27 V.S.A. § ___ § 1334
Exclusive right to purchase
Operative Text
(a) For 90 days after giving the notice described in section 1333 of this title, the declarant shall offer to convey each unit or proposed unit occupied for residential use to the tenant who rents that unit. The tenant shall be given all documents provided to the general public or to other tenants as part of the offering for sale of the unit. If a tenant fails to contract for the unit during the offer period, the declarant may not offer an interest in that unit during the following 90 days at a price or on terms more favorable to the offeree than the price or terms offered to the tenant. (b) If a declarant conveys a unit in violation of section 1333 to a purchaser for value who has no knowledge of the violation, recordation of the deed conveying the unit extinguishes any right a tenant may have to purchase the unit, but does not affect the right of a tenant to recover damages from the declarant. (c) This section shall not apply to any unit in a conversion building if that unit will be restricted exclusively to nonresidential use or the boundaries of the converted unit do not substantially conform to the dimensions of the residential unit before conversion. (Added 1985, No. 175 (Adj. Sess.), § 5.)
Under 27 V.S.A. ch. 15 § 1334, when a residential building is being converted to condominiums, the person carrying out the conversion (the "declarant") must first offer each occupied unit for sale to the tenant living there, and that offer window lasts 90 days. During this period, tenants must receive the same sales documents made available to the general public. If a tenant does not purchase during that window, the declarant cannot turn around and offer the unit to someone else at a better price or on better terms for another 90 days. If the unit is sold in violation of these rules to a good-faith buyer who recorded a deed without knowledge of the violation, the tenant's right to buy the unit is extinguished—but the tenant may still seek monetary damages from the declarant.
Plain English — not legal advice.
Property owners or managers overseeing a condominium conversion covered by 27 V.S.A. ch. 15 § 1334 generally ensure that each residential tenant receives a formal written purchase offer for their unit within the required timeframe following the notice required by § 1333, and that the offer remains open for the full 90-day period. Compliant operators provide tenants with all the same disclosure documents distributed to the general public in connection with the sale. If a tenant declines to purchase, operators typically track the subsequent 90-day window carefully to confirm that no third-party offer is made at a price or on terms more favorable than what was offered to the tenant.
General guidance for property managers — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult an attorney for advice on your case.
Under 27 V.S.A. ch. 15 § 1334, tenants in a building undergoing condominium conversion have an exclusive 90-day right to purchase their unit before it can be offered to outside buyers on equal or better terms. Tenants are entitled to receive all sales and disclosure documents that are provided to the general public as part of the offering. If a declarant fails to honor these rights, tenants may have a claim for monetary damages even if the unit has already been sold and recorded to a third-party buyer; tenant-rights organizations or legal aid services can help tenants understand what remedies may be available under this provision.
General guidance for tenants — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult a tenant-rights organization or attorney for advice on your case.
Generated October 18, 2026 — auto-generated, not yet human-reviewed. See /transparency for methodology.
Effective Timeline
References In
Rules and statutes that cite this regulation