532 West 159 Street

Manhattan, NY

BBL 1-02117-0020BIN 1062755

Concern level4 of 4

Severe

01On HPD's Alternative Enforcement Program — the city's most-distressed-buildings list
0234 open class-C HPD violations (immediately hazardous) across 20 apartments
0319 of those issued in the last 3 years
047 open rent-impairing violation(s)
052 active DOB violation(s)
061 eviction executed in the last 3 years

How this is set: open hazardous violations measured against the building's size, then raised by strong distress signals — HPD's enforcement program, court harassment findings, recent evictions, unpaid DOB fines, open housing-court cases, and a sold tax lien. Neighborhood noise and crime are not part of it. It describes the public record, not the condition of any one apartment, and a quiet record is not proof of a good building.

HPD enforcement

On the Alternative Enforcement Program

HPD placed this building in its Alternative Enforcement Program (AEP Round 16), active since 2023-01-31. AEP is the city's response to its most distressed buildings — it had 1,251 open B/C violations at selection.

Rent regulation

Likely rent-stabilized

The owner registered 14 stabilized units with New York State for 2023 — of about 20 apartments.

2018 — 14 units registered2023 — 14

No public data says which specific apartment is stabilized.

Registration counts apply to the building, not to unit numbers. To confirm your own apartment, request your rent history from New York State Homes and Community Renewal — it is free and takes a few weeks.

How to request your rent history →

Rent regulation

The building

1913

Built

Floors

Residential units

Walk-up apartments

Type

The building

This building and the landlord's others

This building6 others linked to the same owner

HPD housing-maintenance violations

112

Open now

436

On record

Open Class C

Open Class B

Open Class A

Class C is immediately hazardous, Class B is hazardous, Class A is non-hazardous. A violation stays open until HPD certifies the repair, so some open items may already be fixed.

CLASS I · NON-HAZARDOUS

§27-2153 ADM CODE THE PREMISES HAS BEEN SELECTED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE ALTERNATIVE ENFORCEMENT PROGRAM WHICH MAY RESULT IN BUILDING-WIDE INSPECTIONS, FEES, AND EXTENSIVE REPAIR WORK TO CORRECT VIOLATIONS AND UNDERLYING CONDITIONS. CHARGES FOR REPAIR WORK DONE PURSUANT TO THIS ORDER, IF NOT PAID, WILL BECOME LIENS ON THE PROPERTY

Status: Notice issued, not yet certified

CLASS C · IMMEDIATELY HAZARDOUSApt 3CIssued 2026-08-31

HMC ADM CODE: § 27-2017.4 ABATE THE INFESTATION CONSISTING OF MICE IN THE ENTIRE APARTMENT LOCATED AT APT 3C, 3rd STORY, 1st APARTMENT FROM EAST AT SOUTH

Status: Defect letter issued

CLASS C · IMMEDIATELY HAZARDOUSIssued 2026-06-04

§ 27-2005 HMC: PROPERLY REPAIR OR REPLACE THE BROKEN OR DEFECTIVE ROOF COVERING THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE ROOF

Status: Notice issued, not yet certified

CLASS C · IMMEDIATELY HAZARDOUSIssued 2026-06-04

§ 27-2005 HMC: PROPERLY REPAIR OR REPLACE THE BROKEN OR DEFECTIVE 1ST TREAD FROM BOTTOM UP AT THE INTERMEDIATE LANDING AT PUBLIC HALL STAIRS, 4th STORY

Status: Notice issued, not yet certified

HPD housing-maintenance violations

311 complaints from tenants

257

All time

Last 12 months

Heat/Hot Water90

Unsanitary Condition37

Plumbing34

General18

Paint/Plaster18

Door/Window17

Water Leak14

Electric12

Complaints record what a tenant reported, not a finding by the city. "Closed" often means the inspector could not gain access.

311 complaints from tenants

Neighborhood noise

Much higher than averagevs. NYC apartment blocks

4245

Noise reports · last 12 mo

354

≈ per month

% from neighbors

Street/Sidewalk3100

Residential823

Commercial127

Vehicle121

Unspecified69

House of Worship4

Park1

311 noise complaints within about 1,000 ft (a few blocks) in the last year. Most reports here are about outdoor noise (mostly street/sidewalk) — street life and traffic more than neighbors. This counts how often people call 311, which tracks how densely populated and busy an area is as much as how loud it is — it is not a sound measurement.

