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COPA, The New Rules of Selling a Building

City Hall’s Answer to the Troubled Building Trade

If you own a small apartment building in New York City, or you’ve been dreaming of buying one, there’s a new law you’ll want to understand. On October 22, the City Council passed the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act, better known as COPA, by a vote of 38 to 9, and Mayor Zohran Mamdani has pledged to sign it. In plain terms, COPA gives qualified nonprofit buyers the first chance to buy certain distressed apartment buildings when they come up for sale.

COPA has been debated for six years. An earlier version passed in December 2025 and was vetoed by former Mayor Eric Adams, and the Council narrowed it considerably before passing it again this fall. Whatever your view of the policy, the practical questions are the same: which buildings it touches, when it starts, and what it means for your plans. I’ve read through the coverage and the details so you don’t have to, and below I’ll walk you through what’s in the bill, who it affects, why the administration supports it and how a savvy owner or buyer can make it work in their favor.

What’s in the Bill

COPA doesn’t apply to every building in the city. It covers two groups of properties. The first is distressed multifamily buildings with four or more apartments, or five if one of them is the owner’s primary residence. The second is buildings of up to 100 units that carry an affordability agreement managed by the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development, known as HPD.

A building counts as distressed if it meets at least one of these tests when it goes up for sale:

• It averages three or more serious (Class B or C) housing code violations per apartment.
• It has spent at least a year in the city’s Alternative Enforcement Program for troubled buildings.
• It has been designated for a city tax foreclosure action.
• It has carried an open order to correct an underlying building condition for a year or more.
• It was denied a city certificate of no harassment within the past year.

The buyers who get first look are nonprofits certified by HPD. They can buy on their own, partner with a community land trust, or form a joint venture with a private partner, as long as the nonprofit holds the controlling stake and isn’t affiliated with that partner.

When an owner of a covered building decides to sell, the process runs like this:

1. Notice. The owner notifies HPD and the qualified buyers. They have 20 days to say they’re interested. If no one speaks up, the owner is free to sell on the open market.
2. Offer. An interested buyer then has 70 days to make an offer, and HPD can add five more days.
3. Response. The owner has 10 days to accept, reject or counter.
4. Contract. If the two sides agree, they have 30 days to sign a contract.
5. Match. If the owner gets a competing offer from another buyer, the qualified nonprofit has 15 days to match it.

One important point: owners are never forced to sell, or to accept a lowball offer. They have to give qualified buyers a fair chance to bid and to match. Owners who skip the process can face penalties of up to 15% of the sale price. Qualified buyers can also sue within two years of the deed being recorded.

When It Takes Effect

COPA takes effect one year after the mayor signs it. If he signs this fall, as expected, the rules would apply to covered sales starting in late 2027. HPD will use that year to write the details: how nonprofits get certified, how the online notice portal works and what counts as financial hardship. Owners of covered buildings will be notified every year, and they can appeal on hardship grounds.

Who It Affects

• Owners of distressed buildings with four or more apartments. This is the core group. The city estimates that about 3,400 buildings qualify today, and advocates expect around 300 covered sales a year.
• Owners of smaller buildings with HPD affordability agreements, up to 100 units.
• Buyers and investors who target value-add or distressed buildings. On covered deals, they’ll now compete with a nonprofit that has the first look and the right to match.
• Tenants, who could see their building move into community or nonprofit ownership.

The bill also leaves a lot out. Buildings receiving 421-a or 485-x tax incentives are excluded, and so are owner-occupied buildings with four apartments. A well-kept building that doesn’t meet any of the distress tests isn’t covered at all, whatever its size. And COPA governs apartment buildings, so a shop or restaurant lease isn’t directly touched by it.

Why the Administration Supports It, and What Critics Say

Mayor Mamdani made COPA a priority of his housing plan. In his words, “COPA puts the power in the hands of tenants and community organizations.” Supporters see it as a way to keep existing affordable homes affordable. When a troubled building changes hands, they argue, it should have a chance to go to a buyer committed to repairing it rather than to the highest bidder. The bill’s sponsor, Council Member Sandy Nurse, put it this way: “Preserving some of the housing we already have is the most immediate way to stop displacement.” After the bill was narrowed, the Real Estate Board of New York, once a strong opponent, praised it as a “more targeted and practical bill.”

On the City Council, COPA’s champion has been its lead sponsor, Sandy Nurse of Brooklyn, who reintroduced the bill this year after the veto. Pierina Sanchez, chair of the Committee on Housing and Buildings, helped refine it and moved it through her committee. The bill drew 32 co-sponsors, along with Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and the Brooklyn Borough President. Among its most vocal backers at the September hearing were Council Members Tiffany Cabán, Alexa Avilés, Jennifer Gutiérrez, Shahana Hanif, Lincoln Restler, Harvey Epstein, Chi Ossé, Carmen De La Rosa and Kayla Santosuosso. Speaker Julie Menin brought it to a vote once its scope was narrowed.

