Residential Realities July 2012
July 8, 2012--It's All Good Revisited: Co-op and Condo Tax Abatements Will Be Extended...
The Story Thus Far...
One needs Dramamine to keep up with the legislative roller coaster ride over whether the 17.5% co-op and condo tax abatement program will be extended. As discussed previously, the tax benefit expired June 30th, without Albany taking action to continue the program. To add to the confusion, the New York City Department of Finance sent out tax bills that included the abatement, thinking that the abatement would be extended. Corrected bills were supposedly to be sent out reflecting the tax increase. Your abatement was not in the mail, and suddenly, owning an apartment was about to get a lot more expensive.
Long Story Short
Several days ago, the Times reported that an agreement had been reached in Albany to extend the tax break for primary residents only, with action to be taken before the end of the year. It's unclear whether apartment owners are to pay the increased tax and ultimately receive a refund or whether to pay the abated tax set forth in the tax bills that were first mailed out. Hopefully, clarification is forthcoming...
For more on the impact of increasing carry costs, see "A Big Piece of the Pie: New York City's Insatiable Appetite."