How to Combine Apartments in New York City

Combining apartments in NYC is a common practice. It is a convenient way to enlarge your home without going through the headache of looking for something appropriate, then moving. However, before you buy, you'll want to check with your management company, read your alteration agreement, and speak to an architect. These three things will tell you whether it is feasible, what protocol you'll have to follow, and what you should expect.

In this post, we'll talk about what to expect and outline the basics of unit combos in New York City, we've not read through your alteration agreement or spoken with your management company so cannot advise on building protocol.

So, where to begin when combining apartments?

You'll have to hire a Registered Architect or Professional Engineer - let's get that out of the way now – since combinations require permitting with the NYC Department of Buildings. Beyond that, an architect will help you assess existing conditions, follow building protocol, generate plans, and assemble your team. Building protocol is often the most confusing compared to city procedures for our clients since each building and management company has its own set of guidelines and internal review processes. Because of this, we'll discuss Building and City basics:

Building Basics: will be those items specific to your building, such as:

Building Alteration Agreements; are the rules outlined in your condo or co-op board's contractual agreement should you decide to undertake a renovation. When renovating, you'll agree with your co-op board, or the condo board is known as an Alteration Agreement. These Alteration Agreements will outline specific requirements that must be abided by before, during, and after any renovation.
Building Management Companies; are businesses hired to maintain and manage the building in which you live, be it co-op or condo. Each company has its own set of operating procedures and protocols that must occur during the execution of any Alteration Agreement as part of its building management due diligence. As part of this, building management will often hire a "building architect" or "building engineer" to review any Alteration Agreement before permitting with the city is allowed as an additional layer of security and accountability.

City Basics: are the items regulated by the city like:

Certificate of Occupancies: Commonly called C.O.'s or C. of O.'s are a document issued by the Department of Buildings stating the approved occupancy of a building. A Certificate of Occupancy will include the number of floors, user-group of each floor, quantity of those use groups, and when relevant occupancy maximum of sed floors. For example, a C.O. might list a restaurant space (assembly space) and how many people can occupy that space or residential construction, the number of units per floor within a building.
Alteration Type-1's: Are applications filed with the NYC Department of Buildings that require a new or updated Certificate of Occupancy due to a change of use, egress, or occupancy of a space.
Alteration Type-2's: Are applications filed with the N.C. Department of Buildings that do not require a new Certificate of Occupancy and are not changing the use, egress, or occupancy of a space.
- Department of Buildings Policy TPPN #3/97 outlines the requirements for apartment combinations in NYC without obtaining a new Certificate of Occupancy. TPPN #3/97 is beneficial to note when merging units as an Alteration Type-1 will only add to your project's complexity.
Architect of Engineer of Record: A licensed professional, permitted by the state, to practice architecture or engineering to maintain and protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public as it applies to the built environment.

An Alteration Type-2 under TPPN #3/97 regulations states that:

An Architect must file an Alteration Type-2 with NYC DOB
Apartments must be adjacent or connected vertically on only two floors
There can be no change in egress
Rooms must comply with light an air requirements
There can be only one kitchen
You MUST file with DOF for a new tax lot if you're in a condo.

How long should this take?

Given the amount of moving parts – building protocol, city regulations, feasibility, design, and construction – you should allow for a bit of wiggle room in your schedule and budget. If you're hoping it'll take four months, assume six, and if you're looking at a six-month renovation, allow for nine. Your contractor, architect, or engineer should tell you roughly how long the process will take EXCLUDING any building-specific protocol at the beginning of this process. Your building approvals, not city approvals, will be the wildcard in this process and have the most considerable effect on the project timeline; your team should be able to estimate the length of this phase after familiarizing themselves with your building. Building management companies also typically have a 'guide' which outlines their procedures.

What will this cost?

Combinations will typically run somewhere in the six-figure range if they’re horizontal combinations. Vertical combinations carry additional costs for permitting, special inspections, and structural engineering.

For budgeting purposes below we’ll discuss horizontal combination. Please understand these are starting numbers and can vary greatly. Cost is also discussed in greater detail in another of our posts called “How to Estimate Your Renovation Cost in NYC”

Architect: 10-18% of the total project budget.

This should include initial consultation for feasibility, field measurements, design iterations, local building authority approvals, periodic construction administration to ensure quality of work, and project close-out.

Building approvals: $1,500-$3,000+

Your building will charge a fee to review the alteration agreement and work proposed by the architect you’ve hired. Fees for this are typically paid upfront and can range from $1,500-$3,000+ depending on your building. These fees typically cover building deposit, shut-off fees, and professional review by the building architect or engineer.

Permitting:

Hire an expediter (typ. ~$2,500 per work type permitted) to assist with this process as you’ll need to meet various city and state requirements along with process the necessary paperwork associated with those requirements. Below are some typical permit types and costs:

Expediter: $2,500 per work type
Filing & Record Fees: $3-5,000
Alt2 Permit fee: ~1-2% of the project cost
Asbestos Inspection & ACP-5: $750

Construction: +/- $300 p/sf

Contractors and construction costs can vary greatly but a good starting point for the conversation is $300 p/sf for a good quality renovation cost. We’ve discussed costs more here if you’re interested in reading more about renovation costs in NYC.

Contingency: 15-20% of the project budget and timeframe.

Always allow for a contingency and some wiggle room in any construction project. Especially with renovations of existing structures and condos or co-ops where not all the details can be learned at the onset of the project. Within this contingency, you should also allow for carrying the cost of the property if you’re unable to live in the unit while it’s being renovated. Often with unit mergers, clients will rent temporary housing close-by instead of living in an active construction site.

TL/DR?

Assume the following:

You'll need to hire a professional and be filing for an Alteration Type-2
- Estimate 20% of your budget to professional, building, and city fees.
- Perform a feasibility study before undertaking the renovation to ensure you'll get your money's worth. This feasibility study should explore layout, ensuring you'll meet all your needs, financing, to estimate construction cost and resale value to compare the market value of a combined unit vs. two separate units.
The process will take 20% longer and be 20% more expensive than you expect.
- You may also need to temporarily relocate during the process, depending on the scale of your renovation.
- Even if it doesn't take or cost 20% more than what you expect to treat that amount as your contingency plan.
Your building-specific protocol and approval process will be the frustrating and challenging part of the process, be patient and trust in the team you have hired.

Please recognize that this is a summary of the overall process, which is relatively easy from an architectural and city perspective but complicated by the specific building protocol and procedures where you live. As an architect practicing in NYC, I cannot express the importance of hiring a professional FIRST to review your building agreement and determine whether or not the project is feasible, what protocol you'll have to follow, and provide valuable insight during the early stages of the process. Unfortunately, we've encountered individuals who went through the purchase process only to discover later their building didn't allow for unit mergers and that they were unable to afford the financial undertaking of a unit combination. Every project should be assessed and will have its unique characteristics. This post does not cover all possible conditions, issues, or outcomes; it is merely an attempt to provide a general overview of the topic.

For additional resources, we typically share the following which our clients for independent research and encourage you to do the same if you're thinking of pursuing a project:

Please also feel free to reach out to us at wake@wake-dd.com if you've any specific questions, we're always happy to help.

Residential, blogNathan MinettOctober 1, 2020