Lead Hazard Reduction and Healthy Homes Program - HPD

Housing Preservation & Development


Home Repair and Preservation Financing

Lead Hazard Reduction and Healthy Homes Program


Lead Hazard Reduction and Healthy Homes Program

The Lead Hazard Reduction and Healthy Homes - Primary Prevention Program (PPP) offers federally-funded grants for reduction of lead paint hazards to owners of eligible residential buildings constructed prior to 1960.

The primary purpose of the program is to assist owners in reducing lead paint hazards in order to prevent lead poisoning of occupants – especially children. Peeling or cracking lead paint is the most common cause of lead poisoning in young children, who can swallow lead dust that lands on window sills, floors, and toys. Lead poisoning can cause learning and behavioral problems in children.

Eligibility

Buildings constructed prior to 1960, including small homes and multifamily apartment buildings of any size, located in any of the five boroughs of New York City. The building must have lead-based paint that is not intact as determined by lead risk assessments performed by the program inspectors. The building or home must be occupied by households with low- and very low-income levels, and at least one or more unit must house a child less than six years of age or a pregnant woman, or be visited by young children on a regular basis. Applications to the program are prioritized based on best fit with the program’s eligibility criteria; buildings with more units housing children under age six, and indication that most tenants are low / very low-income are assigned higher priority.

Process

Once an application passes an eligibility screening, HPD tests the property for lead paint hazards. Based on inspection results, a scope of work for lead hazard reduction is developed. A typical scope includes a mixture of abatement (removal and replacement of lead-positive components such as doors, door frames, window frames, window sills and baseboards) and “interim control” treatment such as wet-scraping and painting of walls. The common areas from lobby to bulkhead and external fire escapes are also treated if necessary. The work will be done by licensed, EPA-certified lead abatement contractors, and HPD will oversee the work.

Grants average approximately $20,000 per apartment, but can be more or less depending on need. In exchange for this assistance, owners of rental buildings must agree, for five years following the lead treatment work (the regulatory period), to rent any new vacancies to low- and very low-income tenants, giving priority to families with young children. Owner-occupants must agree to continue to reside in the home for the five-year regulatory period.

For more information on the loan terms, see the Lead Hazard Reduction and Healthy Homes term sheet.

How to apply?

Complete the following application materials and submit to hpdlead@hpd.nyc.gov:

Multifamily Preservation Finance Programs Loan Application

Rent Roll

Please also provide your most recent annual lead notice / investigation records. Send the annual notice form that you used, along with tenant responses that you received, along with whatever records you have of your efforts to ascertain “child under 6” status, if the tenant did not respond.

Our team will be in touch to further discuss the program and guide you through the application process.

Learn more about Lead-Based Paint and responsibilities and obligations under Local Law 1 of 2004 (lead-based paint laws and rules)

Contact us

hpdlead@hpd.nyc.gov
Sarah Hovde, Director, Primary Prevention Program
212-863-8860