Short answer: FastCashAnyHome buys houses, condos and land across New York State for cash, as-is, from the five boroughs and Long Island to Albany, Rochester, Syracuse and Buffalo. There are no fees or commissions charged to you, and it’s a cash sale, so there’s no bank loan or appraisal on your side. You get an initial cash offer, confirmed after a quick walkthrough, and closing is 30 days or less. Call or text 267-388-0347.
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New York is an older-housing, paperwork-heavy state to sell in. Half the homes were built before 1960. Foreclosure is a court case with a mandatory notice and, for many homeowners, a settlement conference. An inherited house almost always means Surrogate’s Court. And the transfer taxes stack up differently in New York City than upstate. Here’s how those rules work, with the source for each, and then a guide to our New York city pages.
New York’s home-sale rules at a glance
Each line was read on 2026-10-12 at the official source named. Your title company and, where it matters, an attorney have the final word.
- State transfer tax: $2 per $500 of the price (0.4%). The seller pays it unless the contract says otherwise. Source: NYS Department of Taxation and Finance.
- “Mansion tax”: 1% at $1 million or more, paid by the buyer. Same source.
- New York City adds its own transfer tax. For a one- to three-family house or a condo, it’s 1% of the price at $500,000 or less and 1.425% above that. Source: NYC Department of Finance, RPTT.
- Foreclosure is judicial, and starts with a 90-day notice. On a home loan, the lender must mail a notice at least 90 days before suing, by registered or certified mail and by first-class mail. Source: RPAPL 1304.
- A settlement conference, if you live there. In a foreclosure on a home loan where the homeowner lives in the house, the court must hold a conference within 60 days after proof of service is filed. Source: CPLR 3408.
- Seller disclosure. A seller of a one- to four-family house must deliver the Property Condition Disclosure Statement before the buyer signs. The old option of paying a $500 credit instead was repealed by a 2023 law that took effect in spring 2024. Sources: RPL 462, S5400 of 2023.
- Small estates don’t include houses. The $50,000 small-estate process covers personal property only. Source: SCPA 1301 and NY Courts.
- Selling a home in foreclosure to an investor. The Home Equity Theft Prevention Act gives the homeowner the right to cancel until midnight of the 14th business day after signing. Source: RPL 265-a.
- Tax foreclosure surplus. Since a 2024 change, a former owner can claim money left over after a county sells a home for unpaid taxes. Source: RPTL 1197.
What the transfer taxes look like on a real sale
Outside New York City, the state tax is the main one. At $2 per $500, a $300,000 sale carries $1,200 in state transfer tax. The Tax Department’s default is that the seller pays it. The mansion tax only starts at $1 million and is the buyer’s.
Inside the city, the city tax rides on top. On a $500,000 house, that’s $2,000 to the state plus $5,000 to the city at the 1% rate; a dollar over $500,000 moves the city rate to 1.425%. Which side of the closing statement carries the city tax is a contract and title-company question, and the Department of Finance page doesn’t settle it, so ask your closing attorney.
One more line from the Tax Department that heirs ask about: passing a house by will or inheritance is not itself a taxable conveyance. The tax comes when the heirs (or the executor) sell.
We work out closing costs as part of each deal, so these are numbers we talk through with you before you sign anything.
Foreclosure in New York is a lawsuit, with built-in pauses
New York doesn’t let a lender sell a house without going to court, and the law puts two checkpoints in the way.
First, the 90-day notice. For a home loan on a one- to four-family house or condo the borrower lives in, the lender has to mail a pre-foreclosure notice at least 90 days before filing, by registered or certified mail and by first-class mail. According to the courts’ own help page, a missing or defective notice “is a reason that the court can dismiss the case.”
Second, the settlement conference. The scope matters, so here it is plainly: CPLR 3408 requires a conference in “any residential foreclosure action involving a home loan … in which the defendant is a resident of the property.” If you live in the house, the court schedules it within 60 days after proof of service is filed, and the options on the table include a loan modification, a short sale or a deed in lieu. If you don’t live there (an heir, a landlord, an owner who moved out), don’t assume you’ll get one.
