Home Inspection in White Plains, NY

Areas we serve › Westchester County › White Plains

Two ZIP codes that both carry White Plains mail describe different cities. In ZIP 10601, about 91% of homes are in buildings of five or more units, about 4% are detached houses and about 36% are owner-occupied. In ZIP 10607, about 88% are detached houses and about 82% are owner-occupied. A home inspection in White Plains is therefore two different jobs: one apartment inside a larger building, or a whole house on a lot that may carry an oil tank, a retaining wall and a basement to check for water.

Inspecwise operates from South Ozone Park, Queens, with a New York State home inspector license and InterNACHI certification. White Plains lies inside our Westchester service area, and we can take clients through the findings in English, Urdu, Punjabi or Hindi. The page is written for buyers of houses and apartments. It draws on Census figures for the city and its ZIP codes, on the City’s own documents (its water department’s 2025 report, its Building Department forms and its planning studies), and on State radon results, FEMA claims and NOAA records. It also says plainly what we could not verify, including that we found no certificate-of-occupancy rule triggered by a sale. For the county as a whole, see our Westchester County overview; for two other Westchester cities, Yonkers and New Rochelle.

Two White Plains markets: apartment buildings and single-family houses

In the 2020–2024 Census survey, White Plains has 25,578 occupied homes. About 51% are owner-occupied, 61% are in buildings of five or more units and 28% are detached houses. Ages split three ways: 30% built before 1940, 19% from 1940 to 1959 and 51% in 1960 or later. The table adds the six ZIP codes in our White Plains Census pull and the county for comparison. ZIP codes follow postal routes rather than neighborhoods, and the figures are survey estimates, so gaps of a point or two mean nothing. ZIP 10604 is in the pull, but the place-name file we use lists it as West Harrison, and we could not confirm how much of it lies inside the city; treat its row as a neighboring area.

ZIP 10601 is the extreme: about 91% of its homes are in large buildings and about 27% are heated with electricity, the highest share in the table. That is the profile you would expect around high-rise housing, though no source we read ties the ZIP to downtown. ZIP 10607 is the opposite, a ZIP of houses, and ZIPs 10603 and 10605 are mixed, with detached houses at about 34% and 49% and large buildings at about 44% and 41%. On age, ZIP 10606 has the largest share built before 1940 (about 40%) and ZIP 10607 the largest from 1940 to 1959 (about 46%).

The City’s own planning studies measure the same housing in other ways. On a parcel basis, single-family parcels account for about 30% of the land and 32% of the housing units, while two-family, three-family and larger developments use 6% of the land and hold 68% of the units (the City’s liveWP plan). A separate City report puts detached single-family homes at roughly 45% of the housing stock (the City’s demographics report), and the Census figure above is 28% of occupied homes. Those are three bases, and we do not average or reconcile them. What they share is that single-family houses are a minority of White Plains homes, somewhere between about a quarter and just under half depending on the measure. The same report says a third of the housing stock was built before 1940 and another wave followed the Second World War in the 1950s, which fits the Census shares.

Within the city, the report says the largest area of single-family houses is the south end, south of Bryant Avenue, and that two- and three-family buildings and townhomes are generally found north of Bryant Avenue. The City counts 28 neighborhood associations. We do not tie those areas to ZIP codes, because no source we read does.

The downtown towers and their history

White Plains has been the county seat since 1757, was incorporated as a village in 1866 and became a city at the start of 1916. Its downtown legal and civic core went up in the 1920s; the ten-story Bar Building opened in 1926 as the tallest building in Westchester. Urban renewal then redeveloped about 130 acres between 1966 and 1980 (City of White Plains history page). The County’s hazard plan says downtown has become a major center of residential living (hazard plan, White Plains annex), and the City’s core zoning districts encourage high-density, high-rise housing on larger sites, with typical maximum heights of 125, 230 and 150 feet (demographics report). The City’s liveWP plan counts more than 2,500 rent-stabilized (ETPA) apartments in 151 multi-family buildings as of 2022, and its workWP plan says the surplus of vacant downtown office space supports the potential for office conversions to residential or other uses.

