NEW YORK, New York — One month after Zohran Mamdani won New York City’s mayoral election, there is still no sign that affluent residents are fleeing despite warnings from critics that even a modest tax increase would drive millionaires to low-tax states. Reporting shows that real-estate activity among high-income buyers has strengthened rather than weakened.
Signed contracts for Manhattan homes priced above $4 million rose in November, according to Fortune data cited by the outlet, and inventory in the top tier of the market fell 16% from the previous year — a sign that wealthy residents are staying put. Economists say long-standing patterns support this outcome.
Cristobal Young, a Cornell University sociologist who studies migration patterns of high-income earners, said wealthy Americans rarely relocate because of taxes alone. Marriage, family ties, business networks, and cultural amenities significantly anchor them to major metro areas like New York. Young noted that previous tax increases in New Jersey, California, Connecticut and Massachusetts produced no mass exodus.
Quentin Parrinello of the EU Tax Observatory said similar trends appear across Europe. While a small number of individuals may leave, he said the “mobility of high-net-worth individuals is extremely limited,” especially when proposed tax increases are modest.
Experts conclude that New York’s wealthiest residents are likely to remain, contributing to the city’s tax base despite politically charged predictions of flight.
Sources:
Discover more from News Facts Network
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
