The short answer: the statute attributes entity-owned homes to the natural persons behind them — through every tier of LLCs, corporations, partnerships and holding companies. Occupancy still decides: a qualifying person primarily living there exempts the unit, entity or not. And where no individual holds a majority of the entity, the unit can be taxed regardless of who lives there — unless a qualifying 12-month tenant occupies it.
The three rules that decide entity cases
- Look-through: the analysis runs to people, not paper. "Covered owners" include the beneficial owners behind entities.
- Tiers disregarded: an LLC owned by another LLC, a holding company, or a trust adds no layer of protection — the look-through continues until it reaches individuals.
- Entire interest: the entity's whole interest is analyzed as one; entity ownership is not treated as co-ownership split among members.
Scale check from the roll: roughly 52% of over-threshold condo units are held by LLCs, corporations or trusts. The drafters knew where the second homes live.
What the look-through actually sees
What still works — and what doesn't
| Structure/plan | Outcome |
|---|---|
| LLC-owned, but a member (or their immediate family) primarily lives there | Exempt — occupancy carries through the entity. Document it. |
| LLC-owned, leased 12+ months arm's-length to a primary-resident tenant | Exempt — the lease exit works for entities exactly as for individuals. |
| Multi-member family LLC, no individual majority, family uses it occasionally | Taxable regardless of that use — the no-majority rule. Review the structure now. |
| Re-tiering into a holding company or trust | Changes nothing — tiers are disregarded. |
| Corporate apartment for rotating executives | Taxable — a rotating cast is nobody's primary residence, and a corporate tenant can't qualify for the lease exemption (natural persons only). |
When the notice is addressed to the LLC
Entity-owned units get the same DOF notice and the same 30-day rebuttal window — but the letter often lands at a registered agent, an attorney of record, or a stale service address, and the clock runs anyway. Three practical points: make sure someone actually monitors the entity's mail now, before notice season finds an empty letterbox; the response is the same occupancy evidence as for individuals — the qualifying person's residency documentation, plus the records showing who stands behind the entity; and don't let the entity's name on the envelope create the impression the surcharge is someone else's problem — it attaches to the property, and it's the people behind the entity who feel it. The step-by-step response: the notice playbook.
Where your attorney comes in
Membership percentages, trust terms, and occupancy documentation interact in ways only your actual documents can answer — this is genuinely counsel territory, and DOF's rules penalize creative paperwork hard (50% of the surcharge for false residency documentation; up to 300% of an understatement on valuation, capped at 50%). What we can contribute precisely, free: the unit's official DOF value and exposure figure, so the legal conversation starts from the real number. Advisors: we're glad to run checks for client properties — reports are educational and unbranded advice-wise.
Questions owners ask
Does owning through an LLC avoid the NYC pied-à-terre tax?
No. The statute looks through LLCs, corporations and partnerships to the natural persons behind them; tiered structures are disregarded; and the entity's entire interest is analyzed as one. Roughly 52% of over-threshold condos are entity-held — the law was written for exactly this. Occupancy remains the exit: a member or immediate family member primarily living there, or a 12-month arm's-length tenant, exempts the unit.
What happens if no one owns a majority of the LLC?
The unit can be taxed regardless of who occupies it — unless a qualifying tenant (12-month arm's-length lease, primary residence) lives there. Multi-member family LLCs with dispersed ownership should review their structure with counsel now.
Who responds when a DOF surcharge notice is addressed to an LLC?
Someone with authority for the entity — typically a managing member or officer — within the same 30-day window that applies to individuals. The substance of the response is unchanged: documentation that a qualifying person primarily occupies the unit (or that a bona fide 12-month lease exists), together with records of who stands behind the entity. Notices often route to registered agents or counsel, so entities should make sure that mail is monitored before notice season.
Can a corporate apartment qualify for an exemption?
Practically no. The lease exemption requires a natural-person tenant using the unit as their primary residence; rotating executives are nobody's primary residence. A corporate unit over the threshold owes the surcharge.
Start the entity conversation with the real number.
Free emailed report: the unit's official DOF market value and surcharge exposure — the figure your attorney or CPA needs before structure even comes up.
Check My Unit — FreeDisclaimer. This page is educational information from Conquest, a licensed New York real estate brokerage. It is not legal, tax, or accounting advice, and no advisory relationship is created by reading it. Deadlines and figures reflect DOF's published rules and roll as of the "last updated" date above.