Which Westchester Municipalities Require an Updated CO or Inspection Before a Sale

Only four Westchester municipalities require an updated certificate of occupancy (CO) or a building department inspection because a property is being sold: the City of Peekskill and the Villages of Tarrytown, Sleepy Hollow and Dobbs Ferry. Five more require a sewer or plumbing certificate before a sale, which also means an inspection and sometimes repairs before closing. Most other codes we reviewed tie COs to construction and changes of use, not to a change of owner.

The rule depends on where the property sits, not on the county. Each city, town and village in Westchester writes its own code and runs its own building department. New York State has no law requiring a new CO when a house is sold. For what a CO is and how open permits get closed, see open permits and certificates of occupancy at a Westchester closing.

How we checked

We read each municipality’s code on eCode360 and its website. We looked at the rules on COs, building administration, housing standards and sewers, and searched for any requirement triggered by a sale or change of owner. Westchester has six cities, 19 towns and 20 villages. Mount Kisco, Scarsdale and Harrison are each a town and a village with the same borders.

As of October 31, 2026, we had reviewed 37 of the 45 municipalities and not checked 8. “None found” means we did not find a rule in the parts of the code we read as of October 2026. It does not mean the municipality has none. Codes change, and building departments sometimes follow practices that are not written down. Confirm with the building department before listing or closing.

Updated CO or inspection required on sale

Municipality Timing What the code requires
City of Peekskill 60 days Updated CO, including condo and co-op units. Issued 60 days or less before closing.
Village of Tarrytown 30 days Updated CO, including condos. Issued 30 days or less before closing.
Village of Sleepy Hollow 60 days Updated CO. One- and two-family homes are excluded. Issued 60 days or less before closing.
Village of Dobbs Ferry Before transfer Building department inspection of all residential property before the sale.

In Peekskill and Tarrytown, the seller must get the CO unless the contract says otherwise. Sleepy Hollow puts it on the seller with no contract exception. In all three, the buyer can’t use or move into the property without the updated CO. So the rule follows the property, not just the seller.

In Dobbs Ferry, the inspection fee covers a new CO. The code does not say how long that CO stays valid. Local real estate sources describing the 2012 program report that it is valid for 90 days (Bill Boeckelman, Dobbs Ferry CCO ordinance). Confirm the current window with the village before setting a closing date.

Sewer and drainage certificates required before a sale

These are not COs. They confirm that the house’s sewer line, drains and sump pump are not illegally connected to or leaking into the public sewer. Getting one still means a plumber’s inspection, often a camera video of the sewer line, and repairs if the line fails. On an older house, that can mean digging up the yard and a delayed closing.

Municipality When What the code requires
Village of Mamaroneck Before transfer Sewer compliance certificate.
Town of Mamaroneck (unincorporated) Before occupancy Sewer compliance certificate before the buyer uses the house. A certificate issued before the sale lapses after 60 days.
City of Rye Before transfer Sewer compliance certificate.
Village of Scarsdale On sale Sewer line compliance certificate, valid 5 years.
Village of Port Chester Before transfer Sump pump certificate, plus a sewer line certificate if the building dates from before 1984.

Details that change what a seller has to do:

  • Village of Mamaroneck. A transfer of title is a “renewal event,” meaning a new certificate is needed, except for certain transfers between family members. The Building Inspector may waive a new certificate if one was issued in the past 10 years and the property has not changed much. The inspector may also let the sale close with money deposited in a village trust account, if the owner agrees to finish the work within six months. The village’s compliance form lists a $150 fee and exempts co-op sales.
  • Town of Mamaroneck. This covers only the part of the town outside any village. The rule applies to sales after January 1, 2006. A certificate issued before closing expires 60 days after issue unless the sale closes first. Co-op and condo units that do not touch the ground are exempt.
  • City of Rye. Adopted in 2021. A transfer between family members that creates a joint tenancy or a tenancy in common (two common forms of shared ownership) is excluded. A certificate issued in the past five years can support a waiver.
  • Scarsdale. Enforcement began October 1, 2023, under a 2023 local law. Our source is the village’s program handout. We could not open the code itself, so the exemptions and exact section are unverified.
  • Port Chester. Every building needs a sump pump certificate (or a sworn statement that there is no sump pump) before any sale. Buildings built before January 1, 1984, also need a certificate for the sewer and storm drain lines. Fees and steps are in the village’s application package.

Selling in Mount Vernon or Peekskill with an open housing-code order

Mount Vernon and Peekskill both bar a sale while a housing code notice or order is open, unless the seller fixes the problem first or follows a disclosure process. Neither rule requires a CO.

  • City of Mount Vernon: fix it, or give the buyer a copy of the notice or order and notify the city’s Commissioner before the sale.
  • City of Peekskill: fix it, or give the buyer a copy and give the city written notice in advance naming the buyer.

In both cities the buyer takes the property subject to the order. Mount Vernon says the buyer “shall be bound by any notice or order.” Peekskill binds a buyer who knows about it. In Mount Vernon, a notice recorded in the land records also counts as notice to later buyers. So an open order found in the municipal search does not go away at closing. It becomes the buyer’s to resolve.

Peekskill also lets the buyer and seller jointly ask for a city inspection before closing. That inspection is optional.

