Comptroller Audit Shows Racial Disparities in Building Code Enforcement

On April 21, 2025, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander’s Office released a new report that reveals substantial racial inequities in how the Department of Buildings enforces rules for owners of one- and two-family homes.

An audit of the top ten community districts for penalties showed that homeowners in predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods incurred significant fines for building code violations. These penalties were often for unpermitted alterations and default judgments and usually stemmed from … <Read More>


Comptroller Audit Finds Non-Compliance with “Fair Share” Charter Provisions

On November 9, 2023 the New York City Comptroller released an audit and report detailing the failures of the City to comply with “Fair Share” Requirements for City Services and Facilities. Under the 1989 City Charter Revisions, “Fair Share provisions” require that the City must make an effort to provide communities with their fair share of amenities and the City must make an effort to combat citywide issues equitably among all communities. The new analysis … <Read More>


Comptroller Audit Finds NYCHA Wasted Millions on Roof Repairs, Putting Residents’ Health at Risk

NYCHA wasted $3.7 million by replacing eight roofs while they were under warranty. On July 26, 2019, the Office of the Comptroller announced the results of its audit of the New York City Housing Authority’s (NYCHA) roof maintenance. According to New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer, NYCHA wasted millions on roof repairs that should have come at no expense to taxpayers and failed to perform basic oversight and preventive maintenance of roofs, putting the … <Read More>


Follow-Up Comptroller Audit Finds Previously Cited Privately Owned Public Spaces Still Non-Compliant

Audit reveals that Department of Buildings did not inspect non-compliant POPS locations. On November 22, 2017, the Office of the City Comptroller Scott Stringer released a report of a follow-up audit to determine whether the Privately Owned Public Spaces (POPS), previously found noncompliant in an April 18, 2017 audit, now provided all required amenities, and what action if any were taken by the Department of Buildings to bring these POPS into compliance. To read CityLand’s<Read More>


Comptroller Audit Finds that HPD Review of Affordable Housing Sponsors Was Effective

Comptroller audit finds that HPD’s controls to ensure that housing incentives were rewarded to qualified applicants were largely effective. On June 27, 2017, the Office of the city Comptroller Scott Stringer released a report of an audit of the Department of Housing Preservation and Development. The audit sought to evaluate whether HPD had adequate controls to ensure that its housing incentive projects were properly awarded to property owners and developers that qualified for the program, … <Read More>


Comptroller Audit Reveals that DOF Misclassified Staten Island Properties

Comptroller’s audit finds that the DOF misclassified for tax purposes at least twelve Class 1 properties on Staten Island. On February 24, 2017, the Office of the City Comptroller Scott Stringer released a report of an audit of Department of Finance property classifications on Staten Island. The audit sought to evaluate whether payments to Samaritan and the payment rates were reasonable, appropriate, and adequately supported, and whether Samaritan was complying with its contract with DHS. … <Read More>