Who Pays What at a Westchester Closing
In Westchester County, the seller pays the New York State transfer tax of $2 per $500 of the price, which is 0.4 percent. The buyer pays the 1 percent mansion tax when the price is $1 million or more. The buyer also pays the mortgage recording tax of 1.30 percent of the loan, except a 0.25 percent portion the lender must pay on a house of up to six units.
Yonkers, Mount Vernon and Peekskill add their own transfer tax, paid by the seller. Attorneys, title insurance, lender charges and commissions vary and are not set by statute.
| Cost | Rate in Westchester | Who Pays by Default | Paid To |
|---|---|---|---|
| NYS transfer tax | 0.4% of price | Seller | County Clerk |
| Mansion tax | 1% of price at $1,000,000 or more | Buyer | County Clerk |
| Mortgage recording tax | 1.30% of loan; 1.80% in Yonkers | Buyer, except the lender’s 0.25% | County Clerk |
| City transfer tax | Yonkers 1.5%; Mount Vernon 1.5% above $50,000; Peekskill 1% | Seller | The city |
| Recording fees | $190 per three-page deed; $195 per 30-page mortgage | Allocated by contract | County Clerk |
Sources: NYS Department of Taxation and Finance (updated June 1, 2026); Westchester County Clerk fee schedule and city codes, read September 2026.
Transfer Taxes and the Mansion Tax
New York State taxes every sale over $500 at $2 for each $500 of price, or fraction of $500. In the County Clerk’s own example, a $404,501 price rounds up to $405,000 and the tax is $1,620.
The seller owes it by default. A contract can shift it to the buyer, and if the seller fails to pay, the buyer must pay and both become jointly liable. It is reported on Form TP-584 and paid to the County Clerk when the deed is recorded, no later than 15 days after the deed is delivered.
City Transfer Taxes
Each is paid by the seller before the deed can be recorded.
- Yonkers: 1.5 percent of the price on sales over $25,000, due within seven days of delivering the deed. Co-op sales are exempt.
- Mount Vernon: 1.5 percent of the price above $50,000 on deeds dated February 1, 2026 or later, due within 30 days.
- Peekskill: 1 percent of the price, due within 30 days.
The published city codes of New Rochelle and Rye contain no local transfer tax, and the County Clerk’s fee schedule lists no county transfer tax.
The Mansion Tax
The mansion tax is 1 percent of the entire price, paid by the buyer, on a one- to three-family house, condominium unit or co-op apartment sold for $1 million or more. If the buyer does not pay, the seller must.
Westchester pays the flat 1 percent. The progressive tiers of 0.25 to 2.9 percent adopted in 2019 apply only in New York City.
The $1 Million Cliff
The mansion tax is charged on the whole price once it reaches $1 million, not on the amount above it. A home that sells for $999,999 pays no mansion tax. The same home at $1,000,000 pays $10,000. Know where that line sits before the last counteroffer.
Sources: NYS Department of Taxation and Finance (updated June 1, 2026); Westchester County Clerk; Yonkers City Code section 15-60, Mount Vernon section 234-45 and Peekskill section 521-53, read September 2026; City of Mount Vernon Comptroller implementation memo.
Mortgage Recording Tax in Westchester County
The mortgage recording tax in Westchester County is 1.30 percent of the loan, and 1.80 percent in Yonkers. Below $1 million, it is the only statutory tax a financed buyer pays.
| Component | Rate per $100 of Loan | Who Pays on a House of Up to Six Units |
|---|---|---|
| Basic tax | $0.50 | Buyer |
| Additional tax | $0.30, first $10,000 excluded on a one- or two-family home | Buyer |
| Special additional tax | $0.25 | Lender |
| Westchester County tax | $0.25 | Buyer |
| Total outside Yonkers | $1.30 | Buyer $1.05, lender $0.25 |
| Yonkers city tax | $0.50 more (total $1.80) | Buyer |
State law requires the lender to pay the special additional tax on property with no more than six dwelling units and bars passing it to the borrower. The $10,000 exclusion saves $30. The Clerk’s shortcut is 1.3 percent of the loan, rounded to the nearest $100, less $30 on a one- or two-family home.
Buyers leaving Manhattan will find this lower: New York City charges 2.175 percent on house and condo loans of $500,000 or more.