We found no source that dates individual towers or lists which buildings are co-ops or condominiums, and no official count of either. If the apartment you are buying is in a converted office building, ask when the conversion was done and what certificates were issued. For a general explanation of co-op versus condominium ownership, read our Manhattan guide to co-ops and condos; it describes no White Plains building.

What a home inspection in White Plains covers: a house, and an apartment unit

The Standards of Practice were written for a house: a look at what can be seen and reached, in a residential building of one to four dwelling units. For one apartment in a larger building, the written agreement that must come before any inspection says what the visit includes, so read it for the shared areas. Anything we cannot get to, such as a roof, a boiler room or a basement, goes in the report as not observed, with the reason (19 NYCRR 197-5.3). The full list is in our guide to what a New York home inspection includes.

One State rule reaches apartments as well as houses. On the conveyance of a one- or two-family house, a condominium unit or a co-op apartment, the seller hands the buyer an affidavit of smoke-alarm compliance at closing, and the buyer has ten days to flag an alarm that is not operable (Executive Law §378).

Water in White Plains: the City’s own report and the pipe on your side

White Plains runs its own water supply through the Department of Public Works. The water is unfiltered surface water from the New York City reservoir system, drawn from the Kensico Reservoir by Westchester County Water District No. 1. The City’s 2025 annual water quality report, covering calendar 2025, says the system did not violate a maximum contaminant level or any other water quality standard. It lists PFOS and PFOA as tested for and not detected in a December 2025 sample of the source water, against a limit of 10 nanograms per liter. For lead at the tap, the 2023 round of sampling at 30 sites gave a 90th-percentile value of 1.25 micrograms per liter, and no site was over the 15 micrograms per liter action level. The report says the next lead and copper testing was not required until June 2026, so a 2026 round should exist now; look for it. The County water district has used corrosion control, adding orthophosphate and caustic soda to adjust pH, since December 1995.

Those are results for the water system, not for a particular tap. The pipe from the main to the meter belongs to the owner: under the City’s water rules, the homeowner owns the entire service line from the water main to the water meter. The State publishes an inventory of what those lines are made of (NYS Department of Health inventory for White Plains, revised August 2024):

So do not write, or accept, “no lead pipes” for a White Plains house: about three lines in ten are still of unknown material. Drinking water is outside a home inspection, and so is buried piping (19 NYCRR 197-5.8). What the report does give is the piping material we can see and the location of the main shut-off. Ask the seller what the service line is made of, and if the answer is “don’t know,” ask the Department of Public Works what its records show. A laboratory test of the tap answers a different question, and our water quality testing page describes it.

Sewage, storm drains and the call to make before you dig

The City describes its sanitary sewer system and its storm water sewer system as separate. Sewage leaves the city through two County sewer districts, to either the Yonkers Joint Treatment Plant or the Mamaroneck plant (the City’s strengthenWP plan). It does not go to the Blind Brook plant, which the County’s report lists as serving Rye, Harrison and North Castle. We did not verify the names of the two districts. The County also says that not every address inside a sewer district is on public sewer, so ask whether the house is connected (hazard plan, section 4).

On the lateral, the pipe between the house and the main, the County’s Department of Environment and Facilities puts responsibility on the owner. We found no White Plains statement that says otherwise, and none that ties a sewer certificate to a sale the way Mamaroneck and Scarsdale do (see our county overview). Buried drainage is outside the Standards, so a camera run through the lateral is a separate job; our sewer scope guide shows what it finds.

Two City rules matter to anyone planning work. The City asks for a call to Dig Safely NY (811) before any excavation, and says that includes foundation work, waterproofing, drainage work and tree removal. And the strip between the property line and the street is City right-of-way, where fences, walls of any kind, sprinkler systems and plantings, trees included, are not permitted (City Code Enforcement page). When you walk a lot, look at what stands between the lawn and the curb.

