509 Howard Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11233

The three-story, three-unit residential building at 509 Howard Avenue in Crown Heights, owned by Jennifer Lau, has experienced several maintenance issues in 2025, with three separate incidents reported in March-April 2025 involving heating/hot water systems, plumbing (specifically a basin/sink), and refrigerator problems.

Each of these complaints was investigated by the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) or through the Housing Maintenance Code process, but in all cases, the conditions observed did not violate the housing laws enforced by these agencies, and the complaints were subsequently closed. Prior to these recent issues, the building had two complaints regarding a daycare facility in 2021, both investigated by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH), though the specific nature and outcome of these investigations are less clearly documented in the available data.

The building, constructed in 1992, has maintained its Class A designation throughout its history, and despite the recent maintenance issues, the responses from city agencies indicate that none of the reported problems constituted a legal violation under the applicable housing codes. The recent cluster of maintenance issues - occurring over the first half of 2025 - represents the most significant pattern of complaints on record for this relatively young building.