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Pared-down NYC affordable housing bill makes a comeback
By
Arun Venugopal
Published May 18, 2026
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By
Arun Venugopal
Published May 18, 2026
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Nonprofit organizations would get first opportunity to buy certain distressed buildings coming onto the market in New York City under reintroduced City Council legislation proponents hope will help preserve the city’s affordable housing stock.
Councilmember Sandy Nurse said the revised Community Opportunity to Purchase Act, which was passed by the City Council last year but vetoed by then-Mayor Eric Adams, would affect “a more targeted universe of buildings,” the aim being to retain them as affordable.
Crucially, Nurse said, the legislation comes with the public support of Adams’ successor, Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who has said he looks forward to its passing.
“I'm feeling very confident that we'll be able to pass it this year,” Nurse told Gothamist.
Some real estate groups, which opposed the original iteration of the measure, on grounds it would curtail investment in aged properties and do little to boost the affordable housing stock, were guarded in their assessment.
“We appreciate the City Council’s ongoing engagement with all stakeholders on this important legislation,” James Whelan, president of the Real Estate Board of New York, said in a statement. He added the measure remains under review.
The bill is touted by proponents as one tool for addressing housing affordability in the city. Mamdani, who has touted a range of affordability measures, was elected in November on pledges to freeze the rent for 1 million regulated apartments, and take other steps to penalize bad landlords.
Under the revised COPA legislation, qualified nonprofits would have 20 days to submit a statement of interest and 70 days to submit a first offer for a building, down from 25 days and 80 days, respectively, under the prior bill.
The legislation would only apply to properties with five or more units, and which have incurred multiple housing violations. Buildings would need to average three or more violations annually to fall under the bill's ambit, up from one in the earlier legislation.
Mamdani has touted the measure as one way to keep affordable units out of reach of real estate speculators.
“Tenants and community organizations across New York have spent years watching their neighborhoods be priced out from under them while speculators reap the rewards,” Mamdani said in the statement. “The Community Opportunity to Purchase Act is about putting power back in the hands of the people.”
Will Spisak, a senior policy strategist at New Economy Project, an organization that supports COPA, said the revised bill would affect approximately 300 building sales a year, or 0.6% of all real estate transactions. Under the previous legislation, Spisak said, 1% of all transactions would have been affected.
New York City's median rent reached $3,600 at the end of 2025, Spisak noted, adding that it was important to preserve existing units of affordable housing.
“COPA would be a helpful tool to allow for responsible stewards to take over those properties when the landlords decide they want to sell,” he said.
Ann Korchak, the board president of Small Property Owners of New York, who helped lead opposition to last year’s bill, said in a statement that she would reserve judgment.
Korchak said she remains concerned about “thousands of economically vulnerable mom-and-pop, generational, and immigrant small property owners.”
“They are in this financial distress through no fault of their own, but because of burdensome, overreaching city and state laws and regulations that cap their income but not their operating costs and expenses,” Korchak said.
Tagged
City Council
Race And Justice Unit
Zohran Mamdani
affordability
housing
new york city
Arun Venugopal
Arun Venugopal is a senior reporter for the WNYC and Gothamist Race & Justice Unit who focuses on issues of race and bias in our region. His reporting also tackles the topics of immigration, faith, and inequality. Arun serves as the regular fill-in host of the station's "U.S. of Anxiety" program. Arun was the creator and host of Micropolis, a series about race and identity. He is a contributor to NPR's Morning Edition and All Things Considered. He has appeared on PBS Newshour, On the Media and Studio 360, and has been published in The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal and Salon. He also frequently serves as an emcee and moderator of panel discussions on race, religion, and identity issues and has been a guest host of NPR's "Fresh Air." He lives with his family in Queens.
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