Read the full stored bill text
Statement of Introduction
Tenant Buyout Agreement Transparency Amendment Act of 2025
September 17, 2025
Nyasha Howard, Secretary
Council of the District of Columbia
1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20004
Dear Secretary Howard,
Tenant buyout agreements occur in a variety of housing negotiations, including TOPA
transactions, other building sales or renovations, rental arrears remediation, and other lease
termination discussions.
While these agreements can benefit both property owners and tenants, the lack of clear
transparency and predictability in these transactions opens the door for exploitation of all parties
involved. Tenants may be unaware of their rights to stay in their unit and property owners may
be asked to pay large sums that put the financial health of their property at risk.
There is a need for closer scrutiny of buyouts in all cases, including establishing a regulatory
framework that formalizes the process and that ensure that negotiations are not pushed
underground where there is less oversight and representation.
I am introducing the “Tenant Buyout Agreement Transparency Amendment Act of 2025,” which
will establish regulations for buyout agreements in all areas of tenancy to prevent exploitation of
all parties. It also tasks the Rental Housing Commission with determining the maximum
evidence-bases buyout caps that are unique to household characteristics, including unit size and
fair market rent.
Sincerely,
Brianne K. Nadeau
Councilmember, Ward 1
Chair, Committee on Public Works & Operations
1
A BILL _________________________ IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA _________________________ To establish within the Department of Housing and Community Development a Tenant Buyout 1 Notification Program, for the purposes of monitoring and enforcement of buyout offers 2 and buyout agreements to promote fair negotiations and agreements and improve the 3 predictability of transactions. 4 5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this 6 act may be cited as the “Tenant Buyout Agreement Transparency Amendment Act of 2025”. 7 Sec. 2. The Rental Housing Act of 1985, effective July 17, 1985 (D.C. Law 6-10; D.C. 8 Official Code § 42-3501.01 et. seq.) is amended as follows: 9 (a) A new Title VII-A to read as follows: 10 “TITLE VII-A. TENANT BUYOUT NOTIFICATION AND TRANSPARANCY. 11 “Sec. 711. Definitions. 12 “For the purposes of this title, the term: 13 “(1) “Buyout agreement” means a written agreement where an offeror pays a 14 tenant money or offers other consideration to: 15 “(A) Voluntarily vacate a rental unit; or 16
_____________________________ Councilmember Brianne K. Nadeau
2
“(B) Assign purchase rights pursuant to section 406 of the Tenant 17 Opportunity to Purchase Act of 1980, effective September 10, 1980 (D.C. Law 3-86, D.C. 18 Official Code § 42-3404.06). 19 “(2) “Buyout offer” means an offer, written or oral, to a tenant to enter into a 20 buyout agreement. 21 “(3) “Disclosure notice” means the notice as set forth in section 713(a). 22 “(4) “Offeror” means a housing provider or other party initiating a buyout offer. 23 “Sec. 712. There is established within the Department of Housing and Community 24 Development a Tenant Buyout Notification Program, for the purposes of monitoring and 25 enforcement of buyout offers and buyout agreements to promote fair negotiations and 26 agreements and improve the predictability of transactions. 27 “Sec. 713. Buyout offers. 28 “(a) Before making a buyout offer, an offeror shall provide the tenant with a notice of 29 tenant rights, including the requirements of this title, in a form substantially prescribed by the 30 Department. This notice shall be dated and signed by the offeror and the tenant. 31 “(b) In making a buyout offer, an offeror shall: 32 “(1) Offer a tenant an amount equal to or greater than the relocation assistance 33 payments which a tenant would be entitled to pursuant to Section 703(b) of the Rental Housing 34 Act of 1985, effective July 17, 1985 (D.C. Law 6-10; D.C. Official Code § 42-3507.03); and 35 “(2) Offer the same amount to comparable tenants residing in the same housing 36 accommodation, accounting for household and unit size. 37 “Sec. 714 Buyout agreement requirements. 38
3
“(a) A buyout agreement shall be written in the primary language of the tenant and state 39 in a minimum of 12-point bold type above the tenant signature line as follows: 40 ““You have a right not to enter into a buyout agreement. You may choose to consult with 41 an attorney before signing this buyout agreement.” 42 “(b) A buyout agreement shall be signed and dated by the landlord and tenant, and a copy 43 of the fully executed buyout agreement shall be given to the tenant. 44 “(c) The monetary payment of a fully executed buyout agreement shall be: 45 “(1) No less than the amount initially offered, as set forth in section 712(b); and 46 “(2) No greater than the maximum amount published by the Rental Housing 47 Commission, pursuant to Section 202(a)(2)(E) of the Rental Housing Act of 1985, effective July 48 17, 1985 (D.C. Law 6-10; D.C. Official Code § 42-3502.02(a)(2)(E)). 49 “(3) Paid in full immediately upon execution of the agreement. The offeror may 50 instead place the funds in a secure escrow account with the balance to be paid at a later 51 date. To do this, an offeror must provide the following as part of the agreement: 52 (A) A copy of the initial escrow account statement; 53 (B) A letter from the escrow agent confirming receipt of the funds and 54 detailing the terms of the agreement; and 55 (C) A copy of the escrow instructions signed by both parties. 56 “(d) An offeror shall file with the Department copies of the disclosure notice signed by 57 the tenant and the landlord, and the buyout agreement within 60 days of the buyout agreement 58 execution. 59 “Sec. 715. Enforcement. 60
4
“(a) Buyout agreements that do not satisfy all the requirements of this title shall be void 61 and unenforceable against the tenant. 62 “(b) Whenever a disclosure notice or buyout agreement does not conform to the 63 requirements of this title, the tenant shall have the right to cancel the buyout agreement through 64 the applicable statute of limitations period.”. 65 (b) Section 202(a)(2) (D.C. Official Code § 42-3502.02(a)(2)) is amended by adding a 66 new sub-paragraph (E) to read as follows: 67 “(E) The maximum amount payable to a tenant under a tenant buyout 68 agreement, pursuant to section 225.”. 69 (c) A new section 225 is added to read as follows: 70 “Sec. 225. Determination of maximum payment for tenant buyout agreements. 71 “(a) No later than 1 year after the effective date of this section, and no less than once 72 every 3 years thereafter, the Rental Housing Commission (“Commission”) shall determine the 73 maximum amounts payable to a tenant under a valid buyout agreement, as that term is defined in 74 section 711(2). 75 “(b) The Commission shall establish different thresholds for maximum payments based 76 on tenant and household characteristics, taking into consideration the following factors: 77 “(1) Household size; 78 “(2) Unit size; 79 “(3) Length of tenancy; 80 “(4) Status as an elderly or disabled tenant; and 81 “(5) The fair market rent for a comparable unit to the rental unit being vacated.”. 82 Sec. 3. Fiscal impact statement. 83
5
The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement in the committee report as the fiscal 84 impact statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975, 85 approved October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Official Code § 1-301.47a). 86 Sec. 4. Effective date. 87 This act shall take effect after approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the 88 Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), a 30-day period of congressional review as 89 provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December 90 24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Official Code § 1-206.02(c)(1)), and publication in the District of 91 Columbia Register. 92