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    What Is the HPD Alternative Enforcement Program?

    A plain-English guide to HPD's Alternative Enforcement Program (AEP) — the escalated enforcement track for chronically distressed residential buildings. Covers the flagging criteria, participation fees, mandatory repairs, and how landlords exit the program.

    HPD Alternative Enforcement Program: The Definition

    The Alternative Enforcement Program (AEP) is HPD's escalated enforcement track for the most chronically distressed residential buildings in the city. When ordinary violation enforcement — inspections, summonses, and Emergency Repair Program work — fails to bring a building into compliance, HPD flags it into AEP and takes over management of the compliance process.

    AEP is a serious escalation. Once in the program, the landlord faces mandatory fees, mandatory corrective work at HPD's direction, and public flagging. Buildings typically stay in AEP for 4 months minimum and often longer. Some never exit.

    Preventing AEP means resolving HPD violations before they accumulate. See our HPD Violation Removal service and the Emergency Repair Program guide for the compliance track that precedes AEP.

    How Buildings Get Flagged for AEP

    HPD publishes an annual AEP list of ~250 buildings each fiscal year. Buildings are selected based on quantitative measures of distress:

    • High violation counts — At least 5 open Class B and Class C violations per unit (or a similar per-unit density threshold) as of the AEP selection date.
    • Uncured immediately hazardous conditions — Open Class C conditions that HPD has repeatedly cited.
    • ERP charge history — Multiple Emergency Repair Program invocations at the same building.
    • Housing Court activity — HP proceedings, receiverships, or court-ordered repairs indicating chronic non-response.
    • Building distress indicators — Tax arrears, mortgage distress, or ownership uncertainty that suggests the underlying management can't or won't respond.

    What Happens After AEP Flagging

    1

    Formal Notification

    HPD sends the property owner a formal AEP participation notice, publishes the building on the annual AEP list, and posts placards visible to tenants and the public.

    2

    Mandatory Participation Fee

    The owner is billed a base fee (~$500 per unit or building minimum), payable to HPD as the cost of the program.

    3

    Comprehensive Inspection

    HPD conducts a full-building inspection identifying every open Class B and C condition — often uncovering violations that weren't previously cited.

    4

    Repair Plan & Timeline

    HPD works with the owner to develop a comprehensive repair plan with specific deadlines. Failure to meet the plan can trigger HPD-directed repairs at owner expense (ERP-style).

    5

    Exit or Escalation

    Buildings that cure the flagged conditions within ~4 months can be discharged from AEP. Buildings that don't remain flagged indefinitely and may be referred to further enforcement (receivership, third-party transfer, etc.).

    Exit Criteria — Getting Out of AEP

    To exit AEP, the building must meet all of the following:

    • Cure all Class C violations issued during the AEP participation period
    • Cure 80% of Class B violations issued during the participation period
    • File Certificates of Correction for all cured violations
    • Pay all outstanding AEP fees and ERP charges
    • Pass a final HPD inspection

    Meeting the criteria takes coordinated effort across contractors, filings, and inspections. Buildings that hit the deadlines exit AEP with a clean slate; those that miss face continued flagging and additional enforcement.

    Long-Term Consequences of AEP Flagging

    • Publicly visible AEP placards affect tenant leasing and community reputation
    • Buildings appear on HPD's published AEP list for the entire fiscal year
    • Lender concerns and increased due-diligence scrutiny on any sale or refinance
    • Escalation to receivership or Third-Party Transfer if AEP participation fails
    • Compounding costs — every violation cured under AEP oversight typically costs 2–3x market rate

    Building at risk of AEP — or already flagged?

    Preventing or exiting AEP requires coordinated violation removal across the entire portfolio. Our HPD Violation Removal service works with portfolio owners to cure violations efficiently before AEP is triggered. Contact BVS for a free consultation.