Wrongly Targeted NYC Homes Rise 21% to 2,318 as Mamdani Skips Tax Hearing

3 articles · Updated · thecityreporter.nyc · Aug 17

2,318 households had been wrongly flagged for New York City’s new pied-à-terre surcharge by Monday, up from 1,906 a week earlier, as City Council members blasted the Mamdani administration for skipping Tuesday’s oversight hearing.
17,000 households received notices last month telling them to prove their homes were not second residences, and exemption requests jumped from 4,290 last week to 9,884 by Tuesday.
Finance Commissioner Richard Lee sent a five-page written statement instead of appearing, citing pending litigation and conceding some recipients of initial determination letters may not ultimately owe the surcharge.
Randy Mastro on Tuesday added three more property owners to a state-court lawsuit challenging the rollout, including one co-op owner hit with a $58,479 notice tied to a home valued at $1.46 million.
The tax, approved in May to help close a $5.4 billion city budget gap, was designed to target expensive vacant homes owned by out-of-towners but has instead swept in thousands of primary residents.