NYC COPA Law Sparks Debate Over Nonprofit Housing Ownership

“The city cannot build its way out of this crisis,” Council member Sandy Nurse said.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani signed the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act into law on Tuesday, giving nonprofits and community groups first dibs on certain residential buildings.

The legislation, known as COPA, will go into effect in November of 2027. It requires building owners to notify the city’s housing department when they want to sell specific properties. The rules apply to distressed multifamily buildings with four or more units and buildings with 100 or fewer units subject to certain affordability rules.

Under the new rules, eligible groups have 20 days to submit a statement of interest in buying the property and 70 days to make a first offer. The measure also grants these entities a right of first refusal if an owner receives an offer from a person other than a qualified entity.

City council meeting vector illustration with effective business team employee brainstorming for important negotiation in fla

The path to this week’s signing involved years of political maneuvering. COPA was first proposed back in 2020. A different version of the bill cleared the City Council in December of 2025, only to be vetoed by former Mayor Eric Adams on his last day in office.

This year, Nurse led the City Council in pushing through a scaled-back version of the legislation. According to amNY, the newly signed law applies to 2,100 buildings, a sharp drop from the 10,000 properties targeted in the earlier iteration.

While the toned-down scope may ease some anxieties within the real estate industry, critics remain skeptical about the mechanics of the law. Manhattan Institute senior fellow John Ketcham argued in City Journal that the policy rests on flawed foundational assumptions.

HUGE: Zohran Mamdani just signed a law giving community nonprofits the first chance to buy… — Micah Erfan

COPA “rests on the flawed premises that nonprofit ownership is inherently superior to private ownership and that city government should tip the scales in favor of nonprofit ownership,” John Ketcham wrote in City Journal. In December

Ketcham said that there is little reason to think that nonprofits would be better at addressing cold boilers, leaky roofs, and other maintenance needs. He also pointed out that nonprofits, just like private landlords, can also evict tenants.

A 2025 report from New York University’s Furman Center warned that opportunity to purchase laws can discourage investments by imposing timing delays and legal process costs. Erik Engquist of The Real Deal argued in October that the policy fails to improve the underlying economics of operating distressed properties.

COPA “doesn’t improve the difficult economics of buying and operating distressed buildings,” Engquist wrote, adding that it simply adds a layer of bureaucracy.

This intervention arrives on the heels of another major housing policy shift. Just last month, the city’s rent freeze took effect.