Eric Adams' Vanishing Promise to Fix NYC's 'Unfair' Property Taxes
Disparities in NYC leave nearly identical homes with dramatically different tax rates. The mayor is fighting a lawsuit to force reform.
Brownstone homes in Brooklyn often face a lower effective tax rate than properties in the Bronx or Queens. Eric Adams vowed to fix the property tax disparity on the campaign trail.
Photographer: Craig Warga/Bloomberg
In 2021, Eric Adams vowed to break years of bureaucratic inertia. He would finally — in his first year as mayor — fix a dizzying New York City property tax system blamed for exacerbating the city’s housing crisis and perpetuating segregated neighborhoods.
“Billionaires are not paying their share of taxes, and this is an unfair system and we're going to fairly look at it,” Adams said a month before winning a competitive Democratic primary. “Within the first year, we're going to come up with a real resolution to finally resolve this issue.”