Is Mamdani’s ‘tax the rich’ plan dead? Legal blow to NYC’s Pied-à-Terre tax explained

Pied-à-terre is French for “foot on the ground.” The relevance of the phrase, however, has now transcended global boundaries, pointing to a secondary residence in a city where you don’t live full-time. Its French connection links it to a sense of luxurious living in the European country, especially Paris, given one’s ownership of dual properties. On the contrary, the ultra-wealthy’s association with a secondary residence in New York City came under attack during Mayor Zohran Mamdani‘s administration.

Big Apple’s official first announced the “pied-a-terre tax” this past April, as part of Mayor Mamdani’s effort to close a “historic budget gap without slashing essential services or offsetting the cost onto working New Yorkers,” states the NYC Office of the Mayor website. City and state officials initially expected to raise $500 million in revenue, with the tax estimated to apply to 13,000 homes.

The surcharge, which would be paid on top of whatever property taxes are owed on the home, seeks to tax NYC’s non-primary residences valued at least $5 million and condominiums or cooperative units valued at $1 million or more. New York State’s lawmakers ultimately passed the tax in May 2026, only for a Staten Island Supreme Court judge to effectively put the brakes on the second-home tax.

Lawsuit challenges Mamdani’s NYC tax rollout

New York officials previously published a database of more than 900,000 homeowners who could be targeted by the tax, which NY Governor Kathy Hochul signed into law alongside Mamdani. This list, including several high-profile figures—actor and activist Cynthia Nixon, fashion icon Anna Wintour, and Dell CEO Michael Dell—didn’t automatically indicate that these public personalities would be subject to the tax. Meanwhile, some even contested that they had been roped into the list despite their property being a primary residence.

Shortly after that, New York City sent out nearly 17,000 notices to homeowners, warning them that they would be subject to the surcharge unless they filed for an exemption. Owners receiving a notice have until August 21 to file for an exemption, while owners of cooperative apartments have until August 24. The heightened uncertainty surrounding the circumstances ultimately prompted a group of three homeowners — Simon Hedley, Rachel O’Brien and Carmine Morano — to argue that Mamdani’s bid to ‘tax the rich’ “caused mass confusion.”

Although their suit, filed ahead of this past weekend, doesn’t question the tax’s legality, it puts the tax roll doxxing homeowners’ details under scrutiny for listing residents who may not actually be subject to the surcharge.

Of these, O’Brien and Morano, who are the wife and father of City Councilman Frank Morano, are Staten Island residents. Their names were included in the city’s published tax roll. Meanwhile, the third person, a Chelsea resident in addition to being Mamdani’s supporter, was one of the 17,000 mailed notices, according to the suit filed Friday in state Supreme Court, Richmond County. All three also asserted that NYC’s second-home tax targeted them despite their properties serving as their primary residences, according to a news release.

Randy Mastro, the plaintiffs’ attorney, said, “We are very gratified by the judge’s decision, which has vindicated the rights of hundreds of thousands of New York City homeowners who were subjected to a process they never should have been a part of in the first place,” as quoted by CNN.

According to the New York Post and CNN, Hedley, who argued that his Manhattan home, purchased 13 years ago, is his primary and sole residence, reached out to legal experts upon receiving the mailed notice. On Saturday (US time), he filed for exemption, and by Monday morning, he received a follow-up notice that he was exempt from the surcharge.

What is Mamdani’s next move?

Merely hours before the legal setback, Mamdani, who took office in January, said at a Monday (US time) news conference that he vows to “vigorously defend” the city’s position.

Soon after the ruling on Monday (US time), New York City filed a motion for permission to appeal. Matt Rauschenbach, a spokesperson for the mayor, said in a statement, “The City will continue with the pied-à-terre’s implementation.”

Establishing the city’s disagreement with the legal setback, the spokesperson added, “We are confident in both the pied-à-terre surcharge and the City’s ability to implement it fairly and effectively.”

Pied-a-terre tax roll: Celebrities targeted

Even if temporary, Staten Island Supreme Court Justice Wayne Ozzi’s ruling sides with the homeowners, demanding the city take down the online tax roll mentioning 900,000 taxpayers. Consequently, the city can’t take any action to implement the second-home tax on the basis of the previously published list.

In late July, Mamdani stated, “The tax property roll that was posted last week is a reflection of all properties across New York City, not a reflection of those, specifically, that the pied-à-terre tax will be levied upon.”

The still-dreaded database released by the DOF at the time identified the properties of the following high-profile personalities: