Property taxes in the Bronx are calculated by multiplying your property’s assessed value by the tax rate set for its class, with 2026 rates running from 10.848 percent on commercial buildings to 19.843 percent on small homes.1New York City Department of Finance. Property Tax Rates The assessed value is only a fraction of what the city thinks your property is worth on the open market, and several exemptions can lower it further if you apply on time. Here is how the numbers actually work, what can bring your bill down, and when you need to act.
How Your Bill Is Calculated
Every tax bill starts with the Department of Finance’s estimate of your property’s market value, meaning what it would sell for under normal conditions. Assessors look at recent sales of comparable properties, your building’s size and condition, and for larger residential and commercial buildings, the rental income the property generates.2New York City Administrative Code. NYC Administrative Code 11-201 – Assessments on Real Property; General Powers of Finance Department Property is valued based on its condition as of January 5 each year.
The city doesn’t tax that full market value. It applies an assessment ratio to shrink it down. Class 1 properties (small homes) are assessed at 6 percent of market value. Class 2, 3, and 4 properties are assessed at 45 percent.3New York City Department of Finance. Determining Your Assessed Value A Class 1 Bronx home the city values at $600,000 has an assessed value of $36,000. A commercial building valued at $1 million has an assessed value of $450,000. The tax rate then applies to that assessed value, not the market value.
Every January, the Department of Finance mails a Notice of Property Value to every owner. It shows your tax class, the city’s market value estimate, and the preliminary assessed value for the tax year starting July 1.4New York City Department of Finance. Notice of Property Value Check it as soon as it arrives. If the city has your square footage, unit count, or other property details wrong, you can file a Request to Update with the Department of Finance before the roll is finalized in May.5Department of Finance. Department of Finance Publishes Fiscal Year Tentative Property Tax Assessment Roll
The Four Tax Classes and 2026 Rates
Which class your property falls into determines both its assessment ratio and its tax rate. The 2026 rates:1New York City Department of Finance. Property Tax Rates
- Class 1 — 19.843 percent. One-to-three-unit homes, small condominiums of three stories or fewer, and vacant residential land.
- Class 2 — 12.439 percent. Residential buildings with more than three units, including apartment buildings, cooperatives, and larger condominiums.
- Class 3 — 11.108 percent. Utility company equipment and special franchise property owned by gas, electric, and telecommunications providers.
- Class 4 — 10.848 percent. Office buildings, retail spaces, factories, hotels, and other commercial property.
The Class 1 rate looks steep, but the 6 percent assessment ratio shrinks the taxable base dramatically. A Bronx home with a $500,000 market value has an assessed value of only $30,000 and a bill of roughly $5,953 before any exemptions. A Class 4 commercial property worth the same $500,000 has an assessed value of $225,000 and a bill around $24,408. The interaction between the ratio and the rate is where the real money sits.
Caps That Limit Annual Increases
State law limits how fast the assessed value on smaller residential properties can rise, even when the market jumps. For Class 1 homes, assessed value cannot increase more than 6 percent in any single year or 20 percent over five years.6NYC Department of Finance. Residential Property Tax Guide Class 1 Class 2 buildings with ten or fewer units get an 8 percent annual cap and 30 percent over five years. Larger Class 2 buildings with eleven or more units have no hard cap, but assessment changes phase in over five years at 20 percent a year, and the city uses the lower of the actual or transitional assessed value.
These caps apply only to assessed value, not to the tax rate itself, which the City Council votes on each year based on the city’s budget.7New York City Council. New York City Council Legistar Your bill can rise even if your assessment stays flat. New construction and major physical improvements are not subject to the caps and flow directly into the assessed value.
Exemptions and Abatements That Lower Your Bill
Several programs can reduce what you owe, and none of them apply automatically. You have to know about them and apply, sometimes every year.
STAR (School Tax Relief)
STAR cuts the school-tax portion of your bill. Basic STAR is available to homeowners with income of $250,000 or less. Enhanced STAR, for owners aged 65 or older with income of $110,750 or less for the 2026–2027 school year, provides a larger reduction.8Department of Taxation and Finance. RPTL Section 425 – School Tax Relief (STAR)9Department of Taxation and Finance. Types of STAR If you bought your home after 2015, STAR comes to you as a credit check in the mail instead of a line on your tax bill, and the income ceiling for that credit version is $500,000.10Department of Taxation and Finance. STAR Eligibility
Senior Citizen Homeowners’ Exemption (SCHE)
Bronx homeowners aged 65 or older can reduce their assessed value by up to 50 percent through SCHE. The reduction slides with income: owners with combined income of $50,000 or less get the full 50 percent, with smaller percentages for higher incomes.11Department of Taxation and Finance. Assessor Manuals, Exemption Administration – RPTL Section 467 The deadline for the 2026–2027 tax year is March 16, 2026. Apply later and the benefit doesn’t start until July 1, 2027, costing you a full year.12NYC311. Senior Citizen Homeowners’ Exemption (SCHE)
Disabled Homeowners’ Exemption (DHE)
DHE mirrors SCHE but is open to homeowners with disabilities regardless of age. The maximum reduction is 50 percent of assessed value for those with combined income of $50,000 or less, scaling down to 5 percent as income approaches $58,399.13New York City Department of Finance. Disabled Homeowners’ Exemption (DHE) You cannot receive both DHE and SCHE. If you qualify for both, the city applies SCHE.