Sources: NYS Department of Taxation and Finance, Form MT-15 (1/25); NY Tax Law section 253; Westchester County Clerk, September 2026.
Worked Examples: $1,240,000 and $2,500,000
At the county’s Q2 2026 single-family median of $1,240,000, statutory taxes are $22,786 for the buyer and $4,960 for the seller. At $2,500,000, near the Scarsdale single-family median, they are $45,970 and $10,000. Both assume a single-family house outside the three taxing cities and an 80 percent loan.
| Item | How It Is Calculated | $1,240,000 Sale | $2,500,000 Sale |
|---|---|---|---|
| State transfer tax (seller) | Price divided by 500, times $2 | $4,960 | $10,000 |
| Mansion tax (buyer) | 1% of price | $12,400 | $25,000 |
| Loan amount | 80% of price | $992,000 | $2,000,000 |
| Mortgage recording tax, total | 1.30% of loan, less $30 | $12,866 | $25,970 |
| Lender’s share | 0.25% of loan | $2,480 | $5,000 |
| Buyer’s mortgage tax | Total less lender’s share | $10,386 | $20,970 |
| Buyer’s statutory taxes | Mansion tax plus buyer’s mortgage tax | $22,786 | $45,970 |
| Deed recording and filing | Three-page residential deed | $190 | $190 |
| Mortgage recording fee | 30-page mortgage | $195 | $195 |
The $190 deed figure is the Clerk’s illustration: the $45 recording fee, $5 per page, the $5 TP-584 filing fee and the $125 RP-5217 filing fee for residential property.
Inside a taxing city, the same $1,240,000 sale costs more. In Yonkers the seller adds $18,600 and the buyer’s mortgage tax rises by $4,960 to $15,346. In Mount Vernon the seller adds $17,850. In Peekskill the seller adds $12,400.
Not in the table: attorneys, title insurance, lender fees, escrow deposits, the tax adjustment, inspections and commissions.
Medians: Houlihan Lawrence Q2 2026 report, published July 13, 2026; The Francie Malina Team’s Scarsdale market analysis (2025). Rates and fees: NYS Tax Department and Westchester County Clerk, September 2026.
Title Insurance, Attorneys and Other Buyer Costs
Title insurance premiums in New York come from rate manuals approved by the Department of Financial Services, and state law bars charging a premium outside those rates. The Title Insurance Rate Service Association, the state’s licensed rate service organization, proposes rates for its member insurers.
The buyer generally pays for both the owner’s policy, which protects up to the full original price, and the lender’s policy. Issued at the same closing, the lender’s policy costs 30 percent of its normal rate. Ask for a quote that separates the premium from other charges.
Both Sides Use Attorneys
Downstate, the seller’s attorney prepares the contract of sale and, shortly before closing, the deed. The buyer’s attorney reviews the contract and seeks changes, then orders the title report and reviews it. The lender or title company prepares the closing statement. Fees are set by each attorney, so get a written quote.
Lender Escrow
If your lender escrows taxes, federal rules allow a cushion of up to one-sixth of a year’s escrow payments at closing. On the county’s median single-family tax bill of about $14,670, that cushion alone can be about $2,445. The Scarsdale Buyer’s Guide covers the full purchase timeline.
Sources: NYS Department of Financial Services; NY Insurance Law section 2314; New York State Bar Association; 12 CFR 1024.17. Median tax bill from county-level property tax reporting.
Property Tax Adjustments at Closing
Westchester taxes are paid in advance on different calendars, so each bill is split by the days each side owns the home. The seller is charged through the day before closing, and whoever prepaid the other side’s days gets a credit.
School districts run July 1 to June 30. Counties and towns run on the calendar year. Most villages end their year May 31, and cities vary. In Scarsdale, county tax is due April 30, school tax in halves on September 30 and January 31, and village tax on August 1 and December 31.
- October 1 closing. The seller paid the calendar-year county and town bill in April, so the buyer credits October through December. The seller also paid half the school year but owned only a quarter of it, so the buyer credits that extra quarter.
- February 1 closing. The seller paid both school halves, so the buyer credits February through June. The county and town bill has not arrived, so the seller credits the buyer for January.
Village homes add a village bill on its own calendar. Our guide to Westchester County property taxes explains each bill.
