Property tax foreclosure in New York

The property tax process in New York, step by step

1. Taxes become late and interest starts

   After the tax due date

   Interest is added for each month or part of a month at a rate the state sets every year, and it can never be less than 12% a year. Call your tax collector or county treasurer right away: a county or city can offer an installment agreement of up to 36 months by local law, and the lien cannot be foreclosed while you keep the payments current.

   N.Y. RPTL §§ 924-a, 1184

2. Homeowner warning notice

   With the foreclosure notice

   For a home, the notice must say you may be at risk of losing it, list the years and amounts owed, and give the Attorney General's free help line, 1-855-466-3456. It must also tell you about exemptions for seniors, people with disabilities and veterans through your local assessor, and that you can stay in the home until a court orders otherwise.

   N.Y. RPTL § 1144

3. Petition filed, published and mailed

   Last day to redeem is at least 6 months after first publication

   The tax district files a petition of foreclosure, publishes notice three times over two months, and mails you a copy by both certified and first-class mail. If both letters come back, it must look for another address or post the notice on the property, and you get at least 30 days after that to act.

   N.Y. RPTL §§ 1124, 1125

4. Redeem or file an answer

   By the last redemption date in the notice

   You stop the foreclosure by paying all unpaid taxes, interest, penalties and charges to the official named in the notice. The redemption period is generally 2 years after the lien date; a tax district may lengthen it for homes and farms, and may shorten it to 1 year only for listed vacant and abandoned homes. If you have a legal defense, you must file a verified answer with the county clerk and serve the tax district's lawyer by the same date.

   N.Y. RPTL §§ 1110, 1124

5. Judgment and deed to the tax district

   After the last redemption date passes

   If you do not pay or answer, the court awards possession to the county or city and directs a deed that ends your ownership, or a deed straight to a buyer. Before the home goes to a third party, the tax district may choose to deed it back to the former owner who pays everything owed, but it does not have to.

   N.Y. RPTL § 1136

6. Surplus figured and paid into court

   Within 45 days after the sale; notice to you within 10 days after the report

   The enforcing officer must decide whether the sale made a surplus over the taxes, interest, penalties and charges, report it to the court, and pay the surplus into court. If the home was not sold at a public auction, the surplus is based on its full value on the tax roll, a licensed appraisal, or another fair method.

   N.Y. RPTL §§ 1195, 1196

7. Claim your surplus from the court

   Case stays open at least 3 years after confirmation for a former homeowner

   Anyone who held an interest or lien right before the judgment, including you, may file a claim with the court that handled the foreclosure; county treasurers post claim packets and the court's surplus orders. Surplus still unclaimed when the case closes goes to the tax district, not the State Comptroller, so do not wait.

   N.Y. RPTL § 1197

Common questions in New York