Not everyone agrees. On the Council, Members Frank Morano and Vickie Paladino spoke out against it. Morano called the bill unconstitutional, and Paladino warned it would lower property values and stall sales. The Small Property Owners of New York and the New York Apartment Association oppose COPA. They argue that it limits owners’ control over their own property, slows sales and discourages other buyers. They also say it doesn’t fix the rising costs that put many buildings in trouble in the first place. Some brokers expect covered deals to take longer and to draw fewer bidders. Both sides make serious points, and the real test will come in how HPD writes the rules over the next year.

Which Types of Buildings Could Be Affected

COPA is aimed at a specific slice of the city’s housing, and the profile is clear from the city’s own data. These are the buildings most likely to fall under it:

• Older apartment buildings, mostly built before 1974. Classic prewar walk-ups and mid-century elevator buildings make up about three-quarters of the city’s most distressed properties, according to the Independent Budget Office.
• Rent-stabilized buildings with lower rents. Buildings where nearly every apartment is stabilized, and where median rents sit well below market, show the highest rates of violations and emergency repairs.
• Buildings already on the city’s radar. That means properties in the Alternative Enforcement Program, those facing tax foreclosure, those with long-open orders to correct conditions, and those denied a certificate of no harassment.
• Smaller buildings with city affordability agreements. These are buildings of up to 100 units with HPD regulatory agreements, whatever their condition.

Most newer buildings sit outside COPA, including anything built with 421-a or 485-x tax incentives. So do well-kept buildings of any age and owner-occupied buildings with four apartments.

As for where these buildings are, there’s no official map yet. HPD has said its estimate of about 3,400 eligible buildings hasn’t been broken down property by property. The city’s own data on troubled buildings still gives a clear picture of where they concentrate. HPD’s 2026 Alternative Enforcement Program list, one of COPA’s distress tests, names 250 buildings with the most serious unresolved violations, and its addresses fall in a handful of familiar neighborhoods:

The city’s Independent Budget Office found the same pattern in May 2026. Older rent-stabilized buildings in the Bronx, Upper Manhattan and Brooklyn show the highest rates of hazardous violations, emergency repairs and enforcement. Buildings with HPD affordability agreements, COPA’s second group, are spread more widely across the city. If you own, or are eyeing, an older walk-up in one of these neighborhoods, it’s worth checking where the building stands.

How COPA Can Work for Your Small Business

A new rule is also a new opportunity for anyone who understands it early. Here’s how I’d put COPA to work.

If you own a small building, use the year ahead. The distress tests look at your building’s condition at the moment you sell. If your building carries open violations or a long-standing correction order, clearing them now can keep you outside COPA entirely and protect your options down the road. It also tends to raise what your building is worth.

If you plan to sell, build COPA into your timeline. For a covered building, the full notice, offer and contract cycle can run four to five months. Knowing that up front lets you set realistic expectations with buyers, lenders and your own next move. Following the steps to the letter also keeps you clear of the 15% penalty.

If you’d rather sell to a mission-minded buyer, COPA brings them to you. Distressed buildings can be hard to sell. COPA creates a pool of certified, motivated buyers and a formal process to reach them, which some owners will welcome, especially if they care about their tenants’ future.

If you’re a buyer, investor or small developer, think partnership. Nonprofits can bring joint venture partners into COPA deals as long as the nonprofit holds the controlling stake. For a builder or investor with rehab experience, a partnership like that can be a path to deals you’d otherwise lose. For buildings outside COPA, which is most of the market, nothing changes.

If you’re buying your first multifamily to live in, look closely at owner-occupied buildings. An owner-occupied building with four apartments sits outside COPA. It remains one of the best ways to own your home and build income at the same time.

About Jason Mezydlo

Jason Mezydlo is Managing Sales Partner at Gordon Realty Partners and has worked in New York City real estate since 2012. A graduate of the Harrington College of Design with a BFA in interior design, he brings a designer’s eye to every search, helping clients see what a space can become before they sign. Jason began his career in commercial leasing, guiding small business owners through site selection, lease negotiation and space planning, before moving into Manhattan’s luxury rental market and home sales across Manhattan and Brooklyn. A longtime Brooklyn resident, he pairs market expertise with a deep love for the city’s history, art and architecture.

347.286.5797 · jason@gordonrealtypartners.com · JasonMezydlo.com · @JasonMezydlo
Gordon Realty Partners · 622 3rd Avenue, New York, NY · NYS Licensed Real Estate Salesperson

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