Flood claims, the two rivers and the flooding the map leaves out

White Plains is not a coastal city, and its flood record is not a coastal record. Two watersheds drain it, the Bronx River Basin and the Coastal Long Island Sound Basin, and the City’s plan places FEMA-mapped floodplains beside the Bronx River and the Mamaroneck River. The Bronx River crosses the northwest of the city along the Bronx River Parkway, and a wetland near Cloverdale Avenue in the north is known as an area that often floods into the surrounding neighborhood (the City’s greenWP plan). The County’s hazard plan lists these flood-prone areas: the low-lying parts of Cloverdale Avenue, Smith Avenue near Longview Avenue, Bloomingdale Road at the I-287 ramps, Brockway Place, Haarlem Avenue near Glenn Street and the Central Westchester Parkway. It adds that the City keeps a list of flood-damaged properties, and we do not know whether that list is public, so ask the Building Department. The City says it does not take part in FEMA’s Community Rating System, so residents get no premium discount from it (hazard plan, White Plains annex).

The mapped area is small. The County’s model, using FEMA’s effective map, puts 15 of the city’s 13,986 buildings (0.1%) in the 1-percent-annual-chance flood area and 70 (0.5%) in the 0.2-percent area (hazard plan, section 5.4.3). The plan cites a county flood map effective 28 September 2007, with its latest letter of map revision on 24 August 2021, so check FEMA’s Map Service Center for anything newer. The plan also makes two points that no flood map can show. FEMA studies rivers and coasts, not “urban flooding” when storm drains are overwhelmed, and high groundwater can fill a basement with no water on the surface. That is why the claims below matter.

This is a different measure from the map: insured losses by the event name FEMA attaches, and only for owners who held a policy and filed. The six ZIPs run past the city line and one is a West Harrison mail place, so the total is not a White Plains count and cannot be set against the modeled 15 buildings. It is still a reason not to stop at the map. ZIP 10607 has 22 of the 483 claims the county file assigns to the late-September 2023 flooding and 14 of the 51 assigned to the July 2025 event.

NOAA’s storm records add rainfall and road closures, not damage to houses. On 1 September 2021, when the remnants of Ida brought 5 to 8 inches of rain across the region, the Bronx River Parkway was closed southbound in White Plains by flooding (NOAA event record). The remnants of Tropical Storm Lee gave White Plains 6.80 inches on 8 September 2011, the top of the county’s reported range (NOAA event record), and during Irene the Parkway was closed along its entire length in Westchester (NOAA event record). Ask the seller what the basement has been through, and see our basement inspection page for what we check there.

Steep slopes, ledge rock and retaining walls: a permit for every wall

The City’s plan says steep slopes are characteristic of White Plains and cover about 14% of its land, and ties them to erosion and slope instability. It defines rock outcrops as exposed rock with any part two feet or more above the surrounding grade, and notes that removing rock can affect neighbors through vibration and changed water flow (the City’s greenWP plan). Zoning asks planning approvals to avoid or reduce impacts on steep slopes and rock outcrops, including through retaining walls and terracing (City zoning ordinance, amended through 3 August 2026); that applies to projects needing Planning Board or Zoning Board approval, not to routine repairs.

The rule that matters to a buyer is on a City form dated 05/14, which we read from an image: all retaining walls must be built under a building permit regardless of height, and walls over 30 inches need sealed drawings by a design professional licensed in New York (City fence and wall requirements). The City also says a certificate of compliance should be obtained for all work under a building permit. So for any retaining wall on a lot, ask for the permit and the certificate of compliance, and for the drawings if the wall is over 30 inches. Forms of that age may have changed; confirm the current rule with the Building Department.

