Certificates of Occupancy and equivalents are key starting points in RE and Development. Owners, Architects, and Brokers call me all the time with the same question: What is the legal Use of a building? This seems like a simple question but it can make or break the investment and design timeline for a property.
In the 3-dimensional nature of many NYC buildings, the legal uses of each floor or room can be as varied as the history of it’s owners and tenants. Many building codes, rules and customs can overlap in determining the legal use of a space. Old, lost, amended and ongoing CofO’s can all have an impact on a new tenant fitout or multifamily closing.
A student recently asked a question that had a brutal but clear answer. She had paid cash for a property from Shanghai, with papers telling her that she was buying a large, 3 family house in Queens NYC. Looking up the property, it was an old wood frame house in a neighborhood of single family detached houses. Not a good sign…
Upon further investigation, her “proof” that the house was 3-family was her property tax bill. Not good. Going online, a rare but valid document became evident on the NYC DOB website- a 1923 Cof O for a 1-Family house. With no record of any later Actions on the property, it became clear that the owner had been scammed, and that her investment’s value was six figures less than she thought. She made it clear that her old broker was in for a misrepresentation lawsuit. This was only one of countless students and clients that paid the price of due diligence in long range investments.
