Properties in New York
Real estate in New York is primarily apartments: the city is built up with multi‑story buildings, and housing here comes in three types. A condominium is held in full freehold ownership, a cooperative is shares in the building and board approval, and a townhouse is the building together with the land. The entry threshold is set by the neighborhood — the median on Manhattan is $1.25 million, in Queens — $530,000, on Staten Island — $440,000. On top of the property price, factor in purchase taxes and monthly carrying charges. Foreigners buy on the same terms as U.S. citizens, with no restrictions. Below — what to choose for your own occupancy and what for renting out.
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Condominium, cooperative or townhouse
A condominium is conventional ownership. The buyer receives a deed to the apartment and a share in the building's common elements, the transaction closes without anyone's approval, and the unit can be rented out and passed on by inheritance. A cooperative is fundamentally different: you buy not square footage, but shares in the corporation that owns the building, plus the right to occupy a specific apartment. The candidate is reviewed by the board of directors: it examines finances, requires references, and may refuse without giving a reason even after the price has been agreed with the seller. Renting out in cooperatives is almost always restricted by the bylaws. For a buyer with income from outside the U.S., this is the key fork in the road: approval is not guaranteed even with an all‑cash purchase, which is why, in the vast majority of cases, a condominium is the right choice for a foreigner. A townhouse gives you both the building and the land beneath it, but it is the most expensive and the rarest format — in Brooklyn Heights and Greenwich Village, such homes sell for millions.
Costs on top of the property price
One‑time costs are calculated before signing the contract. The mansion tax is paid by the buyer starting at $1 million: the rate rises from 1% to 3.9%, and for a $2 million apartment that is $25,000. The transfer tax is collected by the state (0.4% up to $3 million, 0.65% above) and the city (1% up to $500,000, 1.425% above). By default, the seller pays these, but in new developments the developer often shifts this item to the buyer — read that clause separately. Setting up ownership through a U.S. legal entity or trust adds $3,000–15,000.
Annual surcharge on second homes
From July 1, 2026, an annual surcharge on residential property that is not a primary residence was added (Article 30‑C of the State Tax Law). For condominiums and cooperatives, the threshold is an assessed value of $1 million or more, with rates of 4% for assessments of $1–3 million, 5.25% for $3–5 million, and 6.5% above $5 million. The calculation is based not on the market price, but on the assessment by the city's Department of Finance, which for apartments is noticeably lower than the market price. For one‑to‑three‑family homes the threshold is $5 million and rates are 0.8–1.3%. Notices are being sent out by August 30, 2026, with the first payment due January 1, 2027. If the apartment is in fact a primary residence, the classification can be challenged by filing supporting documentation.
Monthly carrying charges
Monthly carrying charges in New York are higher than most buyers expect and rise faster than inflation. For transactions in the second quarter of 2026, the average monthly payment for a cooperative apartment was $3,077, and for a condominium apartment including property tax — $4,466. The amount does not depend on whether you live in the apartment or it sits empty, and it must be built into the budget alongside the property price.
Why cash wins on this market
Cash here carries more weight than the amount in the offer. In 2025, 64% of Manhattan transactions closed without a mortgage, and in the segment above $3 million — almost 90%. In the second quarter of 2026, luxury‑segment supply was the lowest in 22 years of tracking, and the share of deals closing above the asking price rose to 11.9%. A buyer with ready cash gains a negotiating advantage; a buyer with financing loses on speed.
