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September 22, 2008
421a Abatement Advice_2nd Try
Hi all,
I thought I'd repost in case I had bad timing with the weekend. Please know that I doublechecked the archive before posting!
Five months ago, I've moved into a 16 unit new condo development which hasn't yet received its 421a abatement. (It's eligible, but it hasn't received approval yet.) The building filed for this last year and has also received its C of O.
A few questions:
1) Should I be paying property taxes until the 421a comes through? The bank that holds my mortgage has increased my escrow payment because the 421a hasn't been approved yet.
2) If I do, will I get the paid taxes back? (Will the 421a be retroactive?)
3) What can be done to expedite or even follow up on the status of the 421a? The developer has been no help in the process and I'd like to call anyone else who can give me some facts/insight on how to navigate this process.
Thank you in advance!
Comments
bkred - I will try to answer to the best of my knowledge. As far as I know, I believe your building has to be at least 50% closed before the tax abatement goes into effect. So if you get a tax bill for the full amount then you should pay for it. I dont think you get the tax you paid back. And unfortunately, I dont think you can do anything to expedite the process. You should review your offering plan and read what it says about the abatement or have your attorney look through it.
Posted by: shong1 at September 22, 2008 11:10 PM
Second what shong1 said. I will add that in our experience, it was up to the builder's attorney to file and/or expedite the 421a.
Good luck.
Posted by: curiositykilledthecat at September 23, 2008 9:48 AM
Thanks for the replies!
Posted by: BKRed at September 23, 2008 10:33 AM
Thanks for the replies!
The building only has 2 unsold units, and everyone else has moved in, so we have that going for us. There's no single plan among everyone though. Some people are just paying what the post-abatement taxes will be (pending approval) while others are paying the pre-abatement tax.
I think the biggest question is whether the approved abatement will be retroactive or not...and it sounds like we'll have to try to get that answer from the builder's attorney.
Thanks again!
Posted by: BKRed at September 23, 2008 10:37 AM
This is a saga that is being played out throughout the borough. My knowledge (or lack thereof) has ben obtained by trying to find out the status of a new condo building in which I was interested in buying a unit. The broker and condo developer were of no help. Current occupants knew nothing. Anyway, I have found out that:
-the tax abatement process is multi - stepped
-your building needs a C.O. - a T.C.O. is not accepted
-the process can take three years or longer
-until the abatement takes effect, your taxes are due IN Full. The city is supposed to rebate paid taxes when the abatement takes effect
-you should check out the status of your condo's application by going to: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dof/html/property/property_tax_reduc_coop_condo.shtml
They can tell you if a "preliminary application" has been submitted (at the time construction started) - without that, the prognosis is poor
Hope this is helpful.
Posted by: sjtmd at September 25, 2008 8:19 AM
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