eaned (the super does not mop floors or bring out garbage regularly. our level's floor has been mopped three times in three years. garbage piles up in the basement for several weeks.)
- water leaks and damage (cracks in the walls, chunks of the ceiling falling)
- shoddy repairs (new grout comes up immediately, splinters and holes in the floors)

ue to bedbugs. We have been here for a year now, and while we are not infested, we do find them a few at a time every few weeks. Many apartments in the building are infested and so it is inevitable that they will find their way into your place. Besides bedbugs, we have also had a mice problem and there is a major issue with heat and hot water in the building. Last week, 311 sent a representative to inspect 5 apartments. Rent is always raised, ours in less than a year. The super is not helpful, the building is not maintained and the landlord is just plain rude. This is a problem building and I would not advise anyone to move here.

Info on the bedbug disclosure law:
http://newyorkvsbedbugs.org/bed-bugs-in-new-york-city/#bed-bug-disclosure-law-forms

ONE NUMBER OF THE MANAGEMENT COMPANY AND THE LANDLORD? I MUST REACH HIM/THEM AND THEY PURPOSELY DO NOT LIST INFO ANYWHERE ONLINE OR PHONEBOOK.

THANK YOU, GOOD LUCK W/THE FIGHT

everything we own! How the mgt. company gets away with this is beyond me.

is how they travel.

2. Invest in a $40 Shark floor steamer, the steam kills bedbugs and their eggs on direct contact. So, it can potentially wipe out a problem before you notice it.

3. Use Murphy's Oil on your floor and behind your headboard on a biweekly basis: The bedbug expert at the Natural History Museum has said that direct contact will kill bedbugs although the smell is not toxic to humans

I know that the above sounds like a lot of work if you just moved in. However, as someone who had bedbugs recently, I can swear to you that the real thing is significantly worse and cost us between $2,000-$3,000 between dry cleaner bills, missing work, and paying for hotels.

r the management company but don't seem to be having much luck. Can someone post the number and give us some advice?

r boards etc is caulked.

4.The box spring was not sprayed outside in the sun as is required

The above issues lead to: The bedbugs not being fully exterminated. We did a check 24 hours later as recommended by the experts (although not Desmond)--and we found one alive and well. We stopped the search there, although I am sure that there are plenty more.

The exterminator is returning today--and we expect him to remedy the above.

Although, he demanded that we catch a bedbug for proof of their return--apparently eye witness testimony will not suffice.

Management has not returned our calls for days now. When I call the main switchboard our building manager is either on the phone or away from his desk.

There are building efforts to develop a class action suit if this is not resolved and rent reductions are not made for the great expense and hotel bills.

re not done on adjacent apartments).

Second, the exterminator that has been hired to treat the apartments in our building is not thorough, gives inaccurate and incomplete information, and does not believe tenants even in the face of incontrovertible evidence [e.g. a dead bed bug]).

Third, extensive work on the part of tenants has been required, not just in cleaning of furniture and apartments and inspecting and laundering of personal belongings, but also in sealing with caulk and spackle all cracks and crevices, including around plumbing and heating pipes, to attempt to prevent reinfestation through the walls (which is how the bugs spread and how we got them and how most of our neighbors likely got them as I have been told by longer-term residents that this problem has been going on for years in this building). Obviously tenants cannot all do the sealing repair work nor can they all do an adequate job. And tenants are expected to pay for all of the supplies and equipment. The apartments should have been treated by an exterminator and properly sealed when they were being remodeled (many of the apartments recently infested have been recently remodeled). The impression is that the management has accepted that the building is infested with bed bugs and will deal with the problem only on a case-by-case basis as tenants complain.

Finally, my issue with the city is that there is little to no information from any agency on what exactly to do when one's home is infested with bed bugs. There is so much varying information on the Internet that specific, thorough, and factual information should be provided by regulatory agencies. Not only are there many scams and much misleading and slightly varying information online that needs to set straight by the regulating agencies, but there is no one who can help an individual determine the laws governing rights and repsonsibilties. HPD only takes complaints and sends someone to inspect without an appointment so nothing can ever come of their complaint system. Tenants are left to feel they are on their own.

tting all items in the bedroom in either the dryer or freezer-items in the freezer should be there a minimum of ten hours, dryer estimates are anywhere from 5-30 minutes.

We have moved the bed and all adjacent furniture away from the wall as recommended.

We have ordered Black Walnut Powder (a natural eliminator of bed bugs), a hand spray (dont remember the name now, we did order it at 3AM), 2 box spring mattress covers (to be put on after the spray and left on for a year and a half--the life cycle of bed bugs even without feeding on humans), a HEPA vacuum cleaner-PowerGlide, and we will be vacuuming and steaming once a week.

I highly recommend that if you live in 640 you begin taking preventative measures so that we can collectively address the problem:

1. Remove all dust ruffles--bed bugs crawl up--wash & dry them at high heat and dont put them back until this issue is resolved

2. Coat your bed frame with Vaseline, put out sticky traps--this will help you assess if they have been visiting (not everyone reacts to bites)

3. Pick up your mattress and bed frame, look for clusters of black dots--this is their poop--from your blood--no joke

4. Post on this forum if you have them, notify Sabri, Call the exterminator-Desmond (dont wait for next month--it only gets worse)

5. Catch the F***ers and put them in a sealed container with alcohol or HP--you need proof to get sprayed (believe me, we asked three months ago)

6. Take digit photos (proof of time & date)

7. Notify the Tenants Committee-Olga, on the first floor. We are currently building a case

8. Call 311 to report the problem, there is currently a report into HPD regarding the infestation--we need numbers!

Good luck--and please, have sympathy for the rest of us--be vigilant!