NYC Window Guard Violations: Counts, Trends and Hot Spots
HPD issued 6,387 window guard violations in 2025, about half the 2019 level. See the trend since 2016, the borough split, order numbers and the top ZIP codes.
Updated October 12, 2026 · Data: NYC HPD via NYC Open Data
HPD inspectors wrote 6,387 window guard violations in 2025, at 4,179 different buildings. That is about half the 12,922 written in 2019 and 16.6% fewer than in 2024. Brooklyn had the most in 2025, followed closely by the Bronx, and 19.0% of the 2025 violations were still open on HPD's record when we pulled the data.
Roofy data
Window guard violations in NYC, 2025
Violations HPD issued after inspections dated January 1 to December 31, 2025
What a window guard violation is
Under the city's window guard rules, an owner must install approved guards in an apartment where a child 10 or younger lives, and in every common-area window of those buildings. Any tenant can also ask for guards in writing, and the owner must install them. Windows that open onto a fire escape are exempt, and HPD says the law does not allow tenants to remove guards to install an air conditioner. Owners of buildings with three or more apartments must send tenants an annual notice asking whether guards are needed. (Source: HPD Window Guards.)
When an inspector finds a missing or defective guard, HPD writes a violation. In the 2025 data, every order 790 and 791 violation was Class C, the "immediately hazardous" class. Read more in our tenant guide to the window guard law or, if you own a building, the landlord rules.
The trend: down by about half since 2019
From 2016 to 2019 HPD wrote roughly 12,000 to 13,000 window guard violations a year. The count fell to 8,083 in 2020, the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, and has not returned to the earlier level. It ranged between about 7,000 and 9,200 from 2021 to 2024, and 2025 was the lowest year in the series.
Source: NYC HPD, Housing Maintenance Code Violations (wvxf-dwi5) · data as of 2026-10-12
The data can't tell us why the count dropped. Fewer violations could mean more buildings have guards in place, fewer inspections, fewer complaints, or a change in how inspectors record conditions. Treat the line as a measure of enforcement activity, not a direct count of unguarded windows.
Where: Brooklyn and the Bronx account for most violations
In 2025 Brooklyn had 2,349 window guard violations and the Bronx had 2,013. Together that is 68.3% of the citywide total. The Bronx used to lead by a wide margin: in 2016 it had 5,660, against 3,758 in Brooklyn. The Bronx count has fallen by about two-thirds since then, while Brooklyn's has fallen by a little more than a third. Staten Island, with far fewer apartment buildings, had 89.
Source: NYC HPD, Housing Maintenance Code Violations (wvxf-dwi5) · data as of 2026-10-12
Source: NYC HPD, Housing Maintenance Code Violations (wvxf-dwi5) · data as of 2026-10-12
Top ZIP codes in 2025
ZIP 11226 in Brooklyn stood out with 365 violations, well ahead of the next ZIP, 10458 in the Bronx, with 211. Eight of the top 15 ZIPs are in the Bronx, five in Brooklyn and two (10031 and 10032) in Manhattan. These are raw counts, so ZIPs with many large rental buildings will rank higher simply because they have more apartments.
- 11226 (Brooklyn)365
- 10458 (Bronx)211
- 10467 (Bronx)177
- 10456 (Bronx)170
- 10453 (Bronx)161
- 11230 (Brooklyn)157
- 10468 (Bronx)153
- 10457 (Bronx)149
- 10452 (Bronx)139
- 11212 (Brooklyn)138
- 11213 (Brooklyn)133
- 10031 (Manhattan)130
- 11225 (Brooklyn)130
- 10032 (Manhattan)123
- 10460 (Bronx)113
Source: NYC HPD, Housing Maintenance Code Violations (wvxf-dwi5) · data as of 2026-10-12
What the violations say
Almost all of them are one of two HPD orders. Order 790 (5,917 in 2025) covers missing or defective guards inside an apartment, and order 791 (393) covers guards in public areas such as hallway or stairwell windows. Another 77 violations mention window guards in a different context. Most are fire egress violations for a guard, bar or gate on a window to a fire escape that blocks the way out; a few cover a broken locking pin on a fire escape gate or guards stored in a hallway. We include them below so the totals match the raw text search.
