“During his 2025 campaign, then-candidate Mamdani called the tax lien sale program ‘racism’ and made clear in no uncertain terms that he would cease the practice on ‘Day One’ if elected to City Hall.
At the time, Mamdani rightly decried the fact that the discounted sale of unpaid tax liens and water debt to private investors disproportionately impacted homeowners of color before promising to permanently abolish the system.
Now, in a 180-degree about-face, Mayor Mamdani claims the tax lien sale is ‘appropriate’.
The facts have not changed. In the last two lien sales, an overwhelming majority – 72% – were sold in majority-Black and Hispanic neighborhoods.
The Mamdani administration’s claim that holding one last sale before its ability to do so expires under a new local law is somehow helpful to struggling homeowners because it prevents them from ‘further digging themselves into a hole’ rings hollow. Adding insult to injury, that statement was made by the mayor’s so-called tenant czar, who is on the record calling homeownership “a tool of white supremacy.”
The mayor’s change of heart on the tax lien sale raises concerning questions about whether he truly has the best interests of Black and Brown homeowners at heart. At the height of the affordability crisis, homeowners need support, not a target on their backs.”
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