Today we signed the Councilmember Mary Pat Clarke Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act

Thank you to Mayor Scott, Council President Mosby, and my colleagues for your unanimous support for the Councilmember Mary Pat Clarke Opportunity to Purchase Act. It ensures that tenants in single-family residences have the first opportunity to purchase the property in which they live from the owner when the owner wants to sell it.

When my predecessor Councilwoman Clarke was a city councilwoman representing Northeast Baltimore, she worked with St. Ambrose Housing Aid Center founders Vinnie Quayle and Frank Fisher on the original Tenant Right of First Refusal legislation. It was the first such legislation in the country giving an opportunity for tenants to purchase the homes in which they live when the owner was ready to sell.  In fact, in 1997, I purchase my first house on Guilford Avenue using that same legislation.

A few years after that, in one of the short times that Councilwoman Clarke was not in office, the legislation was watered down, making it harder for tenants to purchase the homes in which they live. At that time, one exemption was added to the legislation. It said that if an owner places the home on the market using a real estate professional, then the tenant can negotiate like any other buyer. The opportunity to purchase was depleted.

Today, the Mayor and Baltimore City Council made sure that the law is back to its original intent. We removed that harmful exemption, added clarifying language that the landlord/owner has to offer the tenant the property before placing it on the market, and if the tenant can’t take it at that time, the landlord can place it on the market. If there is a 10% or more difference in price, the landlord has to make it available to the tenant. We also added reporting language and a provision that requires the landlord to provide a fact sheet to the tenant about their rights under this law which will be written by the Department of Housing and Community Development and the Office of Equity and Civil Rights and made available on the DHCD website.

The legacy of the work of Councilwoman Clarke (and then Council President Mary Pat Clarke) cannot be overstated. This is just one way to honor her, by ensuring the original intent of the Right of First Refusal law is in place- that tenants have the first chance to purchase the properties in which they currently live. Thank you again to my colleagues for their unwavering support.”