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News from Attorney General Andrew Cuomo

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES LEGISLATION TO IMPROVE CO-OP AND CONDO
CONVERSION PROCESS
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Proposed Bill Would Increase Resources to Process Conversions Faster
and Enhance Oversight and Enforcement
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Legislation Supported by ACORN, the New York City Bar Association, the
Council of New York Cooperatives & Condominiums, and the Real Estate
Board of New York

NEW YORK, NY (December 13, 2007) – Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo
today announced new legislation in the New York State Legislature that
will vastly improve the process for converting cooperatives and
condominiums. The bill will increase funds for the Attorney General’s
Real Estate Finance Bureau (REFB), which will speed up the processing
for co-op and condominium conversions and give tenants access to the
sponsor’s offering plan sooner, as well as enhance oversight and
enforcement.

The new legislation is the product of the Real Estate Working Group
that Attorney General Cuomo convened in 2007 to address the review
process for condominium and cooperative offerings. The group included
executive staff from the Attorney General’s office, as well as a broad
section of real estate professionals, as well as representatives of
sponsors, tenants’ organizations, and cooperative and condominium
owners.

The bill is sponsored by Senator Owen H. Johnson as S.6540 in the
Senate and by Assemblywoman Helene Weinstein as A.9546 in the Assembly.
It is currently in committee in both chambers.

“It is critically important to have condo and co-op conversions
reviewed speedily so tenants are not left in the dark about what options
they have and what choices to make for their housing future,” said
Attorney General Cuomo. “I would like to thank the members of the
Real Estate Working Group for coming up with this solution as well as
Senator Johnson and Assemblywoman Weinstein for introducing it as
legislation. Thanks to their efforts, tenants will be informed of their
options and their rights in a faster time frame, and owners will have
their plans approved expeditiously.”

“Because of the increase in co-op and condo conversions, additional
staffing at the REFB is necessary to protect the rights of tenants and
existing owners,” said Assemblywoman Helene Weinstein, Chair of the
Assembly Judiciary Committee.

“This legislation will provide the additional funds needed by the
REFB to alleviate current staffing shortages,” said Senator Owen H.
Johnson, Chair of the Senate Finance Committee.

In a memorandum of support to Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno and
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, the Real Estate Board of New York
(REBNY) said, “REBNY’s support for this legislation is a good
indication of just how difficult the situation has become and how
necessary the increased staffing is. Dedicating the increased fees to
additional staffing in the REFB ensures that the additional monies will
go where they are needed.”

In letters of support to Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno and
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, the Association of Community
Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) said, “This legislation will
provide greater protection for housing consumers and facilitate
development of cooperatives and condominiums, by ensuring adequate funds
are available for use by the Office of the Attorney General’s Real
Estate Finance Bureau.”

The New York City Bar wrote in statements of support to Senate Majority
Leader Joseph Bruno and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, “It is
commendable that, over the last several years, the REFB has been able to
perform these services as well as it has in light of its being seriously
understaffed. With the increase in conversions, and in particular new
construction conversions, this proposed Bill will give the REFB the
ability to fully fulfill its mandate and meet the needs of both
developers and the purchasing and non-purchasing public.”

It is the responsibility of the REFB to review all offering plans for
the conversion of rental buildings to cooperative or condominium
ownership within six months. The number of offering plans submitted to
the REFB has grown by more than 300% over the past five years, rising
from 299 in 2002, to 929 in 2006.

Under the current ceiling, projects with a total offering price of $5
million or more pay only a $20,000 fee. This legislation raises that cap
to $30,000. Increasing the ceiling for the filing fee imposes a minimal
burden on sponsors because it applies only to projects with a total
offering price of $5 million or more, and has no effect on smaller
developments. The cap has not been raised since 1989.

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