| Order | What it requires | Class | Violations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 790 | Install missing or repair/replace defective window guard(s) in an apartment | C | 5,917 |
| 791 | Install missing or repair/replace defective window guard(s) in public areas | C | 393 |
| 510 | Nuisance: window guard installed at a fire escape window | C | 28 |
| 521 | Fire egress defective: remove bars or unlawful gates from a fire escape window, or use an approved gate | B | 15 |
| 510 | Nuisance: window guard installed at a fire escape window | B | 11 |
| 539 | Remove encumbrance obstructing egress from a fire escape (window guard) | B | 9 |
| 522 | Other order whose text mentions a window guard | B | 5 |
| 538 | Other order whose text mentions a window guard | B | 4 |
| 822 | Other order whose text mentions a window guard | B | 1 |
| 510 | Nuisance: window guard installed at a fire escape window | A | 1 |
| 810 | Other order whose text mentions a window guard | C | 1 |
| 821 | Other order whose text mentions a window guard | B | 1 |
| 501 | Other order whose text mentions a window guard | B | 1 |
| ZIP | Borough | Violations | Share of NYC |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11226 | Brooklyn | 365 | 5.7% |
| 10458 | Bronx | 211 | 3.3% |
| 10467 | Bronx | 177 | 2.8% |
| 10456 | Bronx | 170 | 2.7% |
| 10453 | Bronx | 161 | 2.5% |
| 11230 | Brooklyn | 157 | 2.5% |
| 10468 | Bronx | 153 | 2.4% |
| 10457 | Bronx | 149 | 2.3% |
| 10452 | Bronx | 139 | 2.2% |
| 11212 | Brooklyn | 138 | 2.2% |
| 11213 | Brooklyn | 133 | 2.1% |
| 10031 | Manhattan | 130 | 2.0% |
| 11225 | Brooklyn | 130 | 2.0% |
| 10032 | Manhattan | 123 | 1.9% |
| 10460 | Bronx | 113 | 1.8% |
How many are still open
"Open" means HPD's record does not yet show the violation as closed. A closed violation usually means the owner certified the repair or an inspector confirmed it, but an open one does not always mean the guard is still missing: the owner may have fixed it and not filed the paperwork. See HPD violation status codes for what each status means.
Limits of this data
- We matched violations whose description contains the words "window guard". A violation written with different wording would be missed.
- Counts are violations, not windows or apartments. One violation can cover several guards, and one apartment can get more than one violation.
- The data shows what inspectors found and recorded. It does not show how many apartments with young children lack guards.
- Years are based on the inspection date. Status is a snapshot from 2026-10-12 and will change.
All counts come from SoQL queries against wvxf-dwi5 run on 2026-10-12 (query URLs saved in src/data/reports/nyc-window-guard-violations.json). Independent fact-check on 2026-10-12 re-ran all seven count queries: every figure (by year, borough-year, 2025 borough, order/class, status, top 15 ZIPs, 4,179 buildings) matched exactly. Order labels checked against sample violation text for orders 790, 791, 510, 521, 522, 538, 539, 810, 821, 822 and 501. Rules (child 10 or younger, common-area windows, tenant request, fire escape exemption, no removal for air conditioners, annual notice for 3+ unit buildings) checked against the HPD Window Guards page. Violation status reflects the record on the query date.
Sources
- Housing Maintenance Code Violations (wvxf-dwi5) · NYC HPD via NYC Open Data (accessed October 12, 2026)
- Window Guards · NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development (accessed October 12, 2026)
General information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Rules change; confirm with the agency or a professional before you act.