Checked: no sale rule found in the code as of October 2026

Municipality What we found
City of Yonkers CO tied to new work and change of use (code)
City of New Rochelle Inspection tied to leasing, not sale (code)
City of Mount Vernon Vacancy inspection applies to re-rentals (code)
Village of Tuckahoe Code says no new CO for a residential change of owner (code)
Village of Scarsdale Sewer certificate above still applies (code)
Village of Mamaroneck Sewer certificate above still applies (code)
Town of Mamaroneck Sewer certificate above still applies (code)
Village of Port Chester Sewer and sump certificates above apply (code)
Village of Hastings-on-Hudson None found in code as of Oct 2026 (code)
Village of Irvington CO for an existing building only if the owner asks (code)
Village of Briarcliff Manor None found in code as of Oct 2026 (code)
Village of Ossining One section not reviewed (code)
Town/Village of Mount Kisco None found in code as of Oct 2026; see note below (code)
Town of Greenburgh Zoning rules only reviewed (code)
Town of Yorktown Zoning rules only reviewed (code)
Village of Pelham Zoning rules only reviewed (code)
Village of Bronxville Zoning rules only reviewed (code)
Town of Rye No building department; village rules apply (town page)
Town of Pelham No land use authority; village rules apply (County Databook)
Village of Larchmont Only section titles of the sewer rules seen (code, code)
Town/Village of Harrison CO tied to permits and change of use (code, code)
Village of Ardsley Sewer rules not reviewed (code, code)
Village of Croton-on-Hudson Rental certificate can pass to the buyer; see note below (code, code)
Town of Bedford CO tied to permits and change of use (code)
Town of Cortlandt Closing out permits from before 1980 is optional (code)
Town of Eastchester Zoning law only reviewed (zoning law)
Town of Mount Pleasant None found in code as of Oct 2026 (code, code)
Town of New Castle Septic inspection every 5 years, not on sale (code, code)
Town of North Castle Sewer rules not reviewed (code, code)
Town of North Salem None found in code as of Oct 2026 (code)
Town of Ossining None found in code as of Oct 2026 (code, code)
Town of Pound Ridge None found in code as of Oct 2026 (code, code)

Several of these reviews cover only one part of the code, so a rule could sit elsewhere. The chapters we read are listed under Official sources.

Mount Kisco and the Village of Mamaroneck. A Westchester real estate attorney’s newsletter says both require inspections before home sales (Law Office of Susan Freedman, undated). We found no CO-on-sale rule in either code. Mamaroneck’s sewer certificate may be what the newsletter means, and Mount Kisco’s could be a practice rather than a written rule. Both are worth a phone call. The Village of Mamaroneck Building Department also writes letters stating whether a property has COs, building permits or violations, which it says are generally needed for a sale or refinance. That is a records letter, not an inspection.

Towns of Rye and Pelham. These towns have no land outside their villages and do not regulate land use. A property there falls under its village’s code (Port Chester, Rye Brook or Mamaroneck; Pelham or Pelham Manor).

Elmsford two-family houses. In the Village of Elmsford, a special permit for a two-family house in the R-2 zone ends when the house is sold. The new owner or contract buyer must get a new one (Elmsford zoning code). That is a zoning permit, not a CO, but Elmsford two-family buyers should plan for it.

Croton-on-Hudson rentals. A 2025 rental housing law requires a rental unit certificate, issued after a village inspection. The certificate can pass to a buyer, who must apply within 30 days of the sale, and the unit must still meet the housing code (Croton rental housing law). Owner-occupied properties with two or fewer units are exempt unless used as short-term rentals. This is a rental registration rule, not a CO.

New Rochelle sewers. New Rochelle has no separate sewer chapter. Its plumbing and drainage rules tie inspections and approvals to plumbing work, not to a sale.

Not checked

We did not finish a code review for these 8 municipalities: the City of White Plains; the Villages of Buchanan, Elmsford (building code), Pelham Manor, Pleasantville and Rye Brook; and the Towns of Lewisboro and Somers. For some, we read part of the code or the building department’s website, but not the parts that would settle the question:

  • Rye Brook: its building rules tie a CO or certificate of compliance to permit work and changes of use (building code). We could not open its separate CO chapter or its sewer chapter.
  • Pelham Manor: its building code has a section titled “Old house sewers.” We could not open the text.
  • Somers: two chapters we read have no sale rule. We could not open the main CO section.
  • White Plains: the city issues an “updated and substitute” CO for an existing building on request. Its CO FAQ does not tie that to a sale (City of White Plains CO FAQ). We could not open its code.

Because several Sound Shore municipalities require a sewer certificate on sale, the Pelham Manor and Rye Brook building departments are worth asking about one in particular. Many towns contain villages with their own codes, so if the property is inside a village, check the village first.

Using this list

  • Sellers and listing agents: find the property’s municipality from the tax bill or the municipal search, not the mailing address. If it is in either requirement table, order the inspection or plumber’s certificate as soon as the house is under contract. In Peekskill, Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow, time the CO so it is issued inside the 30- or 60-day window.
  • Buyers’ attorneys: check that the contract says who pays for any required certificate and the repairs it may lead to, and ask for the certificate at or before closing. Where the code allows an escrow (Village of Mamaroneck), put the amount and release terms in writing.
  • Everyone: call the building department to confirm current rules and fees. A municipality not on these lists may still have a rule we did not find.

Required certificates and municipal search results are informational. Title insurance does not cover them, as explained in the open permits guide. For who handles each step, see who does what at a New York closing. For how municipal searches appear on the closing statement, see the title bill explained.

Official sources

Requirements found:

Codes reviewed with no sale rule found:

Not checked (partial reads):

  • Village of Rye Brook, Ch. 91, § 91-9 (Ch. 100 Certificates of Occupancy and Ch. 216 sewers not opened)
  • Village of Pelham Manor, Ch. 74, § 74-30 “Old house sewers” (text not opened)
  • Town of Somers, Ch. 80 and Ch. 140 (§ 74-7 not opened)
  • City of White Plains, CO FAQ

Other:

Related guides

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