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ViolationScout9 open Class C, with 7 certifications filed and 2 new Class C in the last 180 days, too few to call a direction.Your building
Buildings538 East 21 Street, BrooklynCurrent through

538 East 21st St, Brooklyn

BBL 3-05184-0025

Built
1931
Floors
6
Residential units
53
Building type
Elevator building
Zoning district
R7A
Lot area
10,000 sq ft
Floor area
41,772 sq ft

En español: 9 violaciones de Clase C abiertas (peligro inmediato) y 19 abiertas en total. La más antigua del HPD lleva 4 años abierta, desde el 1 de enero de 2022.

Open now, most hazardous first

  1. 9

    Class C, immediately hazardous. Most often Vermin / Infestation.

    19 open counting every year, the oldest since

    Get these certified
  2. 10

    Class B, hazardous. Most often Fire Safety.

    See the 10

Open violations are sitting, with little movement either way. 9 open Class C, with 7 certifications filed and 2 new Class C in the last 180 days, too few to call a direction.

Since October 12, 2023, certifications were filed on 23 Class C violations: 19 by the original certify-by date, 4 after it. HPD now marks 1 of them Invalid Certification. How certification works

The original certify-by dates on the 19 open HPD violations run from March 5, 2025 to November 9, 2026. The report prints the date beside each one.

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9 open Class C. The oldest open HPD violation was filed January 1, 2022.

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The case file on a building like this names who is responsible on HPD's registration and how to reach them. We prepare them for firms on our pilot, ranked by how much hazardous work is open.

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The building report reads this record for you: every open violation in the city's own words, what each status means, and how the building compares with others its size. Usually ready within 15 minutes of payment.

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HPD takes complaints from tenants through 311.

For a letter to your landlord or a housing court case, the report lists every open violation here, each in the city's own words with the date on its notice. Get the report, $19

OATH/ECB summonses
3 DOB and FDNY summonses here since January 1, 2019, with $1,625 in penalties imposed. 2 judgments docketed, the latest on March 31, 2026. A docketed judgment shows up in a title search.
  • February 24, 2026, DOB: Failure to maintain elevator or conveying system. In violation.
  • July 22, 2025, FDNY: General maintenance. In violation, $375 penalty imposed.
  • December 28, 2023, DOB: Failure to maintain elevator or conveying system. In violation, $1,250 penalty imposed.
DOB violations
2 active DOB violations. The newest was issued September 23, 2024.
Housing court
10 housing court cases here since 2011.
DOB complaints
1 DOB complaint in the 12 months to September 25, 2026. It was filed January 13, 2026.
DOB permits
DOB NOW lists 2 work permits here, the newest issued February 6, 2026, for Plumbing work.
  • Plumbing, issued February 6, 2026, signed off.
  • Boiler Equipment, issued November 15, 2024, signed off.
Energy benchmarking
ENERGY STAR score 88 for 2024, against a median of 67 for Multifamily Housing that year.
Local Law 97
Covered under Article 321, the path for certain affordable housing and houses of worship (DOB's list, March 1, 2026).
Boiler inspection
Inspected February 5, 2026. Boilers in buildings with 6 or more apartments are inspected every calendar year.
Bedbug report
Filed December 16, 2025, for the year to October 31, 2025. Buildings with 3 or more apartments file one with HPD every year.
Rent stabilization
Has rent-stabilized apartments (2024 registration).
HPD emergency repair order
1 completed HPD emergency repair order since October 12, 2023: a general construction order, opened October 30, 2023, awarded for $620.

Open violations by class. A party is named only where the building's HPD registration covers the date a violation was filed.

FiledCategoryStatusNumberRegistered party when filed
Class C9 open most often Vermin / Infestation
Vermin / InfestationNotice sent to tenant18811923DITMAS PARK ASSOCIATES LLC
Vermin / InfestationNotice sent to tenant18811922DITMAS PARK ASSOCIATES LLC
Heat / Hot WaterInvalid certification18484423DITMAS PARK ASSOCIATES LLC
Vermin / InfestationNotice sent to tenant18173998
Vermin / InfestationNotice sent to tenant18138904
Vermin / InfestationNotice sent to tenant18138903
Vermin / InfestationNotice sent to tenant18104020
Fire SafetyNot complied with17759184
Heat / Hot WaterNotice sent17703137
Class B10 open most often Fire Safety
Certified on time19232128
Notice sent18574054DITMAS PARK ASSOCIATES LLC
Notice sent18574053DITMAS PARK ASSOCIATES LLC
Notice sent18484418DITMAS PARK ASSOCIATES LLC
Fire SafetyNotice sent18350332DITMAS PARK ASSOCIATES LLC
Fire SafetyNotice sent18350331DITMAS PARK ASSOCIATES LLC
Notice sent18350328DITMAS PARK ASSOCIATES LLC
Fire SafetyNotice sent18104022
Fire SafetyNotice sent18104021
Notice sent17748341

The full report on 538 East 21st St, Brooklyn

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The most common category among the open records here is vermin and pests.

Vermin and pests in Brooklyn

Other buildings on this tax block

Nearby buildings

Questions about this building

Does 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn have open violations?

Yes. 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn had 19 open violations on October 10, 2026: 19 from HPD. 9 are Class C, the class HPD treats as immediately hazardous. The oldest open HPD violation has been open 4 years, since January 1, 2022.

Is 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn getting better or worse?

Open violations are sitting, with little movement either way. 9 open Class C, with 7 certifications filed and 2 new Class C in the last 180 days, too few to call a direction. That window ends October 10, 2026. It compares certifications filed with new Class C violations, and it describes what happened, not what anyone intends.

