HDFC unit at 100 West 141st Street #16

HDFC unit at 100 West 141st Street #16 Before the pandemic, New York City set the record for the country's most expensive home sale, and a $14 million penthouse was considered a steal. More recently, it has become clear that New York’s housing construction has utterly failed to keep pace with the city’s population growth. This has led to rising prices and fears that there is no place for low- and middle-income buyers in New York. These buyers should not skulk to the suburbs in despair, but look to Housing Development Fund Corporation (HDFC) units. These apartments also offer jaw-dropping prices, but from the other extreme. The program dates back to the late 1970s, when the city created a program that allowed low-income residents to buy their units for as little as $250. More recently, community development non-profit LISE NYC closed on three West Harlem buildings that it plans to renovate, convert to HDFC co-ops, and sell to existing tenants for $2,500. (Vacant units will be available through the city's affordable lottery system.) It should be noted that to keep HDFC listings affordable, strict income caps are in place that buyers should be prepared to abide by. Moreover, in spite of the low sticker prices, buyers should be prepared to make a hefty down payment. As a result, a Bloomberg article observes that a number of HDFC units are being sold to young people whose incomes fall within the parameters but who have wealthy parents to help with the down payments, which couldn't be farther from what the program intended.

What is an HDFC Co-op?

HDFC units were created several decades ago as a way for tenants in poorly managed buildings to take control of the property and form cooperatives. The city sold these apartments to residents for a mere $250 a piece. Obviously they no longer trade for that price, but they do often sell for far less than what a comparable market rate unit in the same neighborhood would.

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