What Stalls NYC Closings: A Pre-Listing Checklist for Sellers and Agents

A short list of problems holds up most New York City closings on the title and city-records side:

A Department of Buildings (DOB) permit that was never signed off
A certificate of occupancy (CO) that doesn’t match the building
An old mortgage with no recorded proof it was paid off
A judgment or city charge against the seller
An estate that can’t sign yet

Most show up in public records before you list. Each can take weeks to fix, so it is cheapest to find them before the buyer’s attorney does.

This checklist covers the five boroughs. For Westchester, start with open permits and COs at a Westchester closing.

What is holding up deals right now

Old permits are drawing the most attention. On January 24, 2026, The Real Deal reported that unclosed DOB renovation permits, some filed by earlier owners, were holding up NYC home sales, often surfacing late through the title report. One agent said six of his pending deals over 18 months were affected. People interviewed pointed to pandemic-era construction stoppages, closer lender review, and DOB’s move to its newer records system, DOB NOW (The Real Deal). That is reporting, not citywide data. No public source counts how often each item below delays a closing.

Two kinds of problems, fixed differently

Title and money items are liens (money claims against the property) or recorded documents. They include open mortgages, judgments, unpaid taxes and water charges, and some city violation judgments that were converted into tax liens. The title company won’t insure over them, so they are paid or cleared by closing, usually from the seller’s proceeds.

Condition items include open permits, CO mismatches, and DOB and HPD violations. The title company reports them for information only. They don’t legally block a sale, but the contract, the buyer’s lender, or a co-op or condo board can make fixing them a condition of closing. See NYC property violations at closing.

The checklist

Check	Guide	Where
Owner of record, how title is held	ACRIS	ACRIS
Open mortgages	Old mortgages	ACRIS
Judgments, liens	Liens	County Clerk; ACRIS
Unfamiliar recent deeds	Deed theft	ACRIS
Estate authority, ET-117	Inherited property	Surrogate’s Court; Tax Dept.
Open permits	Open permits	BIS and DOB NOW
CO vs. actual use	No CO	BIS and DOB NOW
DOB and ECB violations	Violations	BIS; OATH
HPD violations	Violations	HPD Online
Taxes, repair charges, sold liens	Portal check	DOF account
Water and sewer	Portal check	DEP

Title and ownership

Who owns it, and how. The name on the last recorded deed must match whoever will sign the listing agreement and the contract. A deed to someone who has died, a former spouse, or a dissolved LLC changes who can sign. ACRIS, the city’s online land records, covers Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx from 1966 on. Staten Island records are at the Richmond County Clerk. See how to read ACRIS for title.

Open mortgages. Every recorded mortgage needs a matching satisfaction, the recorded proof it was paid off. If the loan was refinanced through a CEMA (a deal that combines the old and new loans to save tax), it needs a consolidation agreement instead. A paid loan with no recorded satisfaction stays on the title report until cleared, which can take months if the old lender is gone. See clearing an old or unsatisfied mortgage.

Judgments and liens against the seller. Money judgments, mechanic’s liens (claims by unpaid contractors) and state tax warrants are not in ACRIS. They are filed with the County Clerk. State tax warrants filed since July 1, 2025 are filed with the Department of State. Federal tax liens in the four ACRIS boroughs are in ACRIS. See the title search found a lien or judgment.

Documents the owner doesn’t recognize. A deed, mortgage or power of attorney the owner never signed is fraud that can freeze a sale. Check ACRIS for recent filings, and sign up for the city’s free recording alerts. See deed theft in NYC.

Inherited property. If the owner has died, a surviving joint owner, or an executor or administrator appointed by the court, must sign. The title company will also require New York’s estate tax lien release (Form ET-117), whatever the property is worth. The one exception: the person who died and a surviving spouse were the only joint tenants (co-owners whose share passes automatically to the survivor). The Tax Department says it takes three to four weeks to process a complete application, plus mailing time, and not to schedule the closing until the stamped release arrives. See selling inherited property and buying or selling from an estate.

Building records

Open permits. Search both DOB systems. The older one, BIS, holds permits and job applications from before DOB NOW launched. DOB NOW shows only filings made in it. A job not marked signed off is open, even if the work was never done. See open permits and a NYC sale.

Certificate of occupancy. Compare the latest CO, floor by floor, to the listing. A rented basement on a one-family CO, or a “three-family” on a two-family CO, is a legal-use problem that lenders and appraisers question. Many buildings from before 1938 never needed a CO. See no CO or a CO mismatch.

DOB violations and OATH/ECB summonses. OATH/ECB summonses are tickets decided by OATH, the city’s hearings office (older ones carry the ECB label). OATH/ECB violations and some DOB violations appear only in BIS. Check balances in OATH’s Summons Finder by address and by the seller’s exact name. An unpaid penalty becomes a judgment against the person cited. Paying it does not close the DOB violation.

HPD violations. For homes and apartment buildings, HPD Online shows violations, court cases and vacate orders. HPD violations are not liens, but a long list draws buyer and lender questions. Charges for emergency repairs HPD made, billed through the Department of Finance (DOF), can become tax liens.

City charges

Property taxes and DOF charges. The DOF property account shows unpaid taxes, emergency repair charges, and some violation judgments that were turned into tax charges. Also check ACRIS for a tax lien sale certificate; a sold tax lien is paid to its buyer, not DOF.

Water and sewer. Get the balance from the owner’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) account. The seller can request a property transfer meter reading at least 30 days before closing. It costs $25 and does not stop service (NYC 311). Without it, the closing figure is an estimate.

Paperwork to have ready

Property Condition Disclosure Statement. For a one-to-four family house, the seller must give the buyer this form before the buyer signs a binding contract (state disclosure law). Condo and co-op units are excluded. Certain transfers are exempt too, such as many estate and foreclosure sales (exemptions).
Contractor and expediter contacts for any open job, plus any sign-off paperwork.
Payoff contacts for every open mortgage, and proof of payment for any loan already paid off.
Co-op or condo requirements. Ask the managing agent early about open renovation (alteration) agreements and the board’s sale package.

When to run it

Run the checks before signing the listing agreement, and again when the contract is drafted. A problem found at listing becomes a disclosure, a price decision, or a fix started in time. The same problem found on the title report becomes a holdback negotiation or a delayed closing. For what typically remains in the final week, see open items days before closing.

None of these lookups replaces the title company’s searches or is insured. For how the attorneys, title company and lender split the work, see who does what at a New York closing.

Official sources

Korvane Title is preparing to launch in New York. It is not licensed as a title insurance agent and does not accept title orders. Content on this site is general information, not legal advice.