Paying the fine does not close the violation

This is the most common misunderstanding: the money is paid, but the matter is not finished.

Until the Department of Buildings accepts a Certificate of Correction (COC), the violation stays open on the building's public record. A COC is an affidavit stating that the condition was lawfully corrected.

Paying the penalty and correcting the condition are two independent acts, and only the second one closes the record.

Citywide, 189,799 ECB violations are open with a balance of $0, across 81,122 buildings (data as of 2026-08-13, from NYC Open Data).

In other words, the owners of more than eighty thousand buildings may well believe they are finished.

Open violations can hold up a sale or a refinance, and while a violation is active the Department of Buildings may withhold a Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) or a Letter of Completion.

Many owners first discover a decade-old summons still on the record when they sell or refinance.

It is now filed through DOB NOW: Safety. The AEU2, AEU20 and AEU3321 forms are no longer required — the information is entered directly into the request.

Many Chinese-language guides circulating online still tell owners to fill in the AEU2 — that is out of date. Even OATH's own February 2026 handout still lists those forms, but the Department of Buildings' page says they are no longer needed; go by the Department of Buildings.

The Certificate of Correction is an affidavit and may be signed by the person named on the violation, a partner of that person in a partnership, or an officer, director or managing agent of the respondent corporation.

Enter an address to see the open records on that building, including those that already show a $0 balance but are still open. Free, no sign-up: check building violations.