163 Hester Street, Manhattan, NY 10013

The four-story, three-unit tenement building at 163 Hester Street in Chinatown, owned by Simon Chu, has a documented history of bedbug report compliance issues over the past four years, with Housing Maintenance Code violations issued in 2021, 2022, 2023, and most recently in April 2024, all related to the failure to file the required annual bedbug reports with the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD).

While these violations represent ongoing regulatory non-compliance, it's noteworthy that the building has maintained good rodent control, passing all rodent inspections conducted between 2016 and 2024, including the most recent inspection in August 2024. Additionally, there was one Department of Buildings complaint in November 2023 regarding work conducted without a permit in an occupied multiple dwelling, though this complaint was referred to the Department of Consumer Affairs and marked as closed within one day of inspection.

While the building's rodent inspection record is exemplary, the recurring bedbug report violations suggest potential ongoing challenges with meeting certain housing maintenance requirements, though these violations themselves do not necessarily indicate active pest issues. The relatively recent work without permit complaint from 2023, which was promptly addressed, represents the only other notable incident in recent history.