New York City’s plans to charge a pied-à-terre tax on some second homes were met with sharp criticism at a council oversight hearing, after the administration published a list of nearly one million properties and owners’ personal details.

The tax plan, backed by Mayor Zohran Mamdani, would impose an annual charge on second homes in the city worth more than $5m (£3.7m), or on condos and co-ops worth more than $1m. The names and addresses were released at the end of July as part of the process to identify potential payers, with the city later issuing tax notices to 17,000 people.

Officials faced questions at City Hall on Tuesday about how the rollout was carried out, and whether publishing the information created security and fairness concerns.

Published List Sparks Questions

City council member Gale Brewer said she and other members supported the pied-à-terre tax but said there were “challenges” in implementing it. Brewer pointed to issues raised by how the list was compiled and communicated.

Kamillah Hanks argued the approach unfairly singled out homeowners and could put them at risk. Speaking during the meeting, Hanks described the published information as “a hit list of the haves and the have-nots” and said it amounted to a “scarlet letter”.

Hanks also said the administration was implying that owning a home was something people should be ashamed of.

New York City’s Department of Finance said the addresses and personal information it posted were already available to the public, as data the administration is legally required to provide each year.

Celebrities Included, Notices Sent to 17,000

The list included nearly one million properties, featuring addresses for celebrities and some of the city’s wealthiest residents, including hedge fund manager Ken Griffin and his $239m penthouse, director Woody Allen, former Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, and actress Cynthia Nixon.

While the list covered a broad set of properties, the city sent tax notices to 17,000 people.

In testimony at the hearing, some speakers who supported the tax accused wealthy residents of using the oversight meeting to complain about rising taxes.

Dave Backer, a professor of school finance, said, “I think the wealthy homeowners here doth protest too much.”

Beverly Solo, a New York City resident for 44 years who wore a “Tax The Rich” shirt, argued the measure could raise money for city services. She said it seemed “reasonable and fair” to ask people who use luxury homes for pleasure and do not pay full-time income taxes in New York to contribute to city wellbeing, but added that the rollout had been “a mess”.

Lawsuit Filed Over Unpublished Information

A group of New York City homeowners has sued over the rollout, seeking an order forcing the administration to remove the list of nearly one million properties and owners’ names.

Mamdani’s administration has defended the tax as a fair way to generate $500m in annual revenue in a city marked by wide socioeconomic inequality. The surcharge has also received backing from Governor Kathy Hochul, who had previously been hesitant to increase taxes.

Representatives for Mamdani’s administration did not attend the hearing, which angered some attendees. A spokesperson for Mamdani said the administration asked for the session to be delayed while the legal challenge was addressed, but the council declined, and officials could not testify while the case was before the courts.

Safety and Investment Concerns

Jason Haber, who runs the American Real Estate Association, told the BBC that publishing names and addresses could endanger residents by enabling scams and fraud. He said a foreign actor could download the list and send emails posing as the city to request tax payments.

Haber also said he had seen some buyers pause searches for expensive properties in New York since the tax announcement. He argued that any drop in tax revenue from fewer purchases would likely cancel out the benefits of the pied-à-terre tax.

Morris Pearl, a former managing director at BlackRock and a chair of Patriotic Millionaires, said the suggestion that the tax would deter investment was “absurd”. He said people with wealth can choose where to live and that someone owning a residence worth more than $5m that is not their primary home has the means to pay more than most New Yorkers.

Pearl also said launching the tax alongside a public list may not have been the most diplomatic approach, adding that the mayor sometimes “unnecessarily antagonises people”, while stating he supported the policy itself.

Across the world, some cities and countries have tried similar charges on secondary homes, including France, Vancouver and San Francisco, where measures have faced varying levels of opposition and legal challenges.

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22 August 2026

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NYC deserves Zohran Mamdani.

42 minutes ago, Mr Awesome said:

NYC deserves Zohran Mamdani.

There's no such thing as a free lunch.....oh wait.

Welcome to socialism. When they don't help balance the budget, next lower tier of housing & income will get additional taxes, then next, next, next, until you run out of other people's money.

I think Morris delivered the real "Pearl" of wisdom here by suggesting that "people with wealth can choose where to live and that someone owning a residence worth more than $5m that is not their primary home has the means to pay more than most New Yorkers".