Neighborhoods, property types, and prices
| Neighborhood | What is bought here | Prices | For living | For renting out |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manhattan | Condominiums in new towers, cooperatives in pre‑war buildings, lofts in converted Tribeca factories, penthouses. Areas: Financial District, Upper East Side, Chelsea, Greenwich Village | $1.25 million median Q2 2026, +4.2% year‑over‑year. Cooperatives — $895,000. Tribeca — $3.6 million, SoHo — $4.4 million | Work and study: everything within walking distance, subway runs 24/7 | The most resilient demand in the city, but most of the supply is cooperatives, where renting is restricted by the bylaws |
| Brooklyn | Townhouses in Brooklyn Heights, new condominiums in Williamsburg and DUMBO, apartments in low‑rise buildings | $735,000 median for the borough; for condominiums in Q2 2026 — $1.49 million. DUMBO — $2.6 million, Brooklyn Heights — from $900,000 | For families with children: parks, schools, historic architecture, 5 minutes by subway to Manhattan from Brooklyn Heights | Higher share of condominiums than in Manhattan — fewer rental restrictions |
| Queens | One‑ to two‑family houses, new condominiums in Long Island City, apartments in Astoria, Forest Hills, Rego Park | $530,000 median for the borough. Houses account for half of all transactions, the most active segment is $750,000–$1,000,000 | For a first purchase: more square footage for the same money, 15–25 minutes to Midtown | The best entry‑price‑to‑rent‑rate ratio among the four boroughs |
| Staten Island | Single‑family houses, townhouses | $440,000 — the lowest median among the five boroughs | For those who want a house with a yard within the city limits | Not suitable: no subway, connection to Manhattan is only by ferry, rental demand is weak |
| Land lots | Vacant lots for building a one‑, three‑, or four‑family house | from $290,000 per listings as of July 2026 | For building to your own specifications when no ready‑made options with the right layout exist | A multi‑family house is built specifically for rental — but that is a multi‑year project, not a purchase |
Manhattan and Brooklyn condominium medians are based on Q2 2026 reports; borough‑ and neighborhood‑level medians are based on aggregated market data. Land lot prices are from active listings. The property's zoning classification (e.g., R5B) determines how many families may be housed and must be verified before closing.
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Questions from property buyers
Yes. There are no restrictions based on citizenship in the U.S., no government approval is required, and there is no special tax for non‑residents at purchase — a foreigner pays the same closing costs as an American. Three things are needed: an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), a U.S. bank account for settlement, and documentation of the source of funds. The last requirement became stricter as of March 1, 2026: under a new U.S. Treasury Department rule, if residential real estate is purchased without bank financing and is held through a legal entity or trust, the title company or attorney must file a report with FinCEN containing beneficial ownership information. There is no monetary threshold. The requirement does not apply to direct purchases by individuals or to transactions with mortgage financing.
The process is as follows: property search, offer through a broker, signing the contract with a deposit typically 10% of the purchase price, attorney review of the property, for a cooperative — submitting a package to the board of directors and an interview, followed by closing and registration. From offer to closing takes one and a half to three months; cooperatives take longer due to board approval. U.S. banks offer mortgages to non‑residents under specific programs, but the terms are stricter: higher down payment, broader documentation, longer processing. The main constraint is the lack of a U.S. credit history. Some buyers close with cash and refinance later, once a track record has been established.
Long‑term — yes, and this is the only viable scenario for an owner living abroad. Short‑term rental in New York is effectively closed: under Local Law No. 18, listing guests for fewer than 30 days is allowed only if the host is registered with the city's Office of Special Enforcement and is physically present in the apartment during the guests' stay, and the number of guests is limited to two. Renting out an entire apartment on a short‑term basis is prohibited, with fines of up to $5,000 per violation, and platforms are required to verify the registration number before booking. For a non‑resident owner, the condition of personal presence is impossible to meet, so any yield calculation should be based solely on leases of 30 days or more. Separately, check the building's bylaws: in cooperatives, rental is most often restricted or prohibited; in condominiums, there are virtually no restrictions.
Start from your goal, not from the prestige of the address. For your own occupancy, three things decide: commute time to work or school, property type, and budget — for the same money, Queens and Brooklyn offer noticeably more square footage than Manhattan. For renting out, the main filter is different: the share of condominiums in the neighborhood's supply, because cooperatives restrict rental by their bylaws and sometimes prohibit it entirely. By this criterion, Queens and Brooklyn are more convenient than Manhattan, even though rental demand on Manhattan is higher. Staten Island is not considered for rental: the subway does not go there. Specific figures for each neighborhood are in the table above.
Upon the sale of real estate by a foreign owner, under the federal FIRPTA law, 15% of the gross sales price is withheld — the buyer remits this amount to the tax authority directly at closing. This is not a final tax, but a prepayment: after filing a tax return, the difference is refunded if the actual liability is less. However, the funds are tied up for months, and with a small gain, the withholding can far exceed the actual tax. To avoid this, an application for a withholding certificate should be submitted in advance. This calculation should be done before purchase, not before sale — it determines which ownership structure is more advantageous.
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