From Fox Business: New York City’s democratic socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani has issued an ultimatum to Albany: tax the ultra-wealthy or face a “last resort” 9.5% property tax hike to plug a $5.4 billion deficit.
While Mamdani claims he’s protecting the working class, real estate insiders say the plan is a math-defying disaster that will drive up rents and accelerate the flight of taxpayers to low-tax states like Florida and Texas.
“Even the discussion of a 9.5% hike is enough to influence buyer behavior and cause irritations in the market,” Douglas Elliman’s Ben Jacobs told Fox News Digital. “Some buyers have considered Nassau, Westchester, Long Island, and even Florida or Texas as alternatives because they just don’t agree with [NYC] politics.”
“The mention of a 9.5% hike can pause decision-making, especially for those weighing options in the suburbs or out-of-state markets. We’re already seeing clients seriously evaluate alternatives in Nassau, Westchester and beyond, factoring taxes heavily into affordability calculations,” Michelle Griffith of Douglas Elliman also told Fox News Digital. “In some negotiations, this ‘Mamdani Effect’ is tangible, slowing deals or prompting buyers to consider properties outside NYC.”
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New York Apartment Association CEO Kenny Burgos warned, “Increased property taxes = a rent increase.”
Increased property taxes = a rent increase pic.twitter.com/olDrlgoMwg
— Kenny Burgos (@KennyBurgosNY) February 17, 2026
Jay Martin, head of the New York Apartment Association, warned, “Nothing says housing affordability like raising housing’s largest expense. Property taxes.”
Nothing says housing affordability like raising housing’s largest expense.
Property taxes.
— Jay Martin 🏠 🏢🏚️🌇 (@jaymart222) February 17, 2026
Ann Korchak, president of the Small Property Owners of New York, wrote, “It’s straight from the DSA playbook: Drain our checking accounts, strip us of our life savings and investments, take our property, hand it off to politically connected housing nonprofits and create a landscape of socialist housing. The mayor seems serious about this. He won’t be happy until he’s able to announce: Small-property owners in New York, RIP. @TheRealSPONY is the backbone of housing in NYC!”
“It’s straight from the DSA playbook: Drain our checking accounts, strip us of our life savings and investments, take our property, hand it off to politically connected housing nonprofits and create a landscape of socialist housing.
The mayor seems serious about this. He won’t be… https://t.co/pgew0Ie9lo— Ann Korchak (@amkorchak) February 19, 2026
NYS Assembly Member Simcha Eichenstein, a Democrat, also slammed Mamdani’s property tax increase proposal, writing, “Did I miss the memo that raising taxes on hardworking middle-class New Yorkers to maintain the current level of spending was part of the “affordability agenda”?”
He’s an idiot. I warned voters about this guy. The black community will feel it first!
— Lattina Brown, MPA 🇯🇲🇺🇸 (@LattinaBrown) February 17, 2026
You don’t need to be an expert to understand why a property tax increase would result in higher rents throughout New York City.
But you do need to have your head examined if you believed that a smiling Socialist mayor would improve your life and someone else would pay for it. https://t.co/Sp2hH5rnWL
— Joel M. Petlin (@Joelmpetlin) February 18, 2026
Phase 1 of Mamdani’s takeover: Make life in NYC so miserable that native residents flee. pic.twitter.com/P0SDy5OkOP
— Dennis Michael Lynch (@TrustDML) February 18, 2026
On his podcast Wednesday, TeamDML founder Dennis Michael Lynch laid out chilling details of Mamdani’s 4-phase plan to fundamentally transform New York City. Access the video in the article below:
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