Neighborhood noise

Neighborhood crime

Much higher than averagevs. NYC apartment blocks

565

NYPD reports · last 12 mo

≈ per month

Felony190

Misdemeanor286

Violation89

NYPD complaints reported within about 1,000 ft (a few blocks) in the last year, by severity. This reflects what gets reported and where police are active as much as actual safety, and busier, denser, higher-foot-traffic blocks log more. Locations are approximate — the NYPD shifts each report to the nearest corner for privacy — so read this as rough context, not a safety score.

Neighborhood crime

Bedbug history

Infested, latest filing

Annual filings

2024–20250 infested · 0 eradicated

2023–20240 infested · 0 eradicated

2022–20230 infested · 0 eradicated

Self-reported by the owner for the year ending each filing. Counts are building-wide and do not say which apartment was affected.

Bedbug history

DOB building violations

Active

On record

Active, last 3 yrs

ACTIVE · P-PLUMBING NONE2017-07-21

THE DEPARTMENT OF BUILDINGS INTENDS TO REVOKE ALL PLUMBING APPROVALS & PERMITS UNDER LAA#100008288 DUE TO SUSPENSION OF LICENSE.STOP ALL WOR WORK IMMEDIATELY EXCEPT TO MAKE SITE SAFE

ACTIVE · P-PLUMBING NONE2017-07-21

THE DEPARTMENT OF BUILDINGS INTENDS TO REVOKE ALL PLUMBING APPROVALS & PERMITS UNDER LAA#100008288 DUE TO SUSPENSION OF LICENSE.STOP ALL WOR WORK IMMEDIATELY EXCEPT TO MAKE SITE SAFE

DOB building violations

Evictions

Executed, all time

Last 3 years

2024-07-02Apt 5Cresidential

2018-04-16Apt 4Dresidential

Executed by a city marshal. An eviction can be lawful; a high or rising count is a displacement signal, not proof of wrongdoing.

Evictions

Housing court

Cases on record

Open now

Tenant-brought

Harassment found

With a judgment

Most cases are tenants taking the owner to court to force repairs. A case is not proof of wrongdoing; a harassment finding or judgment is a court ruling against the owner.

CLOSEDOpened 2026-02-19

Heat / hot water

CLOSEDOpened 2022-10-19

Access Warrant - Non-Lead

CLOSEDOpened 2022-08-08

Access Warrant - Non-Lead

CLOSEDOpened 2019-03-22

Tenant action

Housing court

Landlord and related buildings

Registered owner

532 W 159th St Owner LLC

Head officer

John DAmico

Managing agent

BRONSTEIN PROPERTIES LLC

6 other buildings share this owner's registration contacts. Shared contacts suggest common control, but they are not proof of ownership.

220 WEST 149 STREETMANHATTAN 2546 ADAM C POWELL BOULEVARDMANHATTAN 528 WEST 159 STREETMANHATTAN 530 WEST 159 STREETMANHATTAN 534 WEST 159 STREETMANHATTAN

Landlord and related buildings

Unpaid city fines

No DOB/ECB violations on record for this building.

Unpaid city fines

Ownership & money

Speculation watch

·Bought and resold within a few years — rapid turnover is a common speculation signal

A pattern, not a prediction — many transfers are ordinary or between related companies.

Recorded sales

Mortgages / refinances

Last recorded sale2016-12-21 · $4,000,000

Most recent mortgage2016-12-21 · $2,549,000

Sale2016-12-21$4,000,000

CVRE 528-538 WEST 159TH ST. LLC → RH 532 WEST 159 STREET LP

Mortgage2016-12-21$2,549,000

borrower RH 532 WEST 159 STREET LP · lender ARBOR AGENCY LENDING, LLC

Sale2014-07-14$14,300,000

528-538 159TH STREET LLC → CVRE 528-538 WEST 159TH ST. LLC

Mortgage2014-07-14$3,055,500

borrower CVRE 528-538 WEST 159TH ST. LLC · lender INVESTORS BANK

Mortgage2013-03-11$7,650,000

borrower 528-538 159TH STREET LLC · lender SIGNATURE BANK

From ACRIS recorded documents. Amounts are often $0 or nominal for transfers between related parties, and LLCs can obscure who is really involved — treat this as public-record context, not a valuation.

Ownership & money

City debt & tax-lien sale

Not on the city's tax-lien sale list (2019–2025). The owner has not fallen far enough behind on property tax or water charges to be flagged for a lien sale.

City debt & tax-lien sale