Senate BillIntroduced
S 4488: Exempts first-time homebuyers from the mortgage recording tax.
What S 4488 does, verified January 8, 2026
The proposed legislation aims to exempt first-time homebuyers from paying the mortgage recording tax. A first-time homebuyer is defined as a natural person who has not owned a primary residential property and is not married to someone who has owned a residential property in the past three years. This exemption would not apply to vacation or investment homes. The tax exemption would apply to mortgages executed on and after the effective date of the law. The law would take effect on the first of January next succeeding the date it becomes a law.
Bill journey
1IntroducedCurrent
2In CommitteePending
3First Chamber FloorPending
4Second ChamberPending
5GovernorPending
6ChapteredPending
Last action: REFERRED TO INVESTIGATIONS AND GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS (2026-01-07)Alert me
Quick answers about S 4488
- What is the current status of S 4488?
- As of January 8, 2026, S 4488 is recorded as "Introduced": it has been introduced and is waiting for its first committee hearing or floor vote. The last recorded action, on January 7, 2026, was "REFERRED TO INVESTIGATIONS AND GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS".
- Did S 4488 pass?
- Not yet. S 4488 has been introduced and has not passed either house.
- Who wrote S 4488, and where is it now?
- S 4488 was authored by Sen. Peter Harckham with 1 coauthor. Its committee of record is Senate Investigation & Government Operations.
Author and sponsors
Full contact details, staff, and committees with Connect, $16/moUnlockRecent actions2 total · showing 2
| Jan. 07, 2026 | REFERRED TO INVESTIGATIONS AND GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS |
| Feb. 05, 2025 | REFERRED TO INVESTIGATIONS AND GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS |
Latest bill textIntroduced version, February 5, 2025 · 259 words
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4488 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN SENATE February 5, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. HARCKHAM -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Govern- ment Operations AN ACT to amend the tax law, in relation to exempting first-time home- buyers from the mortgage recording tax The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 253 of the tax law is amended by adding a new 2 subdivision 4 to read as follows: 3 4. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the 4 mortgage recording tax shall not be imposed upon any mortgage where the 5 mortgagee is a first-time homebuyer. As used in this subdivision "first- 6 time homebuyer" means a natural person who has not owned a primary resi- 7 dential property and is not married to a person who has owned a residen- 8 tial property during the three-year period prior to their purchase of 9 the primary residential property, and who does not own a vacation or 10 investment home. 11 § 2. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed- 12 ing the date on which it shall have become a law and shall apply to 13 mortgages executed on and after such effective date. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD08183-01-5
Text of S 4488 as introduced, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions