New York proposed pied-à-terre tax targets luxury second homes

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NY pied-à-terre tax proposal

Highlights

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's proposed pied-à-terre tax targets non-primary residences over $5 million, including homes owned by out-of-state and foreign individuals.
The measure could impact high-profile owners such as Ken Griffin, Jeff Bezos, Jay-Z and Beyonce, Steve Cohen, and Donald Trump, implicating luxury real estate investment in New York.
Governor Hochul's office estimates about 13,000 properties may be affected, but unclear valuation methods and difficulty tracing ownership through trusts or LLCs could hinder enforcement.

Budget proposal puts focus on luxury residences

As first reported by Business Insider, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani unveils the proposed pied-à-terre tax in a video this week alongside New York State Gov. Kathy Hochul's broader budget plan. The levy would apply to non-primary residences worth more than $5 million, including homes owned by people living abroad, in other U.S. states, elsewhere in New York state, and certain investment properties.

Officials say the measure is aimed at ultra-wealthy property owners. In the announcement, Mamdani's office points to Citadel CEO Ken Griffin and Russian auto dealer Alexander Varshavsky as examples of owners of expensive New York apartments who could be affected.

The state has not publicly detailed how it would determine whether a home is a primary residence, how properties would be valued, or what tax rates homeowners would pay. Those unanswered questions are significant in New York City's apartment market, where condos and co-ops are assessed through more complex formulas than one- to three-family homes.

Potential reach across finance, entertainment and real estate

The proposal immediately draws criticism from some prominent investors and business figures, who argue it could discourage capital from flowing into New York real estate. Bill Ackman says on X that Mamdani's broader push to tax the rich would hurt the constituencies it is meant to help, while President Donald Trump, who maintains property in New York but lives in Washington, D.C. and votes in Florida, attacks the policy on Truth Social.

Among the high-profile owners likely to face the tax are Jeff Bezos, Jay-Z and Beyonce, Steve Cohen, Michael Dell, Ken Griffin, Stephen Ross, Howard Schultz and Trump. Many of them maintain primary residences in Florida, California, Connecticut or other locations while retaining multimillion-dollar New York apartments, including penthouses in Manhattan towers that have become symbols of wealth concentration and investment ownership.

Hochul's office estimates the tax would apply to roughly 13,000 properties, although ownership may be difficult to trace in some cases because homes are often purchased through trusts or LLCs. That could leave implementation and enforcement as major issues if the proposal advances in its current form.

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