TENANT OPPORTUNITY TO PURCHASE ACT
A local option to:
prevent displacement,
preserve housing affordability, and
level the playing field for tenants and affordable housing purchasers.
prevent displacement,
preserve housing affordability, and
level the playing field for tenants and affordable housing purchasers.
The Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA) – would let cities and towns adopt a preservation, anti-displacement and tenant empowerment tool that can preserve affordable rental housing stock, provide a mechanism for tenant associations to collectively purchase their buildings, and stabilize low-income households.
- TOPA would allow municipalities the option of providing tenants in multi-family buildings the right to match a third-party offer when their homes are being sold.
- Tenants could designate their rights to a non-profit or local housing authority, or partner with an affordable housing purchaser.
- TOPA is does not regulate sales price and explicitly exempts small owners.