The Standards have us observe and report retaining walls, along with steps, walkways and driveways, but not geological or soil conditions or erosion control. If a wall leans or bulges, bring in a licensed engineer; the State licensing statute does not allow a home inspector to practice engineering.

Oil tanks, boilers and chimneys: what the City’s forms say

The Census survey finds gas heating about 57% of White Plains homes, oil 22% and electricity 17%. Among the six ZIPs the oil share runs from about 15% in ZIP 10601 to about 32% in ZIP 10603. We could not confirm which White Plains streets have gas mains. Whatever fuel a house burns today, ask the seller what it burned before and whether a tank is still on the property.

White Plains’ form takes a different line on old tanks from some of its neighbors. On the City’s mechanical permit form (dated 05/14, read from an image), discontinued tanks have to be removed under the State fire code. A certificate of compliance for tank work then needs the tank test and soil-sample results, a scrap-metal manifest, and the closing of any DEC spill number or County Health permit. Another line requires legs with flanges on tanks of 275 to 330 gallons (City mechanical permit form). Yonkers and New Rochelle accept a slurry fill in place, and Mount Vernon allows abandonment in place with permits, so do not carry a rule across the line; our county overview compares them. A buried tank is outside what the Standards require us to observe, so finding one takes a separate search; see our oil tank page. If the seller says a tank was removed, ask for the certificate of compliance and the soil results.

Boiler and heating work has its own paperwork. A City form dated 04/13 has the owner certify that the chimney has been cleaned and inspected before a new boiler or heating system starts up (City chimney certification form), and our chimney inspection page explains what can be seen. For a rental, another form (read from an image, dated 04/13) cites the State property maintenance code in telling landlords to supply heat from 15 September to 31 May so that habitable rooms stay at 68 degrees or more (City heating requirements form).

Radon in White Plains basements

Through the State’s radon kit program, 169 White Plains basements have been tested since 1987, and 17 of them (10.1%) read 4 picocuries per liter or higher, the point at which the State and the EPA advise fixing a home. The mean was 2.71 picocuries per liter and the highest reading 65.2, more than 16 times that level (NYS Department of Health radon results by town). For comparison, Greenburgh is at 9.7% of 258 basements, New Rochelle 8.8% of 148 and Yonkers 14.0% of 172, while four northern Westchester towns run about 30% and the county as a whole 17.5% of 2,875. Our county overview has the full list.

These are kit results from the State’s own program, not a sample of all homes; the State notes that tens of thousands of further tests a year are done outside it. On the EPA’s map for New York Westchester sits in the lowest-potential zone, yet the same document says every home should be tested. The County Health Department’s Healthy Homes page tells buyers and sellers to test and repeats the EPA and Surgeon General advice to test every home below the third floor. That reaches a ground-floor or second-floor apartment as well as a house; a unit on the third floor or higher falls outside it. The licensing statute puts radon outside a home inspection, so it is booked as its own test of the lowest lived-in level; see our radon testing page and the guide to a safe radon level.

Certificates of occupancy, compliance and open permits

The City’s Building Department enforces its own supplemental building code and zoning ordinance together with State laws that include the Multiple Residence Law and the Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code (Building Department page). Its page on the Supplemental Building Code says the code is being updated and tells readers to call the department, so we do not quote its sections. Before a home inspection in White Plains, your attorney orders the municipal search; the records below are ones you can request yourself, and they steer what we examine. The table lists what the City’s pages say.

Here is what we could not find. Nothing on the City’s pages says that a certificate of occupancy, a certificate of compliance or an inspection must be obtained because a one- or two-family house is being sold. The City’s Municipal Code, which could settle the question, was not readable from our research, so that is an absence of evidence and not proof. Your attorney and the Building Department can say whether the address you are buying needs anything, and lenders and title companies may ask for papers whatever the City requires.

