President Trump threatened to use the federal government to upend New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s new pied-à-terre tax a day after a judge ordered an emergency pause of the new surcharge.
The annual property tax surcharge on high-value secondary homes or occasional-use residences is “costing New York City and State a fortune in that the money, eventually to be gotten, is very little compared to the TAXES PAID by the tens of thousands of people who are fleeing the City, never to return,” Mr. Trump said Tuesday on Truth Social.
The tax, which is New York City’s newest annual tax, took effect July 1 as part of the state budget. It targets non-primary residences: one- to three-family homes valued over $5 million and co-ops or condos valued at $1 million or more, with progressive surcharge rates scaling up based on assessed value.
It was projected to collect roughly $500 million a year for the city.
“The measure targets ultrawealthy out-of-city residents and global elites who use New York City real estate as a vehicle for wealth storage rather than as homes,” the city said in a previous statement about the tax.
Mr. Trump called the initiative a “dangerous political ’experiment’” that is “pure Amateur Hour.”
“This doesn’t work in America, and must be stopped, NOW! I am looking to see if the Federal Government has any legal right to avert this disaster, before it is too late, for the millions of people who cherish New York and want to see it thrive, as opposed to becoming a filthy, crime ridden, decrepit place of mockery and scorn,” he said.
Mr. Mamdani’s rollout of the new levy was put on hold after a judge ruled in favor of a lawsuit from a group of homeowners who challenged how the city implemented the notice and rollout process.
The plaintiffs, all three of whom are New York City residents, argued that they were wrongly flagged as owning non-primary residences, despite the properties being their primary homes.
Staten Island Judge Wayne Ozzi banned the city from taking additional enforcement action on 17,000 tax warning notices, which said they could face a bill unless they requested an exemption by the Sept. 18 deadline.
“We disagree with today’s ruling, but we are confident in both the pied-à-terre surcharge and the City’s ability to implement it fairly and effectively,” Mr. Mamdani’s spokesperson Matt Rauschenbach said. “This surcharge asks those who own second homes valued at $5 million or more to contribute their fair share to the city they benefit from.”
He added that the New York City Law Department will appeal the ruling immediately, which will stay the order, allowing the city to continue with the tax implementation.
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