Brooklyn Brownstoners Pay Lowest Property Taxes

Homeowners in Brownstone Brooklyn can find plenty of things to gripe about, but property taxes ain’t one of them. Along with members of other affluent neighborhoods around the city, Brooklyn brownstoners benefit from assessment caps that have kept taxes low while real estate prices have skyrocketed. A recent study by the city’s Independent Budget Office found that owners of houses in Park Slope and Carroll Gardens have the lowest effective tax rate in the five boroughs. While one-, two- and three-family homes account for 41 percent of the market value of all city property, they generate less than 14 percent of property tax revenues. Rental buildings, on the other hand, get hit much harder than houses, co-ops or condos. When we renovated our house, the property taxes doubled from about $2,400 to about $4,800, or about $1 per square foot per year. How does that compare to what you’re paying?
Tax Breaks Seem to Favor Affluent Areas [NY Times]
Large Share of Property Taxes Borne by Rentals [NY Sun]
Photo from Dahl’s House
Feb 09, 2012 | 11:02 AM