Zohran Mamdani, February 2024 file: Kara McCurdy / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped)
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani signed the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act on Tuesday, giving city-certified nonprofits and other qualified groups an early chance to buy certain distressed or affordable apartment buildings when owners choose to sell.
The law, known as COPA, takes effect one year after enactment, in November 2027. The signing follows an earlier version vetoed by former Mayor Eric Adams in December 2025 and the City Council’s passage of a revised bill in October.
Under the enacted text of Local Law 164 of 2026, owners of covered buildings must notify the Department of Housing Preservation and Development and qualified entities when they intend to sell. Eligible groups get 20 days to express interest, followed by 70 days to make an initial offer.
The purchase process can run up to 145 days, according to the mayor’s office. The law sets separate deadlines for each stage, including 10 days for an owner to accept, reject or counter an initial offer and 30 days to execute a contract after an accepted or countered offer. Limited extensions also apply.
The right to match a competing bid is a separate protection, not an extra year to decide whether to buy. A qualifying outside offer made within a subsequent one-year period can trigger the first nonprofit bidder’s right of first refusal. That group then has 15 days after notice to match the price, terms and conditions.
COPA does not apply to every apartment building. Covered properties have at least four apartments and meet specific distress criteria, such as prolonged participation in a city enforcement program or serious unresolved housing violations. Buildings with no more than 100 apartments and qualifying HPD affordability restrictions are also covered. Owner-occupied buildings with five or fewer apartments are exempt, and restrictions imposed solely under the 421-a tax program do not qualify as the law’s affordability restrictions.
HPD will certify qualified participants, which must show the legal and financial capacity to acquire, rehabilitate or manage residential property. The law also allows owners to seek a hardship exemption.
City Hall says the measure is intended to preserve affordable housing and reduce cycles of neglect and displacement by giving community-based owners a route to acquire at-risk buildings. The new purchase rights do not themselves force an owner to put a building up for sale.
JBizNews Desk | New York
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