12/19/2025
Here is my take on COPA (Community Opportunity to Purchase Act):
Here is the simple truth: If a small building owner is in financial distress, they need to sell NOW. Speed is their only way out.
This law forces them to pause for months so a “non-profit” can decide if they want to buy it. For a struggling owner, that delay doesn’t help, it bankrupts them.
The kicker? The law explicitly allows these “non-profits” to partner with private, for-profit investors in a Joint Venture.
We are creating a system where sophisticated private capital can partner with a non-profit, utilize the statutory “Right of First Refusal” to cut the line, block competitive bidding, and acquire assets at a discount because the seller is legally handcuffed.
This creates a protected class of buyers who don’t have to compete on the open market. We need to solve the housing crisis, but destroying the liquidity of small owners and rigging the acquisition process isn’t the answer. Building more housing is.
What are your thoughts? Is this protection, or is this just a new form of gatekeeping?
RealEstateDevelopment MarketUpdate Multifamily