Sources: NYS Office of the State Comptroller; Village of Scarsdale tax page, September 2026; IRS Publication 530 (2025).
What Sellers Pay
A Westchester seller pays the 0.4 percent state transfer tax, any city transfer tax, the listing commission, the seller’s attorney, and the cost of discharging the mortgage. The County Clerk charges $50.50 to record a one-page discharge.
Commissions are negotiable and not set by law. Since August 17, 2024, a buyer’s agent’s pay is set in a written buyer agreement. A seller’s offer of buyer-broker compensation cannot appear on the MLS, though closing-cost concessions can.
- Disclosure. Sellers must deliver a Property Condition Disclosure Statement before the buyer signs a binding contract. Since 2024, the statute no longer lets a seller give a $500 credit instead.
- Nonresident sellers. A seller who no longer lives in New York pays estimated state income tax on the gain at closing on Form IT-2663, unless an exemption applies, such as for a principal residence.
Sources: National Association of Realtors consumer guides; NY Real Property Law section 462; NYS Tax Department; Westchester County Clerk, September 2026.
Co-ops and Condos Close Differently
A co-op buyer purchases shares and a proprietary lease, not a deed. The state transfer tax still applies, and so does the mansion tax at $1 million or more. The share loan pays no mortgage recording tax, because that tax falls only on mortgages of real property.
Co-op
No deed is recorded, so Form TP-584 and the tax go straight to the state Tax Department within 15 days. Yonkers exempts co-op sales. Liens against shares are filed with the County Clerk, so the key check is a search for liens against the seller’s shares. Any flip tax is set by the proprietary lease or offering plan; building fees vary.
Condo
A condo unit is real property. The deed is recorded, the mansion tax applies at $1 million or more, and the loan pays mortgage recording tax. Ask your attorney whether the lender pays the special additional tax on a unit in a larger building.
Most Westchester co-op sales sit far below the mansion tax line: the county co-op median was $235,000 in Q2 2026, and the condo median $575,000. Our guide to moving to Westchester from Manhattan covers the co-op process.
Sources: NYS Tax Department, Form TP-584-I (8/25); NYC Department of Finance (2020); NY UCC section 9-501; NY Business Corporation Law section 501(c); Houlihan Lawrence Q2 2026 report, published July 13, 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
The statutory costs are the 0.4 percent state transfer tax, paid by the seller; the 1 percent mansion tax at $1 million or more, paid by the buyer; the 1.30 percent mortgage recording tax, mostly paid by the buyer; city transfer taxes in Yonkers, Mount Vernon and Peekskill; and recording fees. On a $1,240,000 house outside those three cities with an 80 percent loan, buyer taxes are $22,786 and seller taxes $4,960.
The seller. The state transfer tax of $2 per $500 of the price is the seller’s unless the contract shifts it, and if the seller does not pay, the buyer must. The city taxes in Yonkers, Mount Vernon and Peekskill are also the seller’s. The mansion tax is the exception: the buyer pays it.
One percent of the entire price, paid by the buyer, on any residence sold for $1 million or more. A $1,000,000 purchase pays $10,000; a $999,999 purchase pays nothing. The progressive rates adopted in 2019 apply only in New York City, so Westchester pays the flat 1 percent.
It is 1.30 percent of the loan, or 1.80 percent in Yonkers, less $30 on a one- or two-family home. The lender pays 0.25 percent on a house of up to six units, so a single-family buyer pays about 1.05 percent. On a $992,000 loan outside Yonkers, the buyer pays $10,386 of the $12,866 total.
Yonkers, Mount Vernon and Peekskill. Yonkers charges 1.5 percent on sales over $25,000 and exempts co-ops. Mount Vernon charges 1.5 percent of the price above $50,000. Peekskill charges 1 percent. The seller pays in all three. The published codes of New Rochelle and Rye contain no local transfer tax.
No mortgage recording tax, but the mansion tax applies at $1 million or more. A co-op loan is secured by shares and a proprietary lease, not a mortgage on real property. The state transfer tax applies to co-op resales.
The premium is not. Rates are approved by the Department of Financial Services, and New York Insurance Law section 2314 bars charging a premium that departs from the approved rates. The buyer generally pays for the owner’s and the lender’s policy, and the lender’s policy costs 30 percent of its normal rate when both issue together. Other title charges can differ, so ask for