What's happening
This bill creates a new "class one-a" property tax category for most condominiums and cooperatives, changes how they are assessed and taxed, and updates related tax abatement and enforcement provisions.
Why it matters
Shifts most condos and co-ops into a new "class one-a" tax category, changing how their property taxes are calculated and potentially affecting tax bills for hundreds of thousands of NYC homeowners. This new class separates these properties from both single-family homes and larger rental buildings, aiming for a more tailored assessment and tax treatment.
Directs the Department of Finance to base "class one-a" condo/co-op assessments on comparable sales, and limits annual increases in assessed value—similar to rules for one- to three-family homes. This may bring more predictability and potentially slow sharp tax increases for many owners, creating parity with small homeowners.
Significantly changes tax abatement formulas and eligibility for condos and co-ops, including new, market value-based thresholds for partial property tax abatements. The bill introduces a tiered system: lower-value units get larger abatements, while high-value units (over $5 million) lose abatement eligibility entirely, targeting relief to more middle-income owners.
Revises enforcement and tax lien sale rules for condos and co-ops, aligning them with single-family properties rather than larger multifamily or commercial buildings. This could offer greater protections from rapid tax lien sales and foreclosures for owner-occupied and smaller co-op/condo units, reducing risk of displacement.
*Why it matters:**
This bill would fundamentally reshape how condos and co-ops are taxed in NYC, affecting affordability, housing values, and the distribution of property tax burdens between different types of homeowners and rental properties. It also has major implications for city revenue, the real estate market, and future housing policy.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Change Condo Tax Classification
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
2 Co-sponsors
History
- Referred to real property taxation
- Referred to real property taxation
Full text
19 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
3444
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 27, 2017
Introduced by M. of A. DenDEKKER -- read once and referred to the Committee on Real Property Taxation
AN ACT to amend the real property tax law, the administrative code of the city of New York and the real property law, in relation to classifying properties held in condominium and cooperative form for assessment purposes as class one-a properties; and to repeal certain provisions of the real property tax law relating thereto
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 1802 of the real property tax law, as separately amended by chapters 123 and 529 of the laws of 1990, paragraph class one as amended by chapter 332 of the laws of 2008, is amended to read as follows:
1. All real property, for the purposes of this article, in a special assessing unit shall be classified as follows:
Class one: (a) all one, two and three family residential real proper-
ty, including such dwellings used in part for nonresidential
purposes but which are used primarily for residential purposes,
except such property held in cooperative or condominium forms of
ownership other than (i) property defined in subparagraphs (b)
and (c) of this paragraph and (ii) property which contains no
more than three dwelling units held in condominium form of
ownership and which was classified within this class on a previ-
ous assessment roll; and provided that, notwithstanding the
provisions of paragraph (g) of subdivision twelve of section one
hundred two of this chapter, a mobile home or a trailer shall
not be classified within this class unless it is owner-occupied
and separately assessed; and (b) residential real property not
more than three stories in height held in condominium form of
ownership, provided that no dwelling unit therein previously was
on an assessment roll as a dwelling unit in other than condomin-
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01285-02-7
A. 3444 2
ium form of ownership; and (c) residential real property
consisting of one family house structures owned by the occupant,
situated on land held in cooperative ownership by owner occupi-
ers, provided that; (i) such house structures and land consti-
tuted bungalow colonies in existence prior to nineteen hundred
forty; and (ii) the land is held in cooperative ownership for
the sole purpose of maintaining one family residences for
members own use; and (d) all vacant land located within a
special assessing unit which is a city (i) other than such land
in the borough of Manhattan, provided that any such vacant land
which is not zoned residential must be situated immediately
adjacent to property improved with a residential structure as
defined in subparagraphs (a) and (b) of this paragraph, be owned
by the same owner as such immediately adjacent residential prop-
erty immediately prior to and since January 1, 1989, and have a
total area not exceeding 10,000 square feet; and (ii) located in
the borough of Manhattan north of or adjacent to the north side
of 110th street provided such vacant land was classified within
this class on the assessment roll with a taxable status date of
January 5, 2008 and the owner of such land has entered into a