Though, publishing a public list of owners' names and addresses does seem like an unnecessary security risk that invites scams.

39 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

Welcome to socialism. When they don't help balance the budget, next lower tier of housing & income will get additional taxes, then next, next, next, until you run out of other people's money.

I know, those evil socialists. The work of the devil.

I first came across them as a teenager, in my Catholic high school, where we were forced, almost every school day, to read, study and learn from passages from the King James Bible. Before Karl Marx, before "The Communist Manifesto", we had the Bible.

What was that phrase - "it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than it is for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God"?

6 minutes ago, JimHuaHin said:

I know, those evil socialists. The work of the devil.

I first came across them as a teenager, in my Catholic high school, where we were forced, almost every school day, to read, study and learn from passages from the King James Bible. Before Karl Marx, before "The Communist Manifesto", we had the Bible.

What was that phrase - "it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than it is for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God"?

Does the bible say steal from the rich with the force of government?

12 minutes ago, JimHuaHin said:

I know, those evil socialists. The work of the devil.

I first came across them as a teenager, in my Catholic high school, where we were forced, almost every school day, to read, study and learn from passages from the King James Bible. Before Karl Marx, before "The Communist Manifesto", we had the Bible.

What was that phrase - "it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than it is for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God"?

Oh yes, the 'Socialist Bible' .... take what I have, because you're to lazy to work for it yourself.

The economic squeeze in the uSA has evolved over the last Hal-century+ and is the result of both major political parties. The working middle class has/is working and cannot afford to meet the cost of living. Couching the economic stress in the USA as between the haves and have nots is misleading at best. Appealing for economic justice for those who have 2nd homes worth more than $5 million usd being taxed gains no sympathy from this American voter.

4 hours ago, TedG said:

Does the bible say steal from the rich with the force of government?

If taxes are "stealing" what about the illeagal tariffs?

(Does the bible say steal from the poor with the force of government?)

7 hours ago, TedG said:

Does the bible say steal from the rich with the force of government?

No, it says steal from all, but start from rich.

Best regards

Lefties

🤔😂🤣

Edited August 22Aug 22 by OneManShow

8 hours ago, Schoggibueb said:

If taxes are "stealing" what about the illeagal tariffs?

(Does the bible say steal from the poor with the force of government?)

Yes, taxes are theft.

17 minutes ago, TedG said:

Yes, taxes are theft.

Oh boy, what school grade do you visit...

Taxes fund schools, roads, the police, the fire service, hospitals, as well as the salaries of public sector employees such as teachers, police officers, armed forces, the justice system, disaster relief, support for people in need, and state social benefits. Construction and maintenance of roads, bridges, railways, and public transport.

Government agencies, government bodies, and the remuneration of civil servants and public sector employees.

Time to grow up Ted

New York Governor Kathy Hochul publicly urged wealthy former residents who moved to lower-tax states like Florida to return. Speaking at a Politico forum in March 2026, she emphasized that high-net-worth individuals are vital to funding the state's extensive social programs and public services.

New York City has recorded more than $9.4 billion in direct cumulative expenditures managing the recent humanitarian and asylum seeker influx since fiscal year 2023, with total overall costs approaching or exceeding $10 billion

Mamdani is so corrupt! He's getting rich off insider trading.

Wait. Oh.

My mistake.

That's Donald Trump doing corruption.

Who cares, right MAGA?

A list of rich people! Outrage!

Oh, the fury. 😂

Trump Made Big Stock Trades In SpaceX, Palantir And Tech ...

President Donald Trump disclosed just over 1,000 financial transactions for the month of June.

I am so happy to learn that Americans want the government to force everyone to pay a toll on the road outside their house whenever they leave home. That firemen will arrive at a burning house and charge for tackling the fire before the actual firefighting. That's capitalism.

2 minutes ago, Purdey said:

I am so happy to learn that Americans want the government to force everyone to pay a toll on the road outside their house whenever they leave home. That firemen will arrive at a burning house and charge for tackling the fire before the actual firefighting. That's capitalism.

Actually that's Libertarianism

Otherwise known as people running away from the track record of the Republican Party who own a Cybertruck in Manhattan and think they'll be OKAY if the roads turn back to dirt because taxes for road maintenance is SLAVERY

😀😃😄😁😆😅😂🤣😭