This article provides a general overview of legal requirements for light and air applicable to residential use in New York City.

As a general matter, every “living room” in a residential unit must have a legal window, i.e., a window through which required light and air is provided. A living room is, generally, any habitable room other than a small kitchen or dinette, bathroom, foyer or hallway. Legal windows may, of course, open directly on the street or on a setback portion of a building facing the street. Otherwise, per Zoning Resolution Section 23-861, there must be at least 30 feet of open area between a legal window and an opposite wall or a rear or side lot line. That distance is measured “in a horizontal plane at the sill level of, and perpendicular to, such window for the full width of the rough window opening.”