TAX ASSESSMENTS RISE FOR FISCAL 2004
New York City opened its 2004 Tentative Assessment Roll on January 15th. The Billable Assessed Value of all property reached $99.3 billion, a 6.4% increase over the prior year. The Billable Assessed Value of co-ops and condos with more than 10 apartments increased by an average of 4.62% and 8.29% citywide respectively. Assessments are multiplied by the tax rate to determine the tax due on each property. The rate is set by the City Council in the course of its budget process; it will be applied to tax bills for fiscal 2004, which runs from July 1, 2003, to June 30, 2004.

In November 2002, the tax rate for Class 2 properties in New York City was increased to 12.571%, with the hope that this rate level would be sufficient to bridge the budget deficit. It is anticipated that this rate will not have to increase further in 2004. Even if the rate remains the same, tax bills will increase, due in part to the full phasing in of the 12.571% and in part to the higher assessments.

The tax abatement program for homeowners in New York City cooperatives and condominiums is scheduled to continue throughout fiscal 2004 (see page 3 of this Newsletter), providing abatements of 17.5% and 25% on property tax bills. Senior Citizens and Veterans exemption programs will continue to provide additional relief for those who qualify. The STAR (School Tax Relief) program is State controlled. It is scheduled to continue this year, but the Governor has proposed that it be frozen at the 2003 level for fiscal 2004.

COMPARATIVE STUDY OF 2001 OPERATING COSTS
The Comparative Study of 2001 Operating Costs has been published and a copy has been sent to each CNYC member and subscriber. A well-respected benchmark to help cooperatives and condominiums determine how well they have budgeted for operating costs, CNYC's annual analysis examines the various costs of operating a building. Thanks to CNYC's members and to several key accounting firms, this year's Study includes data from 882 cooperatives and condominiums. Code numbers preserve the anonymity of participating buildings. When the Study is sent to members whose financial data is included, they are advised of their code numbers to help them locate their own statistics.

The Comparative Study analyzes all information on a per-room basis, beginning with the property tax assessment and mortgage figures for participating buildings and the amounts paid as maintenance or carrying charges. It then lists amounts spent per room on wages, fuel, utilities, repairs and maintenance, insurance, management costs, administrative costs, water & sewer fees, property tax, and debt service. When possible, elevator maintenance and legal and accounting costs are each listed separately. The Study then incorporates this basic information for the year into a ten year chart of summary statistics, where it calculates the average and median per-room, per-year outlay for each item, and the average portion of total operating budget devoted to each.

The Comparative Study of 2001 Operating Costs can be purchased from CNYC for $5. Send your check to CNYC at 250 West 57th Street, Suite 730, New York, NY 10107-0730, and be sure to specify the address to which the Comparative Study should be sent.

CNYC is compiling data for the Comparative Study of 2002 Operating Costs. To ensure its success, we need Year 2002 financial statements from as many New York cooperatives and condominiums as possible. Please send CNYC your financial statement for the year 2000 by mid-summer, so that your information can be included in the Comparative Study.