New Proposal Before Boston City Council Would Expand Protections for Tenants of 2- and 3-Family Buildings Undergoing Condo Conversion, Bringing City Ordinance Up to Date
(East Boston, MA – September 23, 2026) – A proposal before the Boston City Council (docket #1711 – An Ordinance Amending and Extending Protections for Tenants Facing Displacement by Condominium or Cooperative Conversion) would update Boston’s Condominium and Cooperative Conversion Ordinance in accordance with changes made to Massachusetts’ statewide condominium conversion law, thus expanding protections to additional rental units, including units in two- and three- family properties, and separately improving accountability and implementation processes.
In 2024, under the leadership of Senator Lydia Edwards, then-Chair of the Housing Committee, the Massachusetts Legislature expanded the statewide condominium conversion law to cover certain two- and three- family properties where the owner does not reside in the building (Affordable Homes Act 2024). The change brought tenants of these smaller properties under the state’s condo conversion protections for the first time.
Under Massachusetts law, municipalities have authority to adopt condominium conversion ordinances that include tenant notification requirements, relocation costs, eviction protections, permitting requirements, and other measures to protect tenants. The state framework establishes a baseline, while municipalities may adopt additional protections under their local ordinances. The proposal put before the Boston City Council acts upon that authority and expands the protections offered to eligible tenants.
What Does the Proposal Before Boston City Council Do?
Expands tenant protections to two- and three-family, non-owner-occupied properties built before December 1983.
Creates a one-year waiting period between preliminary conversion approval and final approval for vacant properties, discouraging owners from intentionally vacating units to avoid tenant protections.
Strengthens accountability for violations: If a unit was occupied within the previous 12 months, the Owner must still honor tenants’ rights—including the first right of refusal to purchase the unit, when possible, and payment of relocation benefits. If an eligible tenant cannot be reached, the relocation payment will still be paid – and will be paid to the City’s Mayor’s Office of Housing.
Creates a two-step approval process: The Mayor’s Office of Housing grants preliminary conversion approval, while a final conversion permit is not issued by Inspectional Services until required tenant protections and other obligations have been satisfied.
“Updating Boston’s condo conversion ordinance is especially important in a city where the majority of residents are renters,” said Senator Lydia Edwards, State Senator for the Third Suffolk District. “Strengthening protections across Boston helps ensure that tenants are not left behind and have meaningful safeguards against displacement. I want to thank Council President Breadon and Councilor Coletta Zapata for bringing this important matter before the Council, as well as the housing advocates and experts whose expertise and input helped shape these enhanced protections.”
“This ordinance is about ensuring that when a rental property becomes a condominium, the people who already call that building home aren’t treated as an afterthought. By providing meaningful notice, relocation assistance, the right to purchase, and stronger protections for seniors, people with disabilities, and low- and moderate-income residents, we are giving tenants greater stability during an incredibly disruptive transition,” said Councilor Gabriela Coletta Zapata (District 1). “These protections are especially important in neighborhoods like East Boston, where smaller two- and three-family homes make up so much of our housing stock and longtime residents continue to face intense displacement pressures. Condo conversions can happen, but they should never come at the expense of basic fairness, transparency, and dignity for the tenants who helped build our communities.”
“Boston’s Condo Conversion ordinance has been a key anti-displacement tool since it was adopted, but our current protections no longer reflect the reality facing tenants today,” said Council President Liz Breadon. “This update strengthens and modernizes our protections by expanding coverage to triple‑deckers, improving notice and relocation requirements, and closing key loopholes. Our goal is straightforward: prevent displacement and help preserve stable, affordable housing in every Boston neighborhood. I thank both Senator Edwards and Councilor Coletta Zapata for their work on this, and look forward to working with my colleagues and advocates to finalize these protections and deliver increased housing security for Boston residents.”
Data from the City of Boston’s Mayor’s Office of Housing Condo Master Deeds Tracker shows that over the last two and a half years, a significant number of condominium conversion projects in Boston fell outside the city’s current four-unit threshold.
Citywide, 101 two- and three-family properties built before 1983 were converted from rental to condominium units, resulting in 317 new condominium units and 244 apartment units lost. In East Boston, specifically, the data shows 17 two- and three-family properties built before 1983 undergoing condominium conversion, representing 70 new condominium units and 42 apartment units lost as of May 2026.
Under the proposed update to the city’s Condominium and Cooperative Conversion Ordinance, tenants of these 101 converted properties in Boston, including the 17 in East Boston, would have been protected. In a city predominantly made up of 2- and 3-family properties, this proposal will expand protections to now cover tenants of over 90% of the residential buildings in Boston.
This proposal ensures that tenants of such properties will no longer be left out of such vital protection and displacement mitigation efforts.
Docket #1711 has been introduced before the Boston City Council and has been assigned to the Committee on Government Operations where it will go to a public hearing. To read the proposal, click here.
These condo conversion rights are not new; they have been in place since 1983, and the City of Boston has updated its condo conversion ordinances previously. What is new is the expansion of these protections to include two- and three-family buildings that are not owner-occupied.
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