Certificate of Occupancy and Open Permits on Long Island: Town-by-Town Rules for a Sale

Most Long Island towns don’t require a new certificate of occupancy (CO) or an inspection just because a house is sold. The main exception is the Town of East Hampton. Since January 1, 2024, its code requires an updated CO when ownership changes, but the town has paused enforcement through December 31, 2026. Several East End villages also require an updated CO before a sale.

Elsewhere, what usually forces the issue is a rental or accessory apartment permit that ends or must be re-registered when the house sells. The contract, the buyer’s lender and the building department search can too.

This guide covers the three Nassau towns, the cities of Glen Cove and Long Beach, and the ten Suffolk towns. It doesn’t cover Brooklyn or Queens, which fall under the New York City Department of Buildings; see open permits and a NYC sale.

Who keeps the CO file

The state building code is enforced locally by each city, each village, and each town outside its villages (state law). On Long Island that means 15 town and city building departments, plus the villages, which run their own. There is no county building department and no countywide permit database.

A house in a hamlet such as Hicksville or Commack is in the town’s file. A house in a village is in the village’s file. Long Island towns, villages and cities explained shows how to tell which applies.

Under the state’s building rules, permitted work must pass a final inspection. The work may be occupied only once the building department issues a CO or a certificate of compliance (the two kinds of final sign-off) after that inspection (state rules). An open permit is one that never got that sign-off, including one that expired first.

In Suffolk, the county Department of Health Services also approves sanitary systems. In parts of Southampton, a missing health department approval can hold up the town CO. See cesspools and septic systems on Long Island.

Older houses with no CO

Many Long Island houses were built before the town required COs, so there is no original CO to find. Towns handle this with a certificate or letter confirming the existing use. If you’ve heard of a “letter in lieu” of a CO, this is usually what’s meant. Names and cutoff dates differ:

  • Town of Riverhead issues a Letter of Pre-Existing Use for buildings built before 1965. The application asks for two surveys, floor plan sketches, dated proof of pre-1965 construction, and an inspection of the whole property. It also needs an electrical permit, unless all wiring predates 1965 or was permitted. The fee is $600; a duplicate CO is $300 (Riverhead application).
  • Town of North Hempstead issues a Certificate of Existing Use for older buildings, with an inspection and the owner’s statement of when it was built (North Hempstead form). The form gives two different cutoff years, so confirm the date with the town.
  • City of Glen Cove must issue a certificate for an existing building if the owner asks in writing and the building and its use meet the zoning rules (Glen Cove code). The application is on its Building Department page.

An existing-use certificate covers only what was there before the cutoff. A later addition, dormer, pool or basement apartment needs its own permit and CO.

Town and city rules at a glance

“None found” means no sale-triggered CO rule turned up in the town code and town pages reviewed as of October 31, 2026. It doesn’t mean none exists. “Not verified” means the code or town page couldn’t be read.

