Perhaps the greatest uncertainty associated with ownership in a residential ground lease cooperative corporation is the question of ground rent escalations. Where the cooperative corporation leases the land on which a building has been constructed, in addition to traditional maintenance expenses for the operation of the building, shareholders are also responsible for their proportionate share of the ground rent due to the owner of the land. The method by which increases in ground rent are determined is a matter of contract, which varies by the terms of the individual ground lease. Because such increases are typically driven by market factors, rather than a fixed rent schedule, the increases are unpredictable.

In December 2023, Senator Liz Krueger introduced Senate Bill 7825, to create a new Section 223-c of the Real Property Law which, if enacted, would (1) limit rent increases under residential cooperative ground leases; (2) entitle residential ground lease cooperative corporations to renew a ground lease for the same period as the expiring term, subject to the terms of the proposed legislation as to rent increases; (3) permit residential ground lease cooperative corporations to incur indebtedness or borrow money, notwithstanding any restrictions in a residential cooperative ground lease, to pay or fund additional rent (defined in the bill as amounts spent to comply with the residential cooperative ground lease for the payment of real estate taxes, insurance, repair, maintenance, including that required by the FISP program implemented by the city of New York or other municipalities, or for capital improvements to the residential ground lease apartment building); and (4) grant residential ground lease cooperative corporations a right of first refusal if the land owner intends to sell or otherwise transfer its interest in the property, all as more fully set forth below.