How to check an NYC certificate of occupancy before leasing space

Before leasing space in New York City, retrieve the occupancy record for the building and compare its stated use and covered floors with the space and operation you are considering. Record any mismatch for the owner's design professional to resolve before relying on an opening date. A listing description alone does not answer that question.

This guide covers NYC's public-record workflow. Other jurisdictions have different records and procedures. It helps you prepare a review; it does not determine whether a proposed operation is permitted.

Find the record in the right system

NYC's Department of Buildings says a certificate of occupancy, or CO, states a building's legal use or permitted occupancy. For CO requests made before March 1, 2021, its instructions direct you to the Building Information System (BIS). Requests made on or after that date use DOB NOW. Search the property address and inspect the certificate and its floor-use details. Save the actual document, its identifier, and your retrieval date. DOB certificate-of-occupancy guidance

If one search yields nothing, document the gap and check the other system and building identifiers before concluding there is no record. A search result is only useful if you can connect it to the space being offered.

Identify which document you have

A final CO has no expiration date, according to DOB. A temporary certificate of occupancy (TCO) is different: DOB may allow occupancy while some issues remain outstanding. TCOs typically expire after 90 days and may be renewed. Read the actual expiration date and covered space rather than assuming either a renewal or final approval. Ask the responsible professional about the path to a final CO. DOB TCO guidance

Older buildings need a separate check. DOB says buildings constructed before 1938 generally do not require a CO unless later alterations changed use, egress, or occupancy. A Letter of No Objection can provide evidence of legal use in qualifying circumstances. A Letter of Completion concerns project closeout and is not interchangeable with a CO. Start with the building history and ask the borough office or responsible professional which evidence applies. DOB letters of no objection and completion

Compare the proposed operation with the recorded space

Write down what the tenant actually plans to do. Include the floors or unit, customer access, equipment, and any construction being contemplated. “Retail” is often too broad a description for a useful question.

Then put the document's wording beside that description. Keep the wording intact. If you shorten it to a marketing label, the next reviewer loses the detail you were trying to verify.

Do not turn a mismatch into a guessed scope of work. Ask the design professional to identify the required review, unresolved approvals, and evidence that would support the proposed occupancy. DOB notes that changes to use, egress, or occupancy can require a current or amended CO. DOB CO requirements

Copy this occupancy-review worksheet

Use one record per candidate space. Leave unknown fields blank and assign someone to resolve them.

Property address and building identifier:
Space offered: floor / unit / boundaries
Proposed operation, in the tenant's words:

Record system searched: BIS / DOB NOW
Document type: CO / TCO / LNO / LOC / unresolved
Document ID and issue date:
Exact use wording for the relevant floor:
Floors or areas covered:
Expiration date, if applicable:
Document link or saved filename:
Retrieved on:

Difference between offered space and document:
Question requiring professional review:
Owner or professional responsible:
Evidence needed to resolve it:
Next review date:
Status: unresolved / response received / reviewed

The last status should describe your review process, not claim an agency approval. Attach the professional's response rather than replacing it with “all good.”

Worked example: an offered ground-floor space

This is a hypothetical example, not an actual property finding.

An offering describes a ground-floor unit as suitable for a cafe. The prospective tenant also wants to use part of the cellar. The retrieved record contains separate floor entries, and the team has not established that its scope matches both areas of the proposal.

The useful next step is a specific request: “Please reconcile the proposed cafe and cellar use with the attached occupancy document, and identify any approvals needed before occupancy.” Attach a marked plan showing the intended areas.

The acquisition memo can now state what is known, what remains open, and who is resolving it. It should not declare that the cafe is prohibited, assume construction costs, or treat an old tenant's operation as proof of the proposed use.

Keep the evidence with the site decision

Save the record, the proposed-use description, and the response together. If the tenant's plan changes, reopen the question instead of reusing a conclusion based on the earlier plan.

For the broader property review, use our desktop site-screening checklist. For location research around a retail search, see Pillar for retail site selection. Occupancy questions still need the relevant agency records and qualified review.