On January 17, 2017, the New York City Department of Finance published its Tentative Tax Assessment roll for the 2017/18 tax year.

The tentative tax assessment roles contain significant increases, including:

Significant increases in tax assessments typically generate increased filings of protest applications for the tax certiorari process. The deadline to file for tax certiorari for most commercial properties is March 1, 2017. For residential properties with one to three family units, the deadline is March 15, 2017. No extensions are granted.

Tentative tax assessment notices contain:

The New York tax years formally begins on July 1, 2017 and ends on June 30, 2018.

The assessment is based on the property's condition as of January 5, 2017.

For most commercial properties, the market value is assessed using the income capitalization approach. Assessors process the actual income and expenses reported by property owners to determine the property's net operating income.

New York City does not use the cost approach or the comparable sales approach for Class 2 or Class 4 properties.

For mixed-use properties, each category (office, retail, residential) must state its net operating income separately. All income must be reported no matter what source it is derived from, even if it is from a seemingly ancillary source.

The actual amount of the assessment is determined using the capitalization rate, which is the annual rate of return expected by an investor in the property. The outcome of most tax appeals are determined based on the property's capitalization rate.

For owner-occupied commercial property, income from comparable income-producing properties is imputed on a per square foot basis. Comparability includes:

To have a hearing in front of the Tax Commission, a property owner must challenge their tentative assessment by the date corresponding to their property type.

Hearings taking place from March to October. Owners may present information or documents that support reducing their tentative assessment. The commission typically determines its decision in a few weeks. The Tax Commission may:

If an offer to reduce an assessment is accepted by the property owner, the reduction is effective on July 1, 2017. Property owners may apply for a refund for any amount they previously overpaid.

If there is no reduction offer or if the owner rejects an offer, the owner may file a petition in New York Supreme Court by October 24th, although few appeals go to this trial stage because the Tax Commission has jurisdiction over the preceding two years.