New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani listens to a reporter's question during a press conference in New York City, U.S. December 22, 2025. REUTERS/Kylie Cooper/File Photo
(New York, New York) – Homeowners and small landlords are facing what critics are calling a direct assault on private property rights after the New York City Council approved a sweeping new housing law that hands government-favored nonprofits unprecedented power over real estate sales.
The measure establishes the so-called Community Opportunity to Purchase Act (COPA), a policy that forces certain property owners to give politically connected nonprofit groups the first right of refusal when selling multifamily buildings – even allowing them to match or override private offers.
Supporters frame the law as “anti-displacement,” but opponents say it amounts to state-sanctioned interference in the free market, designed to discourage private ownership while accelerating New York’s shift toward government-controlled housing.
Under COPA, landlords who want to sell their buildings must first navigate a new bureaucratic approval process, giving designated nonprofits priority access to properties before buyers on the open market. Critics argue the policy will depress property values, delay sales, and punish small owners – many of them immigrants and multi-generation families – who rely on real estate as their primary asset.
While progressive activists celebrated outside City Hall, small property owners warned the law will drive even more landlords out of the city, further shrinking housing supply and worsening affordability – the opposite of what lawmakers claim to want.
Reaction on X has been fierce. One user wrote, “NYC’s COPA is a massive government overreach. Mayor Mamdani is letting nonprofits jump the line to seize property while owners are stuck in 90 days of red tape. This kills the market and violates property rights. Socialism doesn’t fix housing, it just destroys the city.” Another commenter added bluntly, “Are we really that surprised? Elect a socialist. Get socialist policy. Now your house is OUR house.”
With COPA now headed for implementation, landlords warn New York is sending a clear message: owning property is no longer welcome, unless it aligns with City Hall’s ideological vision.
