President Donald Trump has boasted that his tax cut proposal would be the biggest and best the nation has ever seen, but that's not the way longtime Bronxville homeowner and CPA Ed Zeltser sees it.
Zeltser says he pays about $21,000 a year in property taxes. Under the president’s plan, his tax rate would go down, but he'd no longer be able to write off state or local taxes, or more importantly, property tax deductions. He insists this would cost him more in the end – about $7,000 out of pocket.
Because Westchester is so expensive, real estate experts say many homeowners rely on the property tax deductions they receive. They say without them, many might consider moving.
Leah Caro, of Bronxville Real Estate, believes Trump's tax cuts could effectively cut people out of the home ownership market.
“The incentive to be a homeowner will be significantly diminished by their inability to deduct their property taxes,” she says. “I’m glad they're keeping the mortgage interest deduction, but I think it will be bad for the economic health of this county.”
Zeltser says for the sake of his neighbors, he's hoping the president's tax plan dies a quick death before becoming law.