Coop Applicant Copy Download
Kena Tilson
Dear Board of Directors,
It is with great pleasure that I write to you about my application to purchase the shares in connection with Apartment 405 in your cooperative. I am overjoyed about the opportunity to be a shareholder in Penny Lane. The building is exactly what I am looking for. The location is less than 2 miles from my job, with easy access to transportation, and I love that the building is close Madison Square and Union Square Park. I have heard nothing but wonderful sentiments about Penny Lane, and I hope to be a meaningful contributor and loyal member of that family.
Note: This document pertains to the STAR exemption. The STAR exemption is no longer available to new applicants. Instead they may be eligible for the STAR credit which is issued in the form of a check or direct deposit from New York State. Information on the STAR credit is available at Register for the STAR credit.
Beginning in 2016, the STAR exemption is no longer available to new applicants. Homeowners with existing STAR exemptions may continue to receive the exemption and to upgrade to the Enhanced STAR exemption when eligible. New applicants may seek a credit issued in the form of a check or direct deposit.
There are 2 types of STAR exemptions. A taxpayer may have either a Basic or Enhanced STAR exemption, not both: (1) a "Basic" exemption is available to virtually all New Yorkers who own their own one, two, or three family home, condominium, cooperative apartment or mobile home; and (2) an "Enhanced" exemption available to senior citizens (age 65 and older) with a limited income, increased annually according to a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA).
Answer: A one, two or three family residence, a farm dwelling, residential property held in condominium or cooperative form of ownership, or a mobile home. Of course, the eligibility requirements (that is, ownership and primary residency, and in the case of the Enhanced exemption, age and income) must also be satisfied.
Answer: No, a copy of the deed is not generally required. The assessor must be satisfied, however, that the applicant is the owner. In most cases, it should be sufficient to check the tax records.
Answer: Though cooperative apartments are not separately assessed, STAR specifically makes them eligible for the exemption. If granted, the exemption will be granted to the cooperative apartment building, in an amount determined in accordance with the statutory formula. The assessor must provide the building manager with a statement showing which apartments have received the exemption and the amount of each such exemption, and the manager must pass along the tax savings to the residents of those apartments. See Appendix B for a more detailed discussion of these procedures.
Answer: For STAR, the applicant must own the home and apply by taxable status date. STAR has no length of ownership requirement, unlike the senior citizens exemption, which generally requires ownership for 12 consecutive months prior to application.
Answer: There is no single factor or definition that determines primary residence. However, the most important factor is the length of time the person resides on the property. Generally, it can be expected that the person would reside on the property more than six months of the year. Other factors include a person's voting residence, driver's license, filing status for purposes of state income taxes, and other conduct and behavior that provides evidence as to which property the applicant considers to be his or her primary residence.
Answer: The applicants must certify that the property is their primary residence. The law says that "the assessor may request that proof of residency be submitted with the application." The assessor has a choice between requiring proof of residency to be submitted with all first-time applications or to require proof of residency only in those cases where there is reason to suspect that the property may not be the primary residence. For example, if the mailing address of the owner is different from the property address or the property is a seasonal property, it is reasonable to question whether this is the primary residence.
Answer: No. Not as long as he or she is receiving the Florida exemption. To be eligible for STAR, either Basic or Enhanced, the property must be the primary residence of the applicant. We have been advised that the same requirement also applies to the Florida Homestead exemption. Since a person can have only one primary residence, a Florida resident receiving a Homestead exemption in that state cannot have the STAR exemption. However, if the person gives up the Homestead exemption in Florida, he or she may then become eligible for STAR in New York, assuming the requirements are met. However, in 11 Op. of Counsel SBRPS No.18, which pertained to a married couple, it was concluded that New York law does not preclude a married person from qualifying for an alternative veterans exemption and STAR exemption merely because their spouse receives a Florida Homestead tax benefit on the spouse's Florida domicile.
Answer: No. The application form requires the applicant to answer a question on the age criterion and to certify that this information is correct. The law is silent on the collection of proof of age, but it is the applicant's burden to demonstrate eligibility for the exemption, so the assessor may request proof of age where he or she finds it necessary.
Answer: No. All owners must be at least 65 (except for the spouse or sibling of an owner who is 65 or older). However, if the child conveys his or her interest to the parents, the parents would then satisfy the age requirement for the Enhanced STAR exemption. Due to the various implications of such a conveyance, applicants who are considering this course of action should be advised to consult with their private attorney. If no change is made, the property may still qualify for the Basic exemption.
Answer: The combined income of all of the owners and of any owner's spouse who resides on the premises may not exceed the prescribed limits for the income tax year ending two years prior to the roll year for which application is made, as amended annually according to a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) determined by the Social Security Administration for the respective income tax year. The Office of Real Property Tax Services is responsible for annually revising and promulgating the eligible income tax limits. (For applications on the 2022 assessment rolls, the eligible income limit for the 2020 income tax year is $92,000.) Income is defined as "adjusted gross income" (AGI) for federal income tax purposes as reported on the applicants' federal or State income tax return for the applicable income tax year, less the "taxable amount" of total distributions from individual retirement accounts or individual retirement annuities, both of which are commonly known as "IRAs." For taxable status dates related to assessment rolls to be completed in 2022, the applicable income tax year is 2020. For subsequent assessment rolls, that is, 2023 and thereafter, the applicable income tax year, COLA, and applicable increase percentage will be advanced by one year, with the income standard being the previous applicable income standard increased by the new COLA. Therefore applications for this exemption on a 2023 assessment roll must be based on the applicants' 2021 income, and so on.
The only exception is that a senior citizen who has a decrease in income due to the death of his or her spouse may use the income tax year immediately subsequent to the income year that would otherwise be used to qualify for Enhanced STAR. To take advantage of this exception, the senior citizen must have filed the later year's income tax return with the IRS and/or the department, and must have filed a copy of that return or other income documentation with the assessor, on or before the applicable taxable status date. So for example, eligibility for Enhanced STAR on the 2022 roll will in most cases be based on 2020 income, but qualifying widows and widowers may have their eligibility based on their 2021 income, if they file their 2021 income tax return with the IRS and/or the department on or before the taxable status date of the 2022 assessment roll.
Answer: An application for the STAR exemption may be filed with the assessor after the appropriate taxable status date, but not later than the local Grievance day, if the failure to file a timely application resulted from: (1) a death of the applicant's spouse, child, parent, brother or sister; or (2) an illness of the applicant or of the applicant's spouse, child, parent, brother or sister, which actually prevented the applicant from filing on a timely basis, as certified by a licensed physician. The assessor should approve or deny such an application as if it had been filed on or before taxable status date.
An applicant who missed the deadline due to good cause may also ask the Commissioner for permission to file a late Enhanced STAR application. The deadline to request the extension is the last day for paying school taxes without incurring interest or penalty. The Tax Department will review the documentation, consult with the assessor, and then make a determination. We will then notify the assessor and property owner of our determination. If we determine that the exemption should be granted, then the assessor or person who has custody of the roll will make the appropriate change.
Answer: The tax returns are a required part of the application and must be retained. Similarly, if the assessor requires the applicant to submit additional documentation of income, age, or residency, that must also be retained.
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