Town of Union

TAX BREAK TARGETS NEW HOMES IN UNION:

While developers' proposals to build high-end homes have streamed into the Town of Union, the board wants to give them -- and nearly everyone who builds a new home on otherwise vacant land -- a property tax break for five years.

While the town touts the proposal as a way to encourage development, the idea has outraged existing homeowners. If people can afford to build expensive homes, then they can afford to pay their taxes, they say.
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At the town's request, state Sen. Thomas W. Libous, R-Binghamton, and Assemblywoman Donna A. Lupardo, D-Endwell, sponsored identical bills in each chamber that would make newly constructed single-family homes exempt from property taxes on a five-year incremental schedule.

Each municipality and school district within the town would have to decide if they want to participate in the exemption. If the Johnson City school district opted not to, for example, then owners of newly constructed houses within the district would not receive a break on school taxes.

According to Lupardo, the bills would apply only to Union because that is the only town that has requested the exemption. Other municipalities would have to request similar legislation to participate.
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According to the proposed legislation, newly constructed property with a purchase price greater than 150 percent of the New York State's mortgage agency limits won't be eligible, which would currently be about a $300,000 maximum.

Although Lupardo and Libous are sponsoring the bills, they may not favor them. When asked about the proposed legislation, neither would answer directly if they supported it.
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Although the bills were introduced about a year ago in both chambers, they've been sitting in committees since January and have not moved, Drew said.

McDonald said the tax-break proposal will not be a burden to existing homeowners because "the idea is to create a new assessment that didn't exist before." The plan should actually help "lower the taxes for the existing person," he said.