Our New York foreclosure guide walks through each step. A fast sale may help some homeowners avoid a completed foreclosure, but timing matters. If a sale date is already scheduled, contact your lender, an attorney or a HUD-approved housing counselor right away.
Selling a house in foreclosure: the 14-day protection
New York has a law aimed squarely at people who buy homes from owners in foreclosure, the Home Equity Theft Prevention Act. It covers the sale of a one- to four-family home the seller lives in when it’s in foreclosure (and, if the deal includes a buy-back, when the owner is two or more months behind). In those sales the contract has to follow the statute, and the homeowner can cancel it “until midnight of the fourteenth business day” after signing. A sale that materially breaks the rules can be undone for two years after the deed is recorded.
That protection is yours, not the buyer’s. Read the contract, use the cancellation window if you need it, and have your own attorney look at it. Any buyer worth working with will expect that.
This page is for general information only and is not legal, tax, or financial advice. Anyone dealing with foreclosure, probate, liens, divorce, back taxes, or a legal deadline should consider speaking with a qualified attorney, tax professional, or housing counselor before making a decision.
The disclosure form: the $500 way out is gone
For years, New York sellers could skip the Property Condition Disclosure Statement by giving the buyer a $500 credit at closing. A law signed in September 2023 struck that credit, effective 180 days later, in spring 2024. Now a seller of a one- to four-family house has to complete the form and deliver it before the buyer signs.
Two limits on that rule are worth knowing:
- Condos and co-ops aren’t covered. The statute’s definition of residential property leaves out condominium units and cooperative apartments.
- Some sellers are exempt. An executor or administrator selling in the course of an estate doesn’t need the form, and neither do foreclosure-sale transfers.
The law still allows an “as is” sale. The form records what you know; it doesn’t make you fix anything. We buy as-is either way.
Inherited a New York house? Expect Surrogate’s Court
Every county in New York has a Surrogate’s Court, and it handles wills and estates. There is a small-estate shortcut, but a house in the person’s name alone rules it out: the $50,000 small-estate process covers personal property only, and the courts’ help page says that if the person “owned real property, like a house or land, in their name alone then IT IS NOT a small estate anymore.”
So the path depends on the will:
- There’s a will: a probate proceeding in the Surrogate’s Court for the county where the person lived.
- There’s no will: an administration proceeding, which appoints someone to act for the estate.
Once the executor or administrator has authority, they can sell, and as noted above they won’t need the disclosure form. We’ll make an offer on an inherited house before the court process finishes and close once the paperwork lets the estate sell. Our Brooklyn page covers the Kings County Surrogate’s Court, and our Poughkeepsie page covers Dutchess County’s.
Taxes past due: the 2024 surplus change
When a New York county or city forecloses on a property for unpaid taxes and sells it, the former owner used to risk losing everything above the tax debt. A 2024 change to the Real Property Tax Law lets a former owner “file a claim with the court … for a share of any surplus resulting from the sale.” For a home, the case stays open at least three years for that claim.
Better, of course, is not to reach that point. If the taxes can’t be caught up, a sale before the county’s foreclosure lets you pay them from the proceeds and keep the rest of your equity. Tax-foreclosure procedures differ between counties and cities, so call your county treasurer or the city’s finance office for your exact deadline.
New York housing, by the numbers
From the Census Bureau’s 2024 American Community Survey (ACS 2024 1-year, New York State):
- The median year a New York home was built is 1959. More than half of all units (51.2%) predate 1960, and 30.1% predate 1940. For comparison, Florida’s median is 1990.
- The median value of an owner-occupied home in the state is $449,800 (table B25077).
- 54.3% of occupied homes are owner-occupied, and 25.6% of units are in buildings with 20 or more units (tables B25003 and B25024).
Old housing is the through-line. In houses that age, knob-and-tube wiring, buried oil tanks, lead paint and original sewer lines are the kinds of items a financed buyer’s inspector can write up. Those are the jobs we price into an as-is offer instead of asking you to do them.
Where we buy in New York
We buy houses across the state. These areas have their own pages, each built around what’s different about selling there:
- New York City, all five boroughs: the city’s own transfer tax, and where the rate steps up at $500,000. We buy houses and condos there, not co-ops.
