Ask Altagracia: Our rent-stabilized building is being converted to condos. What are our rights?

If you aren’t familiar, a red herring notice serves as a warning to tenants that their landlord has a drafted plan to convert the building. 

“During the red herring stage, landlords can’t negotiate with their tenants,” Altagracia Pierre-Outerbridge, attorney and founder of Outerbridge Law representing residential tenants, condo owners and landlords, said. “If their plan is approved, it will enter the next stage where the sale process begins, called the black book, but it’d be a mistake to wait around until the plan enters its next phase. Start preparing to put up a fight.” 

A lower threshold

Changes to rental conversion laws have chipped away at tenants' power in recent years.

A 2025 law, known as the Affordable Housing Retention Act (AHRA), widened the path for developers to convert buildings to condos by requiring only 15 percent of units be under contract, so long as the developer sets aside a portion of the building’s units as income-restricted units, such as ones tied to the 421-a program. 

“Before this law was passed, developers needed a purchase commitment of 51 percent of a building's units,” Pierre-Outerbridge. “Tenants would organize and all agree not to accept any offers to purchase, and the conversion plans wouldn’t get off the ground.” 

But this new law, which is effective for just four years, requires a less significant margin. “And under AHRA, landlords can meet the 15 percent threshold with outside buyers,” Pierre-Outerbridge said. “So technically, the landlord doesn’t need your agreement for the plan to move forward.” 

“Tenants have to organize and stay loud during the red herring period,” Pierre-Outerbridge said. “During this time, tenants should hire a lawyer to evaluate the conversion plan and help poke holes. Lawyers will also let tenants know about what kinds of building inspections they can request that are only allowed during this period, which can sometimes yield findings that crack the foundation of a developer’s stated plan.” 

You can continue renting

If that’s starting to sound complicated, here’s the good news: you can continue renting even if the building converts. “Both market-rate and rent-stabilized tenants can refuse offers to purchase their units,” Pierre-Outerbridge said. “Under New York law, you can’t be evicted for refusing to buy, so stay in your unit and keep renting.” 

What will change is your landlord and likely, your neighbors. “The 15 percent is thought of as a starting point for the plan to take effect,” Pierre-Outerbridge said. “Eventually, the idea is that the landlord will sell more units over the next few years.” 

You might be wondering how that will happen, and why you should organize in the first place if you can stay put. “Don’t forget how dirty landlords play,” Pierre-Outerbridge said. “In egregious cases, landlords will neglect their properties to try to discourage renters from staying so they can sell the unit once they vacate.” 

Take for example what’s going on with tenants of the Riverside Apartments in Brooklyn Heights. After the owner, Pinnacle Group, filed a red herring notice, tenants are protesting the conversion and speaking out about crumbling ceilings, rodent infestations, severe leaks, heat failure and mold that they have endured for years. 

“It’s worth resisting the conversion plan, especially if you’re a rent-stabilized tenant,” Pierre-Outerbridge said. “You might be thinking about staying in that unit for the next 10 or 20 years, but you won’t want to if your new landlord refuses to uphold decent living standards. If your building is maintained well and your landlord treats tenants fairly, fight the conversion plan to prevent risking a lackadaisical new landlord.”

Altagracia Pierre-Outerbridge, Esq. is the owner of Outerbridge Law P.C, focusing primarily on tenant representation. The firm represents all sides in landlord-tenant litigation and transactional matters such as month-to-month holdovers, nuisance cases, licensee cases, harassment claims, repair cases, tenant buyouts, succession claims, DHCR overcharges and rent reductions and more. Pierre-Outerbridge has 15 years of experience litigating in Supreme, DHCR, and Housing Court. To submit a question for this column, click here. To contact Outerbridge Law P.C. directly, call 212-364-5612 or 877-OUTERBRIDGE, or schedule a meeting today.