Month: April 2025

General Contracting requirements

Registered General Contractor

Posted on | by sebastian

NYC contractors who want to work on ground-up construction of 1, 2, or 3 family homes need be a registered General contractor.

Contractors with only a tracking number for interior renovation cannot apply for permits. This requires a contractor to be a Registered General Contractor. To become a registered General Contractor in NYC, applicants must meet the following qualifications:

  • Be at least eighteen (18) years old.
  • Be able to read and write the English language.
  • Have good moral character and not adversely impact upon fitness to perform the duties and responsibilities of a GC.

The first step to take in order to be licensed as a registered contractor, you will need to fill out an LIC6:General Contractor Registration Form. This form must be typed, completed and notarized. Other required forms for NYC Registered Contractor registration are:
–LIC 50 or 51 form. This must be completed by applicants living outside of the 5 boroughs of NYC for authorization of Service of Process by Agent. Applicants may also fill out the LIC51 Voluntary Authorization for Service of Process by email even if they reside within the City of New York.

You will need to provide the Dept. Of Buildings with proof of insurance. Required insurances are:

  • General Liability
  • Workers’ Compensation
  • Disability Insurance
  • Notarized Supplemental Investigation Questionnaire
  • Notarized letter on company letterhead listing name, address, phone, SSN and percent of ownership for all corporate officers, partners and stakeholders
  • Original proof of Employer Identification Number (EIN) or Federal Tax Identification Number from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
  • The last three (3) consecutive business bank statements, showing an ending balance of $25,000. Or a notarized letter from your company’s bank confirming a balance of at least $25,000 for the past three (3) months. (Online print outs of bank statements must be stamped by the bank)

If you need assistance with your General Contractor registration, feel free to reach out to S & M Expediting.

Short Term Rentals

NYC Short-term Rentals

Posted on | by sebastian

For years, New York City issued violations and costly penalties to property owners who illegally rented out units for short-term rentals.

AirBnB unsuccessfully sued the city in order to operate without impunity. In September 2023, New York City’s Local Law 18, restricting short-term rentals went into effect. The local law requires hosts to register with the Mayor’s office of Special Enforcement (OSE), prevents listings for stays shorter than 30 days and requires hosts to be present during guest stays.

Under Local Law 18, property owners can place their units on a “do-not-register” list that would prevent tenants from illegally posting their apartments without permission. AIrBNB is required to verify that all of the information provided by its hosts in NYC is accurate otherwise they will be subject to fines.

Hosts must register their unit with OSE. The rentals are limited to primary residences. Only properties with a valid certificate of occupancy for residential use can register. For buildings built prior to 1938, when certificates of occupancy became a requirement, a Letter of No Objections or Letter of Verification will be accepted. The hosts, owners, or tenants cannot rent out an entire apartment or home for fewer than 30 days. This applies to all permanent residential buildings regardless of the number of units. Legal short-term rentals require that the host is living in the same unit or apartment as the guests.

Other requirements for compliance with Local Law 18:

  • Unit must have a legal listing
  • Host must file with OSE and be approved before listing can go live
  • the space the host is registering must be legally approved for residential use.
  • host can rent to not more than two guests.
  • the property must have a certificate of occupancy or letter of no objection.
  • The property must not have violations for the space to be registered
  • S & M Expediting can help with the registration process so that you avoid being issued violations with huge fines. Give us a call to find out if your property can register with OSE.