How to search NYC property records by address

1. Start with the address

Confirm the full street address, borough, and ZIP code. If the property contains apartments, condominium units, or multiple buildings, note the exact unit or building designation rather than assuming the street address identifies one tax lot.

New York City property systems often organize records by identifiers:

• BBL means borough, block, and lot. It identifies a tax parcel.
• BIN means Building Identification Number. It identifies a building in Department of Buildings systems.
• A condominium unit can have its own lot even though it shares a street address with the larger building.

2. Check ownership and assessment context

Begin with the NYC Finance Property Tax Public Access portal. It supports address and BBL searches and can display the tax class, market value, assessment notices, property-tax bills, and exemptions associated with the selected parcel.

Use this step to confirm that the borough, block, lot, address, and property type appear consistent. Treat the displayed ownership or mailing information as one source, not as a complete ownership or title conclusion.

What to save

• The exact BBL and address shown by the City.
• Tax class and property type.
• The assessment or notice date for any value you record.
• Links or document names for later verification.

3. Search ACRIS for deeds and mortgages

ACRIS provides online access to recorded property documents for Manhattan, Queens, the Bronx, and Brooklyn from 1966 to the present. Common records include deeds, mortgages, mortgage satisfactions, and assignments.

1. Open ACRIS and choose Find Addresses and Parcels if you still need to confirm the BBL.
2. Choose Search Property Records.
3. Use Parcel Identifier and enter the borough, block, and lot.
4. Review the result list by document type and recorded date.
5. Open the document image when available and compare it with the index fields.

4. Review permits and violations

NYC Department of Buildings guidance says to use both DOB NOW and the legacy Buildings Information System when researching filings and permits. Jobs filed in DOB NOW do not appear in BIS, so checking only one system can leave gaps.

For applicable residential buildings, HPD Online may provide complaints, violations, property-registration information, charges, litigation, block and lot information, and vacate orders.

Read status and dates carefully

A filed job, issued permit, open violation, closed violation, and completed work item are different facts. Save the status, agency, identifier, issue date, and most recent update date rather than recording only the existence of a result.

5. Verify what you found

Cross-check the BBL, BIN, owner or party names, document dates, and property address across sources. If the identifiers do not match, stop and resolve the parcel or unit mismatch before relying on the result.

• Compare the ACRIS parcel identifier with the Finance tax parcel.
• Compare deed party names with later deeds, not only with a current assessment page.
• Confirm whether a mortgage has a later satisfaction, assignment, consolidation, or modification.
• Confirm whether a permit or violation result is open, closed, issued, expired, or otherwise qualified.
• Retain the source URL, record identifier, and retrieval date.

6. Important limitations

Public records can be delayed, corrected, incomplete, indexed under a different party name, or associated with a unit or parcel that differs from the address you entered. ACRIS coverage begins in 1966 for its covered boroughs; older documents require other City Register research.

Reviewing public documents is not the same as a title search. Do not use this workflow as a substitute for a title company, attorney, architect, engineer, government confirmation, or other qualified professional when the decision requires one.