  • Town of Hempstead: Issuer: Town Building Dept. Sale trigger: Rental permit; new owner registers in 30 days. How to check: Building Dept; FOIL. Source: Town code.
  • Town of North Hempstead: Issuer: Building Safety, Inspection & Enforcement. Sale trigger: None found; town issues rental permits. How to check: Online records request. Source: Town FOIL page.
  • Town of Oyster Bay: Issuer: Planning & Development, Building Div. Sale trigger: None found; rental rules not verified. How to check: FOIL to Town Clerk. Source: Town FOIL page.
  • City of Glen Cove: Issuer: City Building Dept. Sale trigger: None found in the city’s certificate rules. How to check: Building Dept. Source: City code.
  • City of Long Beach: Issuer: City Building Dept. Sale trigger: None found on city page. How to check: Building Dept. Source: City page.
  • Town of Babylon: Issuer: Building Division. Sale trigger: Rental permit; none on sale found. How to check: Written request in person. Source: Town code.
  • Town of Brookhaven: Issuer: Division of Building. Sale trigger: Rental license; none on sale found. How to check: Property Record Search. Source: Search form.
  • Town of East Hampton: Issuer: Building Inspector. Sale trigger: Updated CO on ownership change. How to check: Updated CO request. Source: Code amendment.
  • Town of Huntington: Issuer: Engineering Services. Sale trigger: Accessory apartment permit ends; new owner has 90 days. How to check: FOIL to Engineering Services. Source: Town code.
  • Town of Islip: Issuer: Building Division. Sale trigger: Accessory apartment permit ends. How to check: Ask Building Division. Source: Accessory apt. rules.
  • Town of Riverhead: Issuer: Building Dept. Sale trigger: None found. How to check: Duplicate CO request. Source: Application.
  • Town of Shelter Island: Issuer: Building Dept. Sale trigger: Rental registration; none on sale found. How to check: CO request and walk-through. Source: CO request.
  • Town of Smithtown: Issuer: Building Dept. Sale trigger: None found on town pages. How to check: FOIL form to Building Dept. Source: Building Dept.
  • Town of Southampton: Issuer: Building & Zoning. Sale trigger: None (declined 2017); rental permit. How to check: Online permit lookup; FOIL. Source: Forms page.
  • Town of Southold: Issuer: Building Dept. Sale trigger: None found; town has rental permits. How to check: Ask Building Dept. Source: Town Code.

FOIL is a Freedom of Information Law request, the standard way to ask a government office for copies of its records.

Where a sale does trigger a requirement

Town of East Hampton: updated CO, enforcement paused

East Hampton changed its code in 2023: “Upon any change in ownership of a property, an updated certificate of occupancy shall be obtained.” The rule took effect January 1, 2024 (Town of East Hampton code amendment). Two exceptions:

  • An updated CO obtained no more than six months before the sale counts.
  • Transfers made only for estate planning, to a trust, LLC or similar entity where the real owners stay the same, are exempt.

On March 10, 2026, the Town Board paused enforcement, back to January 1, 2024 and through December 31, 2026. During the pause, an owner who couldn’t get an updated CO won’t be charged with a violation for that alone. Other violations can still be cited. The building department keeps processing applications. The rule returns when the pause ends unless the board acts again (Town of East Hampton notice).

The request form asks for two sealed surveys, renewal of open building permits, an electrical certificate if required, a smoke detector affidavit, an inspection and a $600 fee (East Hampton updated CO form).

The code doesn’t say whether buyer or seller must get it. A Long Island real estate attorney noted that gap in 2024 and said an updated CO takes four to six weeks (New York Real Estate Journal, Feb. 13, 2024). Common obstacles listed were:

  • Unpermitted accessory apartments and additions
  • Too much land clearing
  • Finished basements
  • Too many bedrooms
  • Pool fence or alarm problems

Villages with sale rules

Villages write their own codes, and several on the East End require an updated CO before a sale. The Village of Westhampton Beach says “any transfer of title requires an Updated Certificate of Occupancy” (Westhampton Beach FAQ). A 2017 land use article listed Quogue, Sag Harbor, Southampton, North Haven, Westhampton Beach and East Hampton villages as requiring one (Long Island Land Use and Zoning, May 1, 2017). Check each village’s current code.

This guide did not survey Nassau’s 64 villages or the other Suffolk villages. For a village property, ask the village building department directly.