Older houses can carry one more layer. White Plains adopted its first Historic Preservation Law in May 2015, and the Historic Preservation Commission lists landmarked houses, among them the Percy Grainger Home at 7 Cromwell Place, a Shingle-style house built about 1892. Before you plan exterior work on an older house, check whether it is a landmark.

Second kitchens, two-family houses and rental licenses

Zoning defines a one-family dwelling as one with a single principal dwelling unit, and a dwelling unit as having its own cooking, sanitary and sleeping facilities and being physically separate from other units. The one- and two-family districts are R2-4 and R2-2.5 (City zoning ordinance). The City’s 2024 plan treats accessory dwelling units as a future option that would need changes to zoning and permitting, and the zoning text we read, amended through 3 August 2026, has no accessory-dwelling term; we did not confirm whether anything has been adopted since. So if a single-family house has a second kitchen or a separate entrance, ask the seller what the certificate of occupancy says. An inspection reports what is in the house; it does not decide whether the work was lawful.

A buyer who will rent out a house or a two-to-twelve-unit building should know the City’s rental license. The Rental Housing Registry and License Program covers every rental one-family dwelling up to and including 12-unit buildings. Owner-occupied single-family homes, two-family homes where one unit is owner-occupied, condominium and co-op buildings and rental buildings with more than 12 units are exempt. The license issues when the application is complete and no outstanding Building Code violation affects occupants’ health and safety, and a provisional license of up to 180 days can be issued where an inspection finds non-hazardous violations. When a licensed rental changes hands, the owner must notify the Building Department within 30 calendar days (rental housing ordinance and City program page). The copy of the ordinance we read is dated 18 June 2018, and we did not read the current fee schedule.

What we could not verify about White Plains

These are the open items, so that you know whom to ask:

• Whether the City requires any certificate or inspection when a one- or two-family house is sold. We found none; the Municipal Code could not be read.
• The City’s flood damage prevention chapter, tree preservation chapter and any sewer-use or property-maintenance chapters, for the same reason. We do not know whether a permit is needed to remove a tree on private land; the City’s plan recommends adding a permit process, which suggests there is none now.
• The names of the two County sewer districts that serve the city, and any White Plains statement of who owns the sewer lateral.
• Whether accessory apartments have been allowed since the zoning text we read was amended, and what the CitySquared property search shows.
• Counts of co-ops and condominiums, the owner and renter split in the downtown towers, and which streets have gas mains.
• Whether the City forms we cite are current. Several are dated 2013 or 2014, and some facts on this page were read from images of those forms, which we flag where they appear.

Frequently asked questions

About the figures on this page

• Homes, tenure and heating: the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, 2020–2024 five-year release, for White Plains city, ZIP areas 10601 and 10603 to 10607, and Westchester County. “Occupied homes” means occupied housing units. The numbers are estimates and are rounded.
• Flood claims: the OpenFEMA file of National Flood Insurance Program claims, version 3, grouped by the ZIP on each claim and by FEMA’s event label. Insured losses only.
• Radon: the State Health Department’s results by town, cumulative since 1987, for kits that went through the State’s program.
• City of White Plains documents: the 2025 annual water quality report, Building Department pages and forms (some dated 2013 and 2014, some read from images), the zoning ordinance amended through 3 August 2026, and planning studies adopted in 2024. Also the County hazard mitigation plan (2021, archived copy of 14 June 2024), NOAA storm event records, the State’s service-line inventory, and the statutes and rules linked above.
• The data and pages are from October 2026 and change over time, so check the date.

Booking a home inspection in White Plains

Tell us whether the property is a house or an apartment, give us the address, and send the certificate of occupancy and the open-permit status if you have them; they shape what we look at first. If it is an apartment, ask before the day what the written agreement will cover in the shared areas, and say which language you prefer for the walk-through.

The footer of every page carries our license number. The Department of State’s lookup confirms it, and this guide shows the steps. Other parts of the region are listed under areas we serve.

Questions first? Call 718-925-7071.