Veterans Exemption
Veterans who served during a designated period of conflict can receive a 15 percent reduction in assessed value, capped at $2,880 for Class 1 properties. Service in a combat zone adds another 10 percent, capped at $1,920. Disabled veterans receive a further reduction equal to half their VA disability rating multiplied by assessed value, capped at $9,600 for Class 1.14New York City Department of Finance. Veterans Exemptions The three tiers stack. The property must be the veteran’s primary residence, and the DD-214 discharge papers go in with the application.
Cooperative and Condominium Abatement
Co-op and condo owners in Class 2 buildings may qualify for an abatement of 17.5 to 28.1 percent, based on the average assessed value per unit in the building. Units in buildings where the average assessed value is $50,000 or less get the top 28.1 percent.15New York City Department of Finance. Cooperative and Condominium Property Tax Abatement Individual owners don’t apply. The building’s board of managers or board of directors files for the whole development, with a February 15 deadline each year. The unit must be the owner’s primary residence, and buildings receiving certain other benefits like the 421-a exemption aren’t eligible.
Clergy Exemption
Active, retired, or disabled clergy members who own a one-to-three-family home or condominium in New York State can cut their assessed value by up to $1,500 a year. It’s also available to unremarried spouses of deceased clergy members. The exemption must be renewed annually, and the 2026–2027 deadline is March 16, 2026.16NYC311. Clergy Property Tax Exemption Co-ops don’t qualify, and you can’t combine the clergy exemption with the co-op/condo abatement.
When to Pay and What Late Costs
The city’s property tax year runs July 1 through June 30. How often you pay depends on your assessed value. Properties assessed at $250,000 or less are billed quarterly, with payments due July 1, October 1, January 1, and April 1. Properties above $250,000 are billed semi-annually, due July 1 and January 1.17NYC Department of Finance. Property Tax Due Dates
Each quarterly bill has a 15-day grace period. Pay by July 15, October 15, January 15, or April 15 and no interest accrues. If a deadline falls on a weekend or federal holiday, it rolls to the next business day. If you mail your payment, the postmark counts as your payment date. You can pay online through CityPay, by electronic funds transfer from a bank account, by phone, by mail, or in person at a Department of Finance business center.18NYC311. Property Tax Payment
Miss the grace period and interest runs from the original due date, compounding daily. The annual rates for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026:19NYC Department of Finance. Late Payments
- 6 percent for properties assessed at $250,000 or less.
- 9 percent for properties assessed above $250,000 but at or below $450,000.
- 16 percent for properties assessed above $450,000.
That top rate adds up quickly. On $100,000 of overdue taxes, 16 percent daily-compounding interest generates roughly $16,000 over a full year.
Challenging an Assessment That Looks Too High
If your Notice of Property Value shows a market value or assessed value you think is too high, file an appeal with the New York City Tax Commission. The commission reduces assessments on a significant share of applications, especially from owners who bring solid evidence.
Use Form TC108 for Class 1 homes and Form TC101 for Class 2 or Class 4 properties.20NYC.gov. Application Forms – Tax Commission Transfer the borough, block, and lot numbers from your Notice of Property Value exactly, along with the current market and assessed values. Errors here can delay or void your application.
The strongest evidence is a recent appraisal from a certified professional showing a value lower than the city’s estimate. Records of comparable Bronx properties that sold for less than your city-assigned market value are also persuasive. Photographs of physical damage, deferred maintenance, or structural problems give the commission concrete context. The more neighborhood-specific your comparable sales data, the better.
For the 2026–2027 tax year, Class 1 applications must be received by 5 p.m. on March 16, 2026. Class 2, 3, and 4 applications are due by 5 p.m. on March 2, 2026.21Tax Commission. Forms – Tax Commission Miss the deadline and you lose the right to challenge your assessment for that tax year. For 2026, applications must be filed in person or by mail; the Tax Commission is not accepting electronic submissions this year.22NYC Tax Commission. NYC Tax Commission
Once your application is processed, the commission may schedule a hearing. In many cases you’ll receive a Notice of Offer by mail before any hearing happens, proposing a specific reduction. Accept it and your upcoming tax bill reflects the lower figure. Reject it, or receive no offer at all, and you can take the matter to New York State Supreme Court, which involves litigation costs and a longer timeline.
If You Can’t Pay
The Property Tax and Interest Deferral program (PT AID) lets qualifying homeowners defer a portion of their taxes to avoid a lien sale. The deferred amount is limited to 25 percent of the equity in your Class 1 property, or 50 percent for a condominium, and unpaid balances accrue interest at 2.5 percent a year.23NYC Department of Finance. Property Tax and Interest Deferral (PT AID) Program
Three plans exist. The Low-Income Senior plan is for homeowners 65 or older with federal adjusted gross income of $110,750 or less whose property has been their primary residence for at least a year. The Fixed-Term Income-Based plan uses the same income and residency rules without the age requirement, and caps your tax payment at 8 percent of adjusted gross income. The Extenuating Circumstances plan covers death or serious illness in the family, job loss, or enrollment in the city’s water assistance program, also capping payments at 8 percent of income while the hardship lasts.
If taxes go unpaid long enough, the city can sell your tax lien to a private buyer. The most recent lien sale took place on June 3, 2025.24New York City Department of Finance. Lien Sales Within 90 days after a sale, the city notifies you of the new lienholder’s name and contact information, and the lienholder’s representative reaches out about payment arrangements. If you don’t pay off the lien or reach an agreement within one year, the lienholder can begin foreclosure. The timeline can accelerate if you miss a semi-annual interest payment within 30 days of its due date, or if current taxes go unpaid for six months while the lien remains outstanding.