By Kim Velsey 3/25 2:53pm

The tax man

Buildings with lots of LLC-owned apartments like the Laureate are likely to suffer the most.

Privacy Will Cost You: Co-op and Condo Tax Abatement To Be Taken Away From LLCs and Trusts

During the past decade, it has become increasingly popular for  home buyers—particularly those with bold-faced names—to shield their identities with LLCs and trusts. By using an LLC, a privacy-minded person can (usually) prevent sleuths from salmon-colored papers like this one from dredging up their purchase from city records and exposing how much they paid and what their new kitchen looks like.

But while such identity cloaking has become all but de rigueur for the celebrity buyer and a matter of preference for other press-averse people, the cost of privacy is poised to go up considerably. That’s because the city’s co-op and condo tax abatement, which has been enjoyed by nearly all co-op and condo owners at a sizable 17.5 percent since 1996, will no longer be available to those who own their apartments through LLCs or trusts. The change will mean considerably higher taxes for some 7,700 property owners. Read More

By Kim Velsey 2/06 6:50pm

The tax man

Taxes are going up. (flickr, Joshua Alan Davis)

The Luxury of a Manhattan Pied-à-Terre Just Got a Lot More Expensive

Keeping a place in the city has never been an easy or cheap proposition for out-of-towners, but it has now become a good deal more costly, after state legislators declined to extend a long-standing tax abatement to pied-à-terre owners.

The State Legislature, when it resumed after the New Year, voted to extend the co-op and condo tax abatement—which has been received by nearly all co-op and condo owners—through June 30, 2015.

However, the new extension applies only to primary residences (granted, one can get the abatement on up to three residences in one building, so the law is not completely insensitive to the needs of the well-to-do)—but it is the first time the benefit has been restricted based on residency since it was enacted in 1996. Read More

By Kim Velsey 10:20am

Building Drama

The entrance to Wellington Tower.

The White Gloves Come Off: Delinquent Condo Dwellers Feel the Pain

Gracious living is the hallmark of life at Wellington Tower Condominium. Luxuries like a round-the-clock doorman, concierge and parking valet, a skylit swimming pool, on-site maid services, dry cleaning and spa facilities provide residents “with the very essence of living well.”

Unless, that is, a resident falls from grace.

A few years ago it became obvious to the board of the East 82nd Street building that not everyone was contributing to Wellington Tower’s luxurious lifestyle. A few occupants—not many, but a few—were more than a little bit behind on their common charges. And although they weren’t paying for the kinds of comforts that smooth out life’s rough edges, they were still enjoying them. This didn’t seem right to the board. So they cut the delinquents off. Read More