Westchester, NY has Some of the Highest Property Taxes in NY
Westchester, NY has Some of the Highest Property Taxes in NY
O'Connor discusses how Westchester, NY has some of the highest property taxes in NY.
NEW YORK, NY, UNITED STATES, June 15, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ --While Long Island and New York City get all of the headlines, it is Westchester County that boasts the highest property taxes in the entire state of New York. Not only that, but Westchester often competes for some of the highest property taxes in the entire nation. Combined with some of the highest property values in the United States, this has led to the county being unaffordable for both newcomers and longtime residents.
While exemptions such as the STAR program do provide relief, they are often just a drop in the bucket compared to the average Westchester tax bill. Instead, a growing number of homeowners and businesses are using property tax grievances to settle the score and try to keep assessed values somewhere close to the realm of sanity. While several towns in Westchester have varying deadlines, most will see the final day to grieve set for June 16, 2026.
The King of Suburban Value
While NYC and the Long Island counties of Suffolk and Nassau have higher tax rates, Westchester wins the dubious race by combining high tax rates with extreme property values. Since property values are the main basis for taxes, this often leads to massive bills. According to recent sales data, the average home in Westchester sells for around $725,000. This produces tax bills that can easily range anywhere from $9,000 to $15,000 per year.
Why are Westchester Taxes so High?
The first reason for these sky-high values is the primary cause for all large real estate values: location. Being located just to the north of New York City, Manhattan in particular, makes Westchester one of the most in-demand counties in the entire world. This offers a suburban refuge from the urban sprawl of NYC and is a relatively short commute from the financial capital of the planet. This is the same reason that property values are so high in Nassau and Suffolk counties. These suburban areas have higher values than even New York City itself.
Like NYC and Long Island, the land in Westchester is so expensive due to a relative lack of construction compared to the population and jobs present in the area. Affordable housing has always been a concern in the area, but thanks to zoning, most of the suburban residential real estate is restricted to single-family housing only, making each parcel a precious resource. While Suffolk County has explored some recent construction with multifamily housing, Westchester remains conservative in that regard.
School Taxes
The largest property tax burden in the Empire State comes from school districts. This is why the entire STAR program was created, as it is targeted exclusively at school levies. Westchester has some of the best schools in the nation, offering private school-level education for all children. This requires extensive funding, not just for teachers and facilities, but for support staff as well. Like most of New York, pensions for retired staff and teachers are also a huge demand for funding.
A Small Tax Base
Because real estate prices are so high, Westchester has a relatively small tax base in many towns. With these also being primarily residential areas, homeowners must take the brunt of the tax burden in order to fund the various amenities that make Westchester the desirable location that it is. This combines with the lack of multifamily housing to make each individual home a target of increasing taxes. This is not universally true, as cities like Yonkers have a more diversified population and economy.
Market Value
Market value is the basic worth of a property according to the assessor. This is determined by looking at property sales dating back three years. Thanks to the high demand for land, homes are often sold for extremely high prices. This, in turn, leads to a growing market value across the county, as more home sales confirm the high prices. While assessors are generally behind what the market actually is, they will base their numbers on these studies, often leading to prices far above what a home will actually sell for.
Grievances Settle the Score
Like Nassau and Suffolk counties, Westchester residents are discovering that the only real way to secure any type of tax reduction is to explore property tax grievances. Known as appeals in other states, grievances challenge the values placed on a property by the assessor, typically the market value. This allows taxpayers the chance to pierce the veil of the assessor’s values and discover what their home or business is truly worth. By correcting or lowering these values, taxes are often lowered in turn. Grievances can also be used to fix factual errors, such as the wrong number of rooms, incorrect measurements, or nonexistent improvements.
In order for a grievance to be successful, a taxpayer must have evidence on their side. If a taxpayer wants to show that their home is overassessed, they will need to provide several examples of home sales dating back three years. These chosen comparable properties should be in the same location as their property and have a similar room count, size, and classification. Once they have collected the sales records, they can bolster them by taking photographs of their property to document conditions or damage that may lower the overall value. Getting repair estimates can also be a boon. For many homes, especially those of high value, it could be worth the investment of an independent appraiser.
The Westchester Grievance Schedule
Unlike other counties, there is no single deadline for grievances in Westchester County. The deadlines are generally by town, with several blocks sharing a single date. The largest block, by far, will see its deadline pass on June 16, 2026. However, Yonkers, the largest city in the county, will have its deadline on November 15, 2026. The grievance window for all towns is incredibly short, usually only a couple of weeks. It starts with the release of the tentative assessment roll, which must be reviewed for errors in factual information or valuation. This was released on June 1, 2026, for most of the county, while Yonkers will see its tentative roll on November 1, 2026.
Towns with a Grievance Deadline of June 16, 2026
Bedford
Cortlandt
Eastchester
Greenburgh
Harrison
Lewisboro
Mamaroneck
Mount Kisco
Mount Pleasant
Mount Vernon
New Castle
North Castle
North Salem
Ossining
Peekskill
Pelham
Pound Ridge
Rye
Scarsdale
Somers
Yorktown
About O'Connor:
O’Connor is one of the largest property tax consulting firms, representing 185,000 clients in 49 states and Canada, handling about 295,000 protests in 2024, with residential property tax reduction services in Texas, Illinois, Georgia, and New York. O’Connor’s possesses the resources and market expertise in the areas of property tax, cost segregation, commercial and residential real estate appraisals. The firm was founded in 1974 and employs a team of 1,000 worldwide. O’Connor’s core focus is enriching the lives of property owners through cost effective tax reduction.
Property owners interested in assistance appealing their assessment can enroll in O’Connor’s Property Tax Protection Program ™. There is no upfront fee, or any fee unless we reduce your property taxes, and easy online enrollment only takes 2 to 3 minutes.
Patrick O'Connor, President
O'Connor
+1 713-375-4128
email us here
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