Boards of cooperatives and condominiums regularly undertake repairs to comply with laws and municipal codes, and maintain their building’s aesthetic standard. Developers in New York City seek to maximize the square footage of new construction. Such repairs, code compliance and development frequently require an owner to enter on to a neighbor’s property. All is well if the neighbors can agree on the conditions of an owner’s entry, but what happens when these neighbors cannot come to an agreement?
Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law §881 is designed to address this problem. A property owner who has been denied permission to enter an adjoining owner’s property in order to make repairs or improvements to their own property can commence a special proceeding for a temporary license to enter such property. The petitioning owner must present affidavits stating the facts that make entry “necessary” along with the proposed dates of entry and the court then decides whether to grant the temporary license “upon such terms as justice requires.” The licensee is statutorily liable to the adjoining owner for “actual damages occurring as a result of the entry.”1
