NYC Mold Law Explained: Article 32 and Your Rights

What NYC mold law requires of landlords

New York City's mold rule for landlords is Local Law 55 of 2018, the Asthma Free Housing Act, which amended the city's Housing Maintenance Code. It applies to any building with 3 or more residential units. Under that law, the owner has to keep apartments free of mold and the pest and moisture conditions that feed it, and has to investigate a tenant's written mold complaint and remediate it, generally within a set window measured in business days once notified.

The law does not stop at cleanup. It requires the landlord to fix the underlying leak or moisture source rather than only wipe down the surface, because mold on drywall or grout is a symptom and the water intrusion is the actual problem. Buildings covered by the law also have an annual duty to inspect for mold and other indoor allergen hazards as part of routine unit turnover and inspection cycles. If an owner ignores a documented complaint, that is treated as a violation the city can act on.

New York Labor Law Article 32 and the 10 square foot rule

Separate from the landlord duty is the licensing law that governs who is allowed to do the work. New York Labor Law Article 32, run through the New York State Department of Labor's mold program, sets a straightforward threshold: when you hire someone, New York requires a licensed mold remediation contractor for jobs of 10 square feet or larger in a single area. Below that size, the law does not require a license, though the moisture problem still needs to be fixed or the mold returns.

The part of Article 32 that trips people up is the separation rule. The state requires the mold assessor, the licensed party who tests, inspects, and writes the assessment, and the mold remediator, the licensed party who does the physical removal, to be two different companies. No single company is allowed to hold both roles on the same job. That structure exists so the business deciding how much work is needed is never the same business getting paid to do that work. If a contractor offers to inspect your mold and then remove it themselves on a job over 10 square feet, that is not how the law is supposed to work.

In practice this means a landlord or tenant dealing with a mold job of any real size should expect two separate invoices from two separate licensed companies: one for the assessment, one for the remediation. A written mold remediation plan, and later a clearance report confirming the work passed, are standard parts of that paper trail under the DOL program.

Your rights as a tenant

If you are renting in a building with 3 or more units, the warranty of habitability and Local Law 55 both work in your favor. You have the right to a mold-free apartment and a landlord who responds to a documented mold complaint instead of ignoring it. Here is what that looks like in practice:

• Put the complaint in writing. A text, email, or letter to your landlord or management company that describes the mold and where it is creates a record. Verbal complaints are easy to dispute later.
• Call 311 if your landlord does not respond. A 311 complaint routes to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development, which can inspect the apartment and issue a violation if the landlord is out of compliance.
• Consider an HP Action if the violation goes unaddressed. Tenants can file an HP Action in NYC Housing Court to force a landlord to make repairs, including mold remediation, without having to move out first.
• Ask about a rent reduction. Depending on the severity and how long the condition has gone unfixed, a rent abatement may be available as compensation for the time you lived with the problem.

None of this requires you to hire your own contractor first. The responsibility to fix mold in a covered building sits with the landlord, not the tenant.

How to request a repair the right way

A mold repair request holds up better when it is specific and documented. Note the room, the approximate size of the affected area, how long it has been there, and any leak or moisture source you can see nearby. Photos help. Send the request in writing to your landlord or the management office and keep a copy. If the area looks larger than about the size of a bath towel (about 10 square feet), say so directly, since that is the size where Article 32's licensing rule kicks in and, in most buildings, the landlord cannot simply have maintenance staff paint over it.

If your landlord sends someone to handle both the inspection and the removal on a job that size, that is worth flagging, since Article 32 requires those to be separate licensed parties. You are allowed to ask which license each person or company is working under.

Where we fit in

We are a mold removal and remediation company. We are not a mold assessor, and we do not test, inspect, or assess mold ourselves. When a job needs testing or a written assessment first, or when Article 32's separation rule applies because the area is 10 square feet or larger, you arrange that independently with a New York State licensed mold assessor of your choosing. Once you have their report, we carry out the removal work it calls for: containing the area, removing what cannot be saved, cleaning what stays, and drying out the moisture source so the mold does not come back. When the job is done, your assessor checks the space again and signs off on clearance, separately from us.

If you are a tenant, homeowner, or landlord in Brooklyn or NYC dealing with visible mold and want it removed properly, our mold removal and remediation page covers what that work involves, or you can call (347) 853-8827 and describe what you are seeing once you have that report in hand. If you are still deciding whether a licensed assessor should test the area first, this guide on mold inspection in NYC walks through that decision.