Trump Envoy Steve Witkoff Loses $24,000 Property Tax Break, Faces $101,000 Annual NYC Luxury Home Surcharge Under Mamdani: Report

U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff has lost a property tax abatement on his Manhattan apartment and will also owe New York City’s new pied-à-terre surcharge.

The loss of the abatement hits Witkoff and other wealthy second-home owners as New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s administration rolls out the tax and checks where owners actually live, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

Witkoff Loses Abatement

Witkoff lost a $24,000-a-year abatement on a multimillion-dollar Manhattan apartment, a perk his representatives said he did not know he was getting. A spokeswoman said he paid the city nearly $78,000 for the years he was ineligible, after the Journal contacted him, according to the report.

Records show Witkoff made a Miami Beach estate his primary residence in 2019, when he registered to vote in Florida. His wife, who is separated from him, lived in the Manhattan apartment until 2023. The abatement continued every year after, the report noted.

He would also have to pay $101,000 a year for the new surcharge, which more than doubles his property tax bill, the report added.

Witkoff’s lawyer, Robert Pollack, said the couple never received notice from the condo’s property manager to report the change. He called the continued abatement "inadvertent."

The spokesperson for Steve Witkoff and the New York City Department of Finance did not immediately respond to Benzinga’s request for comment.

Other Owners Flagged

The Journal’s analysis of public records found Florida residents Lee Millstein, Ruben Kliksberg and Ronald Olin also received the abatement for years despite being ineligible, the report said. Kliksberg’s spokesman cited a clerical error. Olin said he was unaware. Millstein did not respond to requests for comment, the report added.

Tax Rollout Background

The tax targets second homes worth more than $5 million and is expected to raise about $500 million a year. Last month, a state judge ordered the city to redo its rollout, ruling it wrongly put the burden on homeowners to prove residency. The city is appealing.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office warned in August that people falsely claiming nonresident status should come clean.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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