- Brooklyn: estate sales through the Kings County Surrogate’s Court, and what a brownstone renovation runs into in a historic district.
- Long Island, Nassau and Suffolk: a mostly owner-occupied market, and the state transfer-tax detail that catches sellers at closing.
- Albany: the city’s vacant building registry, and the rental permit that can stop a landlord collecting rent.
- Rochester: the city’s certificate of occupancy file on rentals, and a lead-paint deadline that has just passed.
- Buffalo: rental registration that applies even to a vacant one- or two-family house owned by someone who doesn’t live there.
- Syracuse: the rental registry certificate that doesn’t transfer to a new owner, and New York’s disclosure rule explained in full.
- Poughkeepsie and Dutchess County: why the city and the county are two different markets, and where an inherited house there gets handled.
Facing a foreclosure anywhere in the state? Start with our New York foreclosure guide. For every other area we have a page for, see Where We Buy. For a lot or acreage with no house on it, see our page on selling land.
How it works with us
- Reach out. Call or text 267-388-0347, or use the form. The address, the condition, and any court papers or notices you’ve received are enough.
- Initial cash offer. We look at comparable sales nearby, the repairs the house needs, and anything official attached to it. A quick walkthrough confirms the number, and a person explains any change.
- Closing. A neutral title company handles the closing paperwork and holds the funds. Closing is 30 days or less, with flexible closing dates if you need more time.
- Payment at closing. No fees or commissions to you. Any mortgage, liens or back taxes are paid from the proceeds, as in any sale.
We buy houses with tenants in place, on the leases as written. And if your house is in good shape with time on your side, listing may well net more; our as-is selling guide compares the two honestly.
New York FAQ
How much is the transfer tax when I sell a house in New York?
The state charges $2 per $500 of the price (0.4%), normally paid by the seller. In New York City, the city adds 1% on a house or condo at $500,000 or less, or 1.425% above that. Buyers pay the 1% mansion tax at $1 million and up.
Do I still have to fill out the property condition disclosure form?
If you’re selling a one- to four-family house, yes. Since spring 2024 a seller can no longer give a $500 credit instead. Condos and co-ops aren’t covered, and an executor selling for an estate is exempt.
Do I get a settlement conference in my foreclosure case?
If it’s a home loan and you live in the house, CPLR 3408 requires one within 60 days after proof of service is filed. Heirs or owners who don’t live there may not get one.
Can we use the small-estate process to sell Dad’s house?
Not if the house was in his name alone. New York’s small-estate process covers personal property up to $50,000; a house means probate (with a will) or administration (without one) in Surrogate’s Court.
I’m selling my house while it’s in foreclosure. What protects me?
The Home Equity Theft Prevention Act requires a compliant contract and lets you cancel until midnight of the 14th business day after signing. Have your own attorney review any contract.
The house has an oil tank and old wiring. Will you still make an offer?
That doesn’t stop us from making an offer. We look at what the house needs and price it in, so the repairs don’t have to happen before you sell.
Do you charge fees or commissions?
No fees or commissions to you. Liens, back taxes or a mortgage come out of the proceeds at closing, and we work out closing costs as part of each deal.
Sources
- NYS Department of Taxation and Finance, Real estate transfer tax, read 2026-10-12
- NYC Department of Finance, Real Property Transfer Tax, read 2026-10-12
- RPAPL 1304 and NY Courts, 90 Day Pre-Foreclosure Notice, read 2026-10-12
- CPLR 3408 and NY Courts, foreclosure settlement conferences, read 2026-10-12
- Real Property Law 462, 463 and Senate bill S5400 of 2023, read 2026-10-12
- SCPA 1301 and NY Courts, small estates, read 2026-10-12
- Real Property Law 265-a, Home Equity Theft Prevention Act, read 2026-10-12
- Real Property Tax Law 1197, read 2026-10-12
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 1-year, New York State, read 2026-10-12
FastCashAnyHome · 267-388-0347 · We buy houses in New York · General information, not legal or tax advice. No obligation.