HDFC co-ops in NYC: how to buy one and the income limits

HDFC (Housing Development Fund Corporation) co-ops are New York City buildings where residents own shares. In return for lower property taxes, each building follows income limits and resale limits. State law lets buyers earn up to 165 percent of area median income, the middle income in the area. Many buildings set a lower limit.

What is an HDFC co-op?

HPD, New York City's housing department (Housing Preservation and Development), says the city took over many abandoned buildings in the 1970s and 1980s. Over the years it let tenants buy their apartments as shareholders in these co-ops. The city has also financed and given tax breaks to newer HDFC buildings. HPD counts more than 1,100 of them today.

You don't own your apartment the way you'd own a house. You own shares in a corporation that owns the building, and the shares give you the right to live in your unit. In an HDFC, every shareholder holds the same number of shares, no matter how big the apartment is. Shareholders elect a board that runs the building, and the board must follow the rules on income, resale and subletting (renting your unit to someone else).

The big difference from an ordinary co-op, where prices follow the market, is the profit limit. HPD says a shareholder's ability to make money when selling is limited, so the home stays affordable for the next low-income buyer.

Who can buy an HDFC apartment? The income limits

Every HDFC must follow state law. It says "low income" means a household earning no more than 165 percent of area median income. Here is that ceiling for 2026, from HPD's income table.

That is the ceiling, not the usual limit. HPD says many buildings have stricter rules in their deed, bylaws (the building's own rules), offering plan (the sales document) or a regulatory agreement (a contract with the city). The building has to follow whichever rule is strictest. So a building might limit buyers at 80 percent of median income, which is $108,560 for two people, or use a formula instead. Our guide to area median income explains where these percentages come from.

How does the state income formula work?

Some buildings don't name a percentage. Their papers point to a formula in state law. HPD describes the formula like this. Take the building's yearly maintenance (the monthly fee owners pay, times 12), add yearly utility costs, and multiply the total by 6 for a one- or two-person household, or by 7 for three or more people. Then add 6 percent of what the seller originally paid. The result is the most a new buyer can earn.

HPD gives a worked example. A one-bedroom has maintenance of $700 a month ($8,400 a year) and utilities of $97 a month ($1,164 a year). The seller paid $260,000. The buyer is a two-person household, so the multiplier is 6.

• Maintenance plus utilities: $8,400 + $1,164 = $9,564
• Times 6: $57,384
• Plus 6 percent of $260,000: $15,600
• Maximum income: $72,984

In HPD's older 2020 income table, $72,984 matched 80 percent of median income. Against the 2026 table, it falls between 50 percent ($67,850) and 60 percent ($81,420) for two people. Check the building's number for the year you buy.

What does an HDFC co-op cost?

There are three costs: the price of the shares, the monthly maintenance, and a possible flip tax when you later sell.

The share price. HPD says sales prices should be low enough that a buyer from the building's income group generally spends no more than one-third (33 percent) of income on housing. It counts the mortgage, maintenance and utilities in that. Buildings with a regulatory agreement may have limits on the sale price.

Maintenance. This is the monthly fee that replaces rent. It pays for the building's upkeep. It varies from building to building, and HPD gives no typical figure. Ask the board.

A flip tax. In many HDFCs, when you sell, part of your profit goes to the building. HPD's example is a building that splits the profit 70 to 30, with 70 percent to the seller and 30 percent to the building. Someone who paid $60,000 and sells for $100,000 has a $40,000 profit. They keep $28,000 and the building gets $12,000. The split, if any, is in the building's documents.

Here is the one-third guideline in numbers, using HPD's example above. Take the two-person household at the $72,984 limit. One third of that income is about $24,300 a year, or roughly $2,030 a month. Maintenance and utilities in HPD's example use up $797 of it. That leaves about $1,230 a month for a mortgage.

How do you pay for one?

HPD's HomeFirst program gives qualified first-time buyers up to $100,000 toward a down payment or closing costs. Cooperatives in the five boroughs qualify. HPD's HDFC page doesn't say how lenders treat these co-ops, so ask a lender and a housing counselor about your building.

HomeFirst has its own rules. You must take a homebuyer education course with an HPD-approved counseling agency, put in at least 3 percent of the price from your own funds, pass an inspection, and earn no more than 120 percent of median income. That is $162,840 for two people, which is lower than the 165 percent HDFC ceiling. You must also live in the home for 10 or 15 years, depending on the loan size.

How do you find an HDFC apartment for sale?

HPD says most are listed like other co-ops: by shareholders or the board, through brokers and real estate websites. Some go through nonprofit organizations. A few are posted on NYC Housing Connect, the city's affordable housing lottery site, where names are drawn at random.

As of October 9, 2026, we track 81 open New York City listings: 62 rentals and 19 homes for sale. The 19 for sale are waitlists, or lists of names, for Mitchell-Lama co-ops, a different program. Only one listing carries an HDFC note: 664-672 Beck Street in the Bronx, a rental lottery for 69 apartments.

The letters "HDFC" on a listing don't always mean you're buying shares. Our New York City page shows what is open now, and our guide to the NYC housing lottery explains how the lotteries work. For sales, check the sources HPD lists above.

What should you check before you buy?

HPD says buyers should review the building's governing documents and may want to talk to a lawyer. Documents to ask for:

• The certificate of incorporation (the paper that created the building's corporation), the bylaws and the offering plan
• Any deed or regulatory agreement. HPD says these are on file in the city's property records system, called ACRIS
• The proprietary lease (your contract to live in the unit) and the share certificate, which say what the flip tax is, if there is one
• The building's recent financial statements, since the board is responsible for the building's finances (this one is our suggestion, not an HPD requirement)

Also know the living rules. HPD says almost all HDFCs require owners to live there and limit subletting. Short sublets with board permission are usually fine if you plan to return, but long ones are not.

Don't assume a building uses the 165 percent ceiling. Read the papers for the building in front of you. If you're also looking at older city-supervised co-ops, see our guide to Mitchell-Lama apartments. To see which programs your income fits, try our qualify check, and browse the open listings we have on our listings page.

HPD's contact for questions about HDFC rules is hdfccoop@hpd.nyc.gov.