When were certifications filed on Class C violations at 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn?

Since October 12, 2023, certifications were filed on 23 Class C violations: 19 by the original certify-by date, 4 after it. HPD now marks 1 of them Invalid Certification. A certification is the filing, dated when it was made, not HPD's acceptance of it. It is compared with the original certify-by date on the notice. A granted postponement moves that date and the city's data keeps only the first, so a certification counted after it may still have met a postponed date.

Does 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn have active DOB violations?

Yes. 2 active DOB violations. The newest was issued September 23, 2024. The Department of Buildings writes these separately from HPD's housing violations, for things like boilers, elevators, facades, construction and energy filings. Each one stays active until DOB resolves or dismisses it.

Has 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn been in housing court?

Yes. 10 housing court cases here since 2011. HPD takes buildings to housing court to get violations fixed and heat and hot water restored, and it joins tenants' own repair cases, called tenant actions. A case stays open until the court closes it.

Has DOB received complaints about 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn?

Yes. 1 DOB complaint in the 12 months to September 25, 2026. It was filed January 13, 2026. Anyone can complain to DOB about a building or the work going on in it, and DOB then inspects and decides whether there is a violation. A conversion complaint says an apartment may have been added or changed without approval. It is a complaint, not a finding.

Are any HPD emergency repair orders at 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn marked completed?

Yes. 1 completed HPD emergency repair order since October 12, 2023: a general construction order, opened October 30, 2023, awarded for $620. HPD orders an emergency repair when a hazardous condition cited in a violation, or in another agency's emergency order, is not corrected, and does the work itself or through a contractor. The amounts are what the orders were awarded for, not a bill: this page does not show what was charged to the property or whether it was paid. Orders for lab tests, such as dust-wipe and asbestos samples, are not counted.

What is the ENERGY STAR score for 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn?

ENERGY STAR score 88 for 2024, against a median of 67 for Multifamily Housing that year. Buildings over 25,000 square feet report their energy use to the city every year under Local Law 84. The ENERGY STAR score runs from 1 to 100 and compares a building with similar ones nationwide; 50 is the national median. The score is the one the city publishes, and this page never estimates a Local Law 97 emissions penalty. A lot that reported several properties in one year is not scored here.

When was the boiler at 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn last inspected?

On February 5, 2026. DOB requires a boiler in a building with 6 or more apartments to be inspected once every calendar year, with the report filed within 14 days of the inspection. Low-pressure boilers in residential buildings with 5 or fewer apartments are exempt.

When did 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn last file its bedbug report?

On December 16, 2025, for the year to October 31, 2025. HPD asks the owner of every building with 3 or more apartments for this report once a year, covering November 1 to October 31, including buildings that had no bedbugs.

Is 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn covered by Local Law 97?

Yes. It is on DOB's Local Law 97 covered buildings list. Covered under Article 321, the path for certain affordable housing and houses of worship (DOB's list, March 1, 2026). Local Law 97 sets greenhouse gas limits for most New York City buildings over 25,000 square feet, and DOB's covered buildings list says which path each building is on. The list reflects DOB's records, which owners can ask DOB to correct. This page never estimates a penalty or says whether a building complies.

Is 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn rent stabilized?

The building has rent-stabilized apartments on its 2024 registration. That comes from the Rent Guidelines Board's list of buildings with at least one stabilized apartment registered that year. Buildings that registered late are left off, and a 421-a or J-51 building can leave stabilization when its tax benefit ends. A particular apartment's status is for NYS HCR to say.

When was 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn built?

The city's record gives 1931 as the year 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn was built, in the Department of City Planning's PLUTO tax-lot file. The same file classes it as an elevator building with 6 floors.

How many apartments does 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn have?

The Department of City Planning's PLUTO tax-lot file lists 53 residential units at 538 East 21 Street, Brooklyn. The count is for the whole tax lot.

Where do these numbers come from?

From New York City's own data: HPD housing violations and OATH/ECB hearing results, read whole rather than sampled. It also draws on OATH/ECB summonses from DOB and FDNY, DOB violations, HPD's housing court cases, DOB complaints, the Rent Guidelines Board's stabilized-building lists, DOB NOW work permits, HPD emergency repair orders, Local Law 84 energy reports, DOB boiler inspection reports, HPD's annual bedbug reports, DOB's Local Law 97 covered buildings list and the city's PLUTO tax-lot file. This page is current through October 10, 2026. The city's data changes daily, so a violation certified after that can still show as open here; the city's own page for this building is linked above.

Sources. HPD housing violations and OATH/ECB hearing results, plus OATH/ECB summonses from DOB and FDNY, DOB violations, HPD's housing court cases, DOB complaints, the Rent Guidelines Board's stabilized-building lists, DOB NOW work permits, HPD emergency repair orders, Local Law 84 energy reports, DOB boiler inspection reports, HPD's annual bedbug reports, DOB's Local Law 97 covered buildings list and the city's PLUTO tax-lot file. Counts cover HPD Class B and C violations from the last 3 years that HPD still shows open, and OATH/ECB summonses from the same 3 years that the city still shows active. The city's own pages can show more, never fewer.

Cite this page

ViolationScout, 538 East 21st St, Brooklyn: 53 units, 9 open Class C, from New York City's HPD violation and OATH/ECB hearing data. Figures through October 10, 2026. https://violationscout.com/building/538-east-21-street-brooklyn

How we count: /method.

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