SEC. 1387. RIGHT OF TENANTS TO CONTRACT FOR THE PURCHASE OF UNIT.
§ 1387
Tenants in a unit being converted to a subdivision have the right to purchase their unit at the public price, with a 60-day window to decide after receiving a written offer, and may cancel if the unit is not conveyed within six months of agreeing to purchase.
When a building is being split into separate units to sell, the current tenant gets a chance to buy their own unit at the same price offered to the public. The landlord has to give the tenant a written offer, and the tenant has 60 days to decide. The tenant and landlord can agree in writing to extend that deadline, but if the unit isn't actually handed over to the tenant within six months of the agreement, the tenant can walk away. The landlord cannot make this offer until after the final map is recorded and the state real estate department approves the subdivision plan.
- Complex:The section involves multiple conditions and timelines (filing date, issuance of Public Report, recordation of Final Map, 60-day offer period, six-month conveyance window) that interact in ways a typical reader may find difficult to track.
- Controversial:Tenant purchase rights in condo conversions are a subject of genuine public debate in San Francisco regarding tenant protections and displacement.
AI-generated · claude-haiku-4-5 · informational only, not legal advice.
Official text
(a) The present tenant or tenants at the date of filing of the application for a Tentative Map of any unit to be converted or, in the event of a voluntary vacation, or eviction for cause, the tenant or tenants in occupancy at the date of issuance of the State Department of Real Estate's Final Subdivision Public Report shall be given a nontransferable contract right to purchase the unit occupied at a price no greater than the price offered to the general public.
(b) The right of contract for purchase of the unit shall extend for 60 days from the date the unit is initially offered to the tenant in writing by the subdivider. The period of acceptance of the offer may be extended if such an agreement is executed in writing by the subdivider and tenant, provided that the tenant may cancel the purchase agreement if the unit is not conveyed to that tenant within six months of the agreement to purchase.
(c) The offer of sale may not be extended by the subdivider to the tenant until the recordation of the Final Map or Parcel Map, and until the issuance of the State Department of Real Estate's Final Subdivision Public Report.