Real Estate Will Learn to Cope With COPA

Real estate is going to need to learn to stop worrying and love the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act.

After six long legislative years, the City Council passed COPA on Thursday, granting nonprofits and eligible joint ventures the first chance to buy distressed multifamily buildings. Thirty-eight lawmakers voted in favor of the revived version of the bill, which has faced vocal industry pushback since its inception; two lawmakers abstained and nine voted against.

Critically, it’s not exactly the bill the real estate industry once feared. It’s been watered down from its original scope to cover a narrower swath of distressed affordable buildings with a higher number of violations. The eligible buildings, initially placed at approximately 10,000, are down to roughly one-fifth of that.

The final bill covers distressed properties with 100 or fewer units that have regulatory agreements managed by HPD. Large mixed-income and affordable multifamily buildings with 485x and 421a as-of-right tax abatements or other city zoning enhancements are exempt.

Buildings also need to meet a higher threshold of violations to qualify for a COPA buyout, requiring three Class B or C violations per unit or participation in certain distressed programs. The final version of the bill also omits language that would have let HPD add buildings to the program and extend certain deadlines for COPA eligibility.

Council member Sandy Nurse framed it as “the most strategic, most operationally sound version” of the bill.

A previous attempt at getting COPA done passed the Council last year, only to see Eric Adams veto the bill. Menin allowed that to stand in one of her first moves as speaker of the City Council.

To learn to cope with COPA, real estate needs to look elsewhere. Similar laws already exist in Chicago, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. They continue to face backlash from landlords who claim the dynamic has hurt deals to sell, refinance or secure title insurance for their buildings.

But those markets are learning to deal with situations as they arise. New York will too, especially as the universe for such buildings is already slim.

COPA may have been a losing fight for real estate, but it’s not the only fight to take place this week. Let’s get to it.

Private club punch-out: Alex Adjmi and Leo Jacobs trade blows at pricey Aman Club

Ring the bell!

Real estate investor Alex Adjmi and attorney Leo Jacobs were banned from the exclusive Aman Club following an altercation earlier this year.

In a lawsuit against the club, Jacobs claims that Adjmi unprovokedly approached him in the cigar lounge on Mother’s Day and struck him across the face and neck.

Jacobs asserts that he only responded with a single blow in self-defense after absorbing two unanswered strikes.

Perhaps a video will tell the story one day.

Fisher Brothers sells 49% stake in 605 Third Avenue to David Werner

Fisher Brothers sold a 49 percent stake in the 43-story office tower at 605 Third Avenue to David Werner.

The transaction follows Fisher Brothers’ withdrawal of its planned Israeli bond market offering, which aimed to raise approximately $100 million before being halted due to rising interest rates and market challenges.

Werner, known as a prominent buyer of discounted Manhattan office properties, ultimately closed on the 605 Third Avenue stake earlier this month for an undisclosed amount.

45 Broad under contract after supertall condo plans stalled

The vacant Financial District development site at 45 Broad Street is under contract after previous plans for a supertall luxury condo tower stalled during the pandemic.

The seller, Gemdale Properties, was seeking a price in the $60 million range for the 12,600-square-foot site, though the buyer and final contract price remain undisclosed.

Originally acquired in 2015 by Madison Equities and later backed by Gemdale, the project was revised in 2023 into a smaller 52-story development with its foundation already built and permits for residential, office, retail or hotel use.

Meet the law firm that just sued former Gov Eliot Spitzer

And finally, The Real Deal’s Jake Indursky takes a deep dive into Newman Ferrara, the law firm that has filed class-action lawsuits against at least 12 landlords alleging rent overcharges following concessions, filing actions against heavy-hitters like Douglas Eisenberg’s A&E Real Estate, Josh Gotlib’s Black Spruce Management and Blackstone.