Orange County, NY Rental Property Rules: Repairs & Habitability (2026)

Sanitary Code Article III, Section 3 sets the minimum equipment every dwelling unit needs before an owner may occupy it or let it to a tenant. The kitchen must have adequate floor area plus a sink connected to a water system that provides heated and unheated running water under pressure, tied to a functioning public or individual sewerage system, with cleanable cabinets or shelving for food storage. A private, non-habitable room must hold a working flush toilet connected the same way, and another private room, which can be the same or a different room, must have a lavatory sink positioned close to the toilet, plus a bathtub or shower.

"Heated water" is separately defined in Section 1 as water delivered to the fixture at not less than 120 degrees Fahrenheit. The same section requires smoke alarms in the locations set by the Building Code and Fire Code of New York State, Chapter 9. Heat is covered a few sections later: where the owner furnishes it, Article III, Section 5 sets a floor of 68 degrees Fahrenheit in habitable rooms, bathrooms and toilet compartments between September 15 and May 31, measured three feet above the floor near the room's center, with a narrow exception for owner-occupied one-family homes and for days colder than the region's winter design temperature.

A tenant can bring any of these gaps to the Commissioner of Health's attention, and Article III, Section 6 authorizes inspectors to enter and confirm the conditions.