting can be advertised through fliers or posters placed in the building. At the first meeting, the representative of the association should be appointed by the group and a set of action items should be decided.

Data Visualizations

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Average Violations of Top 5 Worst Landlords

Bar chart of the average violations of the top 5 Worst Landlords. Jonathan Santana leads the chart with an average of 3,293 violations. David Tennembaum is in second with 2,416; Larry Hirschfield in third with 1,394; Sima Abdavies in fourth with 1,372; and Alfred Thompson in fifth with 1,341.

Number of Violations

73,866

HPD violations in 2023

Compared to 69,018 violations in 2022


On average, landlords on the Watchlist own 6.7 buildings and have 739 violations across their represented buildings

Average Violations per Month 2022 vs. 2023

Line chart comparing the average violations per month between 2022 and 2023. 2023's numbers are consistently higher than 2022's throughout the year, ranging from 724 to 757. 2022's average violations range from 670 to 715.