recorded agreement with a governmental entity on or before
December 31, 2008 requiring construction of housing affordable
to persons or families of low income in accordance with the
provisions of the private housing finance law. Notwithstanding
the foregoing, such vacant land shall be classified according to
its use on the assessment roll with a taxable status date imme-
diately following commencement of construction, provided
further, that construction pursuant to an approved plan for
affordable housing shall commence no later than December 31,
2010; and (e) all vacant land located within a special assessing
unit which is not a city, provided that such vacant land which
is not zoned residential must be situated immediately adjacent
to real property defined in subparagraph (a), (b) or (c) of this
paragraph and be owned by the same person or persons who own the
real property defined in such subparagraph immediately prior to
and since January 1, 2003;
Class one-a: all other residential real property held in condominium
or cooperative form of ownership which is not designated as
class one; the department of finance of any city enacting a
local law pursuant to this section shall reclassify class one-a
properties used primarily to generate rental income to class
two. The department of finance of any city enacting a local law
pursuant to this section shall have, in addition to any other
functions, powers and duties which have been or may be conferred
on it by law, the power to make and promulgate rules to carry
out the purposes of this section including, but not limited to,
rules defining the class one-a properties primarily used to
generate rental income, and relating to the timing, form and
manner of any certification required to be submitted under this
section. If a property previously reclassified from class one-a
to class two ceases to be used primarily to generate rental
income, the department shall reclassify such property to class
one-a. The department shall use a five-year period when deter-
mining whether a property is used primarily to generate rental
income;
A. 3444 3
Class two: all other residential real property which is not designated
as class one or class one-a, except hotels and motels and other
similar commercial property;
Class three: utility real property and property subject to former
section four hundred seventy of this chapter;
Class four: all other real property which is not designated as class
one, class one-a, class two, or class three.
§ 1-a. The real property tax law is amended by adding a new section 1803-c to read as follows:
§ 1803-c. Allocation of taxes among classes in a city with a population of one million or more. 1. For the calendar year two thousand eighteen, notwithstanding the provisions of sections eighteen hundred three, eighteen hundred three-a, and eighteen hundred three-b of this article to the contrary, the New York city commissioner of finance shall establish a new class one-a pursuant to subdivision one of section eighteen hundred two of this article and shall calculate shares for class one, class one-a, class two, class three and class four where the base year used in the calculation of the current base proportion shall be the 2017 assessment roll and the sum of class one-a and class two shall not exceed the prior year adjusted base proportion for such classes.
2. After two thousand nineteen, assessment rolls prepared according to January 1, 2019, the adjusted base proportions for class one and class one-a, shall not exceed each class' prior adjusted base proportion by more than five percent.
3. In a city having a population of one million or more, such city's tax fixing resolution shall set a tax rate for class one-a in the same manner as all class shares are calculated pursuant to sections eighteen hundred three, eighteen hundred three-a and eighteen hundred three-b of this article.
4. The assessment ratio for class one-a shall be six percent.
§ 2. Subdivision 1, paragraph (c) of subdivision 2 and subdivision 4 of section 307-a of the real property tax law, as added by section 1 of part G of chapter 63 of the laws of 2003, are amended to read as follows:
1. Generally. Notwithstanding any provision of any general, special or local law to the contrary, any city with a population of one million or more is hereby authorized and empowered to adopt and amend local laws in accordance with this section imposing an additional tax on certain class one and class one-a properties, as such properties are defined in section eighteen hundred two of this chapter, excluding vacant land.
(c) "Net real property tax" means the real property tax assessed on a class one or class one-a property after deduction for any exemption or abatement received pursuant to this chapter.
4. Property subject to additional tax. Such surcharge shall be imposed on class one and class one-a property, excluding vacant land, that provides rental income and is not the primary residence of the owner or owners of such class one or class one-a property, or the primary residence of the parent or child of such owner or owners.
§ 3. Paragraph (f) of subdivision 1 of section 467-a of the real property tax law, as added by chapter 273 of the laws of 1996, is amended and a new paragraph (i) is added to read as follows:
(f) "Property" means real property designated as class [two] one-a, pursuant to section eighteen hundred two of this chapter, held in the cooperative or condominium form of ownership.
(i) "Market value" shall be calculated by the New York city department of finance based upon comparable sales.
A. 3444 4
§ 4. Paragraphs (d-1), (d-2), (d-3) and (d-4) of subdivision 2 of section 467-a of the real property tax law, as amended by section 62 of part A of chapter 20 of the laws of 2015, are amended and seven new paragraphs (d-7), (d-8), (d-9), (d-10), (d-11), (d-12) and (d-13) are added to read as follows:
(d-1) In the fiscal years commencing in calendar years two thousand twelve, two thousand thirteen and two thousand fourteen, eligible dwelling units in property whose average unit assessed value is less than or equal to fifty thousand dollars shall receive a partial abatement of the real property taxes attributable to or due on such dwelling units of twenty-five percent, twenty-six and one-half percent and twenty-eight and one-tenth percent respectively. In the fiscal years commencing in calendar years two thousand fifteen, two thousand sixteen[, two thousand seventeen and two thousand eighteen] eligible dwelling units in property whose average unit assessed value is less than or equal to fifty thousand dollars shall receive a partial abatement of the real property taxes attributable to or due on such dwelling units of twenty-eight and one-tenth percent.
(d-2) In the fiscal years commencing in calendar years two thousand twelve, two thousand thirteen and two thousand fourteen, eligible dwelling units in property whose average unit assessed value is more than fifty thousand dollars, but less than or equal to fifty-five thousand dollars, shall receive a partial abatement of the real property taxes attributable to or due on such dwelling units of twenty-two and one-half percent, twenty-three and eight-tenths percent and twenty-five and twotenths percent respectively. In the fiscal years commencing in calendar years two thousand fifteen, two thousand sixteen[, two thousand seventeen and two thousand eighteen] eligible dwelling units in property whose average unit assessed value is more than fifty thousand dollars, but less than or equal to fifty-five thousand dollars, shall receive a partial abatement of the real property taxes attributable to or due on such dwelling units of twenty-five and two-tenths percent.
(d-3) In the fiscal years commencing in calendar years two thousand twelve, two thousand thirteen and two thousand fourteen, eligible dwelling units in property whose average unit assessed value is more than fifty-five thousand dollars, but less than or equal to sixty thousand dollars, shall receive a partial abatement of the real property taxes attributable to or due on such dwelling units of twenty percent, twenty-one and two-tenths percent, and twenty-two and five-tenths percent respectively. In the fiscal years commencing in calendar years two thousand fifteen, two thousand sixteen[, two thousand seventeen and two thousand eighteen] eligible dwelling units in property whose average unit assessed value is more than fifty-five thousand dollars, but less than or equal to sixty thousand dollars, shall receive a partial abatement of the real property taxes attributable to or due on such dwelling units of twenty-two and five-tenths percent.
(d-4) In the fiscal years commencing in calendar years two thousand twelve, two thousand thirteen, two thousand fourteen, two thousand fifteen, two thousand sixteen[, two thousand seventeen and two thousand eighteen,] eligible dwelling units in property whose average unit assessed value is more than sixty thousand dollars shall receive a partial abatement of the real property taxes attributable to or due on such dwelling units of seventeen and one-half percent.
(d-7) Eligible dwelling units in property whose average unit market value is less than or equal to six hundred fifty thousand dollars shall receive a partial abatement of real property taxes attributable to or
A. 3444 5
due on such dwelling units, not to exceed thirty-three percent in the fiscal year commencing in calendar year two thousand eighteen and thereafter.
(d-8) Eligible dwelling units in property whose average unit market value is between six hundred fifty thousand one dollars to seven hundred fifty thousand dollars shall receive a partial abatement of the real property taxes attributable to or due on such dwelling units, not to exceed twenty-two and five-tenths percent in the fiscal year commencing in calendar year two thousand eighteen and thereafter.
(d-9) Eligible dwelling units in property whose average unit market value is between seven hundred fifty thousand one and one million five hundred thousand dollars shall receive a partial abatement of the real property taxes attributable to or due on such dwelling units, not to exceed seventeen and five-tenths percent in the fiscal year commencing in calendar year two thousand eighteen and thereafter.
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