NYC Mayor Mamdani Backs Deep Cut in New York Estate‑Tax Exemption and 50% Top Rate

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is backing a state‑level estate‑tax overhaul that would slash New York’s estate‑tax exemption from $7.35 million to $750,000 and raise the top rate from 16% to 50%, a combination critics say would pull many more families—especially homeowners whose main asset is their house—into a levy traditionally aimed at the very wealthy. The proposal, part of Mamdani’s broader $127 billion budget and housing agenda, is framed as a way to raise billions in new revenue, alongside higher taxes on wealthy residents and corporations and a separate 9.5% property‑tax hike if Albany does not act. Free‑market analysts at the American Enterprise Institute and Mercatus Center warn the plan will accelerate an exodus of affluent residents and capital to low‑tax states such as Florida and Tennessee and could force heirs to liquidate homes, retirement accounts and small businesses to pay tax on assets that were already taxed once as income. The article notes this estate‑tax push comes on top of Mamdani’s call for an immediate freeze on roughly 2 million rent‑stabilized apartments, which economists have already criticized as a 'wealth‑destruction' policy that could further strain New York’s housing market. Mamdani’s office did not respond to Fox News’ request for comment, leaving unanswered questions about how his team believes the changes would affect interstate migration, small‑business succession and middle‑class estate planning.