The Community Opportunity to Purchase Act, also known as COPA, will give qualified nonprofits and community groups 145 days to make an offer on properties before those properties hit the private market.
Qualified organizations also get an additional year where they can exercise a right of first refusal to match another buyer’s offer.
After the act was passed by New York City Council last month, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani signed the act into law on Nov. 10.
The goal of the act is to preserve affordable housing, protect tenants and prevent buildings from suffering from profit-driven neglect, according to a press release from the Office of the Mayor.
“Too many New Yorkers have watched their homes deteriorate while landlords extract profits and tenants are left to fight for the repairs they deserve,” Mamdani said. “That’s not how housing should work. Our homes should be places of stability, not vehicles for speculation.”
Under COPA, the Department of Housing Preservation and Development is responsible for maintaining a list of “qualified entities,” consisting of vetted nonprofits, tenant groups, community land trusts and others. Those organizations will have to demonstrate financial and organizational capacity to purchase and operate properties.
Covered properties under COPA include multifamily buildings with four more units that are in significant disrepair. Buildings that have affordability restrictions are also included.
According to council member Pierina Sanchez, chair of the committee on housing and buildings, New York City is facing a housing crisis not only because of a lack of affordable housing, but also because of the deterioration of homes that already exist.
“The Community Opportunity to Purchase Act gives us a powerful new tool to interrupt those cycles at the point of sale,” Sanchez said.
The bill was sponsored by council member Sandy Nurse, who represents Brooklyn neighborhoods like Bushwick, Brownsville, Cypress Hills and East New York.
“Across the city, people overwhelmingly voted for a more affordable life and COPA is a new tool to help deliver that,” Nurse said. “COPA will preserve affordable housing and give working families a chance to stay in the city we love.”
Formerly, Mayor Eric Adams vetoed a previous version of the act in December 2025, but the Mamdani Administration prioritized the legislation as part of the “Block by Block” housing plan.