Rental and accessory apartment permits

These permits don’t require a CO for the sale itself. But they are tied to the owner, so a sale ends or resets them:

  • Town of Hempstead. Renting out a home or apartment requires a two-year rental permit, and the application must include the CO or certificate of compliance. The permit can’t be transferred: “the new owner shall register the property within 30 days of the closing of title.” If the new owner doesn’t register, the town assumes the property is being rented in violation of its rules (Town Code; Town of Hempstead rental permit page).
  • Town of Huntington. An accessory apartment permit ends when the house is sold, unless the new owner applies to transfer it “within ninety (90) days of the closing of title.” The transfer needs approval from the Director of Public Safety, an inspection of the whole house and a $250 fee (Town Code).
  • Town of Islip. An accessory apartment permit ends when the house is sold and must be renewed every three years. A new owner applies to the Zoning Board of Appeals for a transfer, with no public hearing needed (Islip accessory apartment rules). Islip’s Code Enforcement Division separately issues rental permits for one- and two-family homes (Town of Islip).
  • Towns of Babylon, Brookhaven and Southampton. Each requires a rental permit or license, and each application requires the CO or certificate of compliance (Babylon code; Brookhaven application; Southampton application). Babylon’s permit lasts two years and needs an on-site inspection first, unless an engineer or architect certifies the unit. Southampton asks an owner who just closed for a certified deed or Form RP-5217 (the state’s property sale report).

If you are buying and plan to keep renting, getting a new permit becomes your job. An apartment with no CO must be legalized first.

Towns that considered a rule and said no

The Town of Southampton held hearings on requiring an updated CO at every sale and decided in 2017 not to adopt it (Long Island Land Use and Zoning). A similar Riverhead proposal was withdrawn before a hearing (Riverhead News-Review).

How to get the building file

The title company orders municipal searches. These report what the building department has on file: COs, open and expired permits, and violations. The searches are for information only and aren’t covered by title insurance; open permits at a Westchester closing explains why. Owners and their attorneys can also get the file themselves:

  • Brookhaven: a Property Record Search returns COs, existing-use and zoning compliance certificates, rental licenses, surveys, and active and expired permits. A CO search is $40, a survey search $15, both $55 (form).
  • Babylon: ask in writing, in person, at the Building Division. A certified CO is $50 and an uncertified copy $25 (Babylon FAQ).
  • North Hempstead: all building records requests go through the town’s online portal (North Hempstead FOIL).
  • Oyster Bay: FOIL requests go to the Town Clerk. There is no research charge, and copies are $0.25 a page (Oyster Bay FOIL).
  • Huntington: send a FOIL form to the Department of Engineering Services (Huntington 311).
  • Southampton: look up permits online through the town’s property and permit lookup.

The file shows only what was permitted or cited. A finished basement, deck or pool with no permit history shows up as nothing. Unpermitted work is usually spotted by comparing the CO description and the survey with the house as it stands. The survey exception guide covers what a survey can reveal.

How open permits and unpermitted work get fixed

The steps are the same everywhere; forms and fees differ:

  1. Renew or reopen the permit. East Hampton’s and Shelter Island’s CO request forms both require any open permit to be renewed before the inspection (East Hampton; Shelter Island).
  2. Gather the paperwork. Usually a current survey, an electrical certificate, and sketches of unpermitted work.
  3. Get the inspection. Shelter Island does the first walk-through free and charges $75 for each re-inspection. Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms and pool gates must work and meet current code at the inspection.
  4. Legalize what was never permitted. Unpermitted work needs its own permit application and inspection. Riverhead says work after 1965 without a CO may need building permits, and unpermitted work with no historical records may need a permit to legalize it. A deck, pool or addition that breaks the zoning setbacks (the minimum distances from property lines and similar boundaries) may also need a zoning variance, which is permission to depart from the zoning rules.

If the paperwork isn’t finished by closing

No state law stops a deed from being recorded over an open permit. Outside East Hampton and the villages with sale rules, whether an open permit must be closed first depends on the contract, the rider (added contract terms) and the lender.

In towns without a sale rule, attorneys usually deal with it in the rider. Often the seller must deliver an updated CO unless the house is sold as is (Long Island Land Use and Zoning, 2017). When the work can’t be finished in time, the parties sometimes close with part of the seller’s proceeds held in escrow until the CO issues. How these holdbacks work is covered in open permits and a NYC sale and who does what at a New York closing.

Official sources

Related guides

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