What Can the New York State Homeowners Credit Do for You?
Sept. 22, 2015 — The New York State Homeowners Credit is a law that became effective in 2009 and earns eligible tenant-shareholders and unit-owners of co-op and condo apartments tax credits for doing repairs to the exterior and interior of the building. When the homeowners tax credit was first being developed, Murray Gould, principal in Port City Preservation, a company that assists buildings in getting tax credits, was among those pushing to include co-ops and condos. "I felt they should have equal footing with the classic single-family historic house," he says now. Once it passed, the new law changed the definition of a historic home to include buildings that just happened to be condominiums or cooperatives. "In New York State, you earn a 20 percent credit for the work that is done: a dollar for dollar offset against [your] tax liability," says Gould.
To qualify, the building must be an owner-occupied residential structure — sublets are not eligible — listed with either the State Historic Preservation Office or the National Register of Historic Places, or located in a state or nationally registered historic district and certified as being of historic significance to the district. Designation by the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) doesn't determine eligibility for the credit, but the LPC has oversight over the scope of the work.
To further qualify:
- You must own and reside in the historic home in New York State in the year for which you claim the credit.
- Qualifying rehabilitation costs for the project must be $5,000 or more of which five percent must be for exterior work.
- You must receive preliminary approval before beginning construction and a Certificate of Completion once the work has been completed from the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation.
The home must also be located in:
- a federally qualified census tract or area of chronic economic distress, or
- a census tract that is at 50 percent or below the state family median income level.
There are thousands of census tracts in New York City, explains Gould. So when you call up to see if you are eligible to receive the credit, your address gets checked against a master list of those census tracts to see if you meet the qualification requirements.
For additional information on the New York State Homeowners Credit and whether you qualify, check out the Tax Credit Program page on the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation. And for additional information on claiming this credit, see Form IT-237, Claim for Historic Homeownership Rehabilitation Credit, and its instructions.