485-x and NYC Condos: How the 421-a Replacement Works for Buyers

Updated Oct 27, 2026 · 6 min read

Short answer: 485-x, passed in 2024 as Affordable Neighborhoods for New Yorkers, replaced 421-a for buildings that start construction after June 15, 2022, and it has a condo option. A condo or co-op outside Manhattan with six or more homes can get 14 years of full exemption and six more at 25% if its units average no more than $89 a square foot of assessed value and every buyer agrees to live there for five years. In practice it's rare: only 5 NYC condo offering plans in our records mention 485-x, and the four that describe it in detail advise the sponsor not to advertise the condo with the benefit.

What 485-x Is

485-x is a section of New York's Real Property Tax Law, created in the April 2024 state budget along with the extension of 421-a's completion deadline. Like 421-a, it exempts the value of new construction from property tax while owners keep paying tax on what the property was assessed at before construction began. The city's housing agency, HPD, runs it.

It covers buildings with six or more homes that start construction after June 15, 2022 and on or before June 15, 2034, and that are finished by June 15, 2038. Most of its options are for rental buildings, which must include affordable or rent-stabilized apartments. Condos and co-ops use Option D, the homeownership option.

The Condo Option: Who Qualifies

Not in Manhattan. The law excludes condo and co-op projects in Manhattan.
Six or more homes, with no upper limit.
A cap on assessed value. At the first assessment after completion, the units must average no more than $89 a square foot of assessed value. Any part of a unit's assessed value above $89 a square foot isn't exempt.
Owner-occupants. Each owner agrees in writing to use the unit as their primary residence for at least five years from buying it.

The city's assessed value for a condo is far below its price, since the city values condos as if they were rentals and taxes 45% of that value. See how a NYC condo tax estimate works.

How Long It Lasts

A homeownership project gets a 20-year benefit after completion, plus a full exemption during construction for up to three years:

Years 1 to 14: 100% exempt.
Years 15 to 20: 25% exempt.
Year 21 on: full taxes.

Your taxes step up twice, in year 15 and year 21. The years run from the building's completion date (its first temporary or permanent certificate of occupancy covering the homes), not from when you buy.

How 485-x Differs From 421-a for Condos

For a condo buyer, the two homeownership options are close cousins. The main differences:

	421-a (2017 version), Option D	485-x, Option D
Construction start	January 1, 2016 to June 15, 2022	After June 15, 2022, through June 15, 2034
Must be finished by	June 15, 2026, or June 15, 2031 with a 2024 letter of intent	June 15, 2038
Location	Outside Manhattan	Outside Manhattan
Building size	35 homes or fewer	6 homes or more, no cap
Assessed value cap	$65,000 per unit, on average	$89 per square foot, on average
Benefit after completion	14 years at 100%, 6 at 25%	14 years at 100%, 6 at 25%
Owner-occupancy	Primary residence for 5 years	Primary residence for 5 years
Application fee	$3,000 per unit	Up to $4,000 per unit

Sources: HPD's 421-a and 485-x program pages; Real Property Tax Law §485-x.

Two changes matter most. Dropping the 35-unit cap lets bigger outer-borough condos qualify, and the assessed value cap is measured per square foot rather than per unit. Of the plans below that describe the option, two have more than 35 homes, too many for 421-a's condo option.

485-x also has rules 421-a's condo option didn't. Building service workers must be paid prevailing wages for the benefit period, though buildings with fewer than 30 homes are exempt, and construction wage minimums apply to sites with 100 or more homes.

What the Offering Plans Say

No NYC condo plan in our records names 485-x as its tax program. We searched the text of every plan: five mention it, all filed in 2025 or 2026, all outside Manhattan. Of those, four describe the homeownership option, and three estimate what it would be worth in the first year:

Building	Borough	Homes	Filed	Describes the condo option	Estimated first-year benefit
134-11 Franklin Avenue	Queens	39	Jan 7, 2026	Yes	—
10-39 49th Avenue	Queens	35	Dec 1, 2025	Yes	$35,000 a year
30-78 29th Street	Queens	27	Oct 17, 2025	Named only	—
35-30 146th Street	Queens	44	Jul 10, 2025	Yes	$90,500 a year
1027 Bushwick Avenue	Brooklyn	20	Apr 3, 2025	Yes	$11,109 a year

Every NYC condo offering plan in our records whose text mentions 485-x, newest first. Estimated benefit: the tax consultant's estimate of the first year's 485-x benefit for the building, if it were granted. Named only: the plan lists 485-x among benefits its estimate leaves out, without describing it.

35-30 146th Street in Flushing (44 homes): about $90,500 a year for the residential units, if granted.
10-39 49th Avenue in Long Island City (35 homes): about $35,000 a year for the residential and parking units, with the stores expected to get ICAP instead.
1027 Bushwick Avenue in Bushwick (20 homes): about $11,109 a year for the whole building.
134-11 Franklin Avenue in Flushing (39 homes) describes the option as possible.
30-78 29th Street in Astoria (27 homes) only lists 485-x among benefits its tax estimate leaves out.

The tax letters in these plans are cautious. Each estimate is made without 485-x, and the letters that describe the option cite the program's complexity for homeownership projects and say "we advise not to advertise the Condominium with 485-x Benefits," while calling it an option for owners who use their units as a primary residence to look into. So a buyer in these buildings should budget for full taxes and treat 485-x as a possible upside, not a given.

The city expects more. In May 2025, HPD reported 13 projects with 243 homes intending to apply for the 485-x homeownership option, against 8 projects with 142 homes that applied for 421-a's.

The catch: the benefit depends on things a buyer can't control: the building's first assessment coming in under $89 a square foot, and every owner signing the primary-residence agreement. The application is due within one year of completion, so it may not be settled until after you close.

What It Means for a Buyer

Check whether the plan claims it. Look in the real estate tax section and the tax consultant's letter. If the estimate leaves 485-x out, budget for the taxes shown.
Know the residence rule. If the building gets 485-x under the homeownership option, you agree to live in the unit for five years. That limits buying it as a rental or a second home.
Count the years. As with 421-a, the 14 full years start at completion, and the bill steps up in years 15 and 21.
Compare with the benchmarks. A tax figure far below similar buildings on our property tax benchmarks usually means an exemption is assumed.

For buildings that started before June 2022, see how 421-a works for condo buyers.

FAQ

Do condos qualify for 485-x?

Yes, through the homeownership option: a condo or co-op outside Manhattan with six or more homes, units averaging no more than $89 a square foot of assessed value at the first assessment, and owners who agree to live in their units for five years.

How long does the 485-x condo benefit last?

Up to three years during construction, then 20 years: 14 years fully exempt and six years 25% exempt.

Is 485-x the same as 421-a?

It replaced 421-a for projects starting after June 15, 2022. For condos the benefit schedule and five-year residence rule are the same, but 485-x drops the 35-unit cap and caps assessed value per square foot instead of per unit.

Can a Manhattan condo get 485-x?

No. The homeownership option excludes Manhattan, as 421-a's did.

How many NYC condos have 485-x?

Few so far. 5 condo offering plans in our records mention it, and none counts it in its tax estimate.

Where do these figures come from?

From the text of NYC condo offering plans filed with the New York Attorney General. Program rules are from HPD and Real Property Tax Law §485-x. This is general information, not tax advice. Updated October 2026.