The city is going after its biggest property tax deadbeat.
The Kraus organization, which owns the Bedford Gardens and Buff, tops the list of tax scofflaws — with a staggering $75.8 million bill.
The oversized tax bill, for Buff only and not Bedford Gardens, includes $69.6 million of interest, according to a spokesperson for Kraus. The tax bill more than 20 years old and the property is currently paying taxes, the spokesperson added.
Overall, the city is owed more than $840 million by owners of 27,233 properties in all five boroughs.
Kraus owns hundreds of properties, including Bedford Gardens, a group of heavily subsidized Mitchell-Lama buildings in Williamsburg.
“The city has a pending lawsuit to foreclose on [Buff] based upon unpaid property taxes and outstanding mortgage payments owed to the city,” said city Law Department spokesman Nick Paolucci. Much of the total due is interest.
The city almost never forecloses on the worst tax delinquents, but instead has been selling tax liens on properties that are worth more than the liens
Mayor de Blasio signed a bill last month authorizing the city’s Finance Department to sell tax liens in 2015 and 2016. He also signed a bill Tuesday to name a temporary task force to fix the system by August.
Frantic property owners usually cut deals with the city to reduce their tabs and pay down their bills. Mayor de Blasio signed a bill last month authorizing the city’s Finance Department to sell tax liens in 2015 and 2016. He also signed a bill Tuesday to name a temporary task force to fix the system by August.
Kraus, which has headquarters in Queens and is now run by late founder Herman Kraus’s son Stephen Kraus, has been investigated by HPD and HUD for nonpayment of mortgages and for hiring Kraus’s own companies without competitive bidding to do work at its properties. This drives up costs that tenants claim adds to their rent hikes. No one at Kraus was ever charged in connection with the probe.
“The owner is dedicated to partnering with the City to reach a resolution that preserves more than 250 units of affordable housing,” the Kraus spokesperson said. “The owners are also committed to meeting all of their financial obligations to the City, and are confident that a successful resolution can be reached.”
