US President Donald Trump hit out at New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani's tax policy, calling him 'destroying' the city. The reaction was in relation to the new Pied-à-terre tax that imposes a surcharge on secondary residences in New York.
The tax will impose an annual fee on luxury properties worth more than $5 million, whose owners do not live full-time in the city. The policy is designed for 'the richest of the rich' who store their wealth in New York City real estate but do not actually live there.
The surcharge would be paid in addition to the property taxes currently being paid, and the rates would be based on a sliding scale. The tax could generate at least $500 million annually, according to Governor Kathy Hochul's office.
Mamdani, who was elected on a staunchly progressive campaign, is an advocate of taxing the wealthiest New Yorkers to help fund more social programs. He has been fighting a massive budget gap, which he first put at around $12 billion but later revised to about $5 billion.
