213 East 89th Street, Manhattan, NY 10128

213 East 89th Street is a 5-story, 15-unit residential building constructed in 1901, currently owned by Richard Kaplowitz. The Upper East Side property has experienced recurring maintenance challenges, most notably with rodent activity, with the most recent inspections in 2025 showing active rat presence, though some subsequent compliance checks have passed. The building has an open violation from June 2023 regarding missing safety equipment in apartment 5B, including smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, self-closing doors, and a locked fire escape door.

Prior emergency issues include heat and hot water problems in October 2023, and multiple infrastructure concerns were documented in 2022, including plumbing and water leak problems. The building has been cited for various code violations, including multiple instances in 2023 regarding doors preventing self-closing functionality, which affects fire safety, and a 2021 violation regarding deteriorating drainage infrastructure. The property has demonstrated some positive compliance outcomes, with no bedbug infestations reported in the past five years, and several housing maintenance code complaints being resolved without violations being issued.

Inspections have generally been promptly addressed, though access issues have sometimes hindered inspections, as seen in the 2023 heat/hot water complaint and the 2024 illegal conversion complaint. While the building has maintained some basic standards, the recurring nature of certain issues, particularly rodent problems and safety equipment deficiencies, suggests ongoing maintenance challenges. The presence of active environmental control board violations from 2021 related to drainage and unauthorized construction work indicates historical infrastructure concerns that may still impact resident comfort.