No roof hatch in 2-family house in Bushwick legal?

We are about to purchase a 2-family house in Bushwick. It is a newly renovated 100 year old building. We couldn’t find access to the roof during home inspection. The inspector said many developers seal the hatches, which seems foolish since it makes access to the roof so much more difficult. Does anybody know what code says? Is it legal to seal it off, or does a building has to have access to the roof?

michaelsaur67

in About Brooklyn 10 years ago

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arch111 | 10 years ago

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in the code it’s called a scuttle, not req’d under the 68 code for 2 fam. but it was for all bldgs over 15′ high under the 38 code. large apt bldgs require a stair. http://nyc-dob.com

no-permits | 10 years ago

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a roof hatch isn’t required by the way. nor is a fire escape, to my understanding, on a two family.

no-permits | 10 years ago

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@michael, it’s a sellers market. if you like the place, i wouldn’t make a “demand” or you could kiss the deal goodbye.

michaelsaur67 | 10 years ago

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Thank you very much, Bob Marvin and SoSlope. It seems like we best demand that the developer reinstalls hatch, otherwise no deal.

SoSlope | 10 years ago

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I completely agree with Bob Marvin. Not having a hatch on the roof would be a major pain. I certainly don’t go up on the roof every day, but if I could not clean out the leaves it would be a real problem.

BobMarvin | 10 years ago

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Perhaps it’s legal; peaked roof houses don’t have a roof hatch. However, it’s a really dumb thing to do and should be taken as evidence that the “developer” (or, more appropriately, re-muddler) didn’t give a sh*t, so caveat emptor. If you do buy such a house I’d suggest having a hatch installed. Cleaning leaves out of the gutter, among other things, should’t be a major operation.