28-05-2025
DC councilmembers, advocates debate the future of TOPA
WASHINGTON (DC News Now)—The future of TOPA is up for debate in the District.
On Wednesday, nearly 200 people signed up to testify about the future of the program.
TOPA, or the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act, has been in place since 1980. It gives tenants the first right to purchase if their landlord is selling their building. The policy is intended to prevent displacement.
However, developers have argued that it's made it difficult to do business in the District, slowing down sales and jeopardizing new development.
'What we're seeing in DC is really a troubling trend of lack of investment in housing,' said Liz DeBarros, CEO of the DC Building Industry Association. 'We've had a lot of regulations over the years. TOPA is obviously one of them that hasn't been modernized in a number of years.'
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DeBarros supports the Mayor's proposed RENTAL Act, a piece of legislation that, in part, reforms TOPA.
Under the RENTAL Act, market-rate housing would no longer be eligible for TOPA, though low and moderate-income housing would. It would also exempt new buildings from triggering TOPA for 25 years.
'(If passed) it will signal to the market that DC is ready for investment, that the hurdles that we've had in the past will get out of the way. I think it'll have an immediate reaction to the market,' she said.
'A lot of the concerns that have been raised are things that can be explained by other causes, lack of people paying rent, differences in urban versus suburban settings,' said councilmember Brianne Nadeau.
Nadeau proposed a competing piece of legislation to address TOPA concerns.
'Shortening some of the timelines, it goes after bad actors who have been manipulating the system. It makes things more clear, creates templates. Overall, it streamlines the process,' she said.
The councilwoman would like to preserve TOPA rights for all.
Her bill keeps market-rate buildings eligible and only exempts new builds for three years.
'Three years is about how long it takes to fill a building. So if you're just wanting to get out of a deal, you can do that before it's filled with tenants and before you're actually taking away someone's fundamental rights in DC,' she said.
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'TOPA is wild. If you've never gone through TOPA, you may have no idea about it. TOPA has also been part of DC's process since the 1980s,' said Maya Brennan, Chief Housing Officer with the Coalition.
Brennan agrees that some changes to TOPA are necessary, but she wants to ensure the purpose and value of TOPA are maintained.
She argues the program is being used as a scapegoat for other issues occurring in the housing market.
'We have not seen over the history of TOPA that TOPA has actually been the challenge,' she said. 'TOPA is something that exists in DC but not in Maryland and Virginia. It makes people think it's TOPA, but it's really a scapegoat. The issue is actually about a combination of rent arrears and a shift to lower-cost places to get land, which are the suburbs usually.'
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