Fewer NYC homeowners face pied-à-terre tax as exemptions pile up

What happened

Fewer New York City homeowners now face the pied-à-terre tax, the city's new surcharge on second homes. The Real Deal, citing Crain's, reported on Oct. 15, 2026, that the Department of Finance granted more than 6,800 exemptions. That is more than half of the 11,000-plus exemption applications the city received. The deadline to apply passed this week after multiple extensions.

The city first notified more than 17,000 people that they could owe the surcharge. Between exemptions and mistakes the city caught in tax records, nearly 9,000 homeowners have since been spared. The Real Deal said there are likely fewer than 10,000 affected homeowners left. NY1's morning newspaper roundup the same day put the number at fewer than 9,000 homeowners who would pay.

The tax applies to owners of one-, two- and three-family homes valued at $5 million and above, and to owners of condo and co-op units with assessed values of $1 million and up. The amount of each surcharge depends on the home's value. State officials projected $500 million a year based on 13,000 homes being taxed. City Comptroller Mark Levine found that figure reachable with as few as 11,200 taxpayers. The Real Deal said the pool will likely keep shrinking as owners contest their property valuations with the Tax Commission. City Hall still thinks $500 million is on the table.

The tax is also tied up in court. Last month a Staten Island judge ordered the Mamdani administration to scrap its initial rollout and start over. The city appealed, and the appellate court imposed a stay that lets the rollout move forward. Two separate suits challenge the surcharge on constitutional grounds. In one, developer Steve Wynn and former Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross are seeking to move the case from Suffolk County to New York County.