Westchester's Slowing Housing Market Sparks Statewide Concerns, Report Says

Recent news that home sales in Westchester County declined by 18 percent during the second quarter of 2018, compared to the same period in 2017, should alarm local elected officials as well as those at the state level, according to this Op Ed piece in Crain's New York.

Westchester residents, many trying to avoid the hefty tax bill that 2018 promises, are finding themselves in an unforgiving buyers’ market, according to an Op Ed piece in Crain's New York.
Photo Credit: *Wikipedia.*

Jon Craig

07/30/2018 5:00 a.m.

It marks the fourth consecutive quarterly decline in Westchester’s home sales.

Westchester County residents enjoy the highest per capita incomes in New York state, second only to Manhattan (New York County.)

"Yet, even this county is not immune to the adverse effects of (President) Trump’s federal tax reform, wrote Mayra Rodríguez Valladares, managing principal of MRV Associates in an article titled, "All of New York should worry about Westchester's slowing housing market."

More Westchester residents are listing their homes for sale because federal tax reform now significantly limits to $10,000 the deduction of local and state taxes. This is about half the $17,179 average tax paid by Westchester residents in property taxes in 2017.

As more people put their homes up for sale, this will start to lower home values. In turn, residents will grieve their taxes, which will lower what municipalities can collect for municipal services and schools, Rodríguez Valladares concluded.

MRV Associates provides financial consulting, research and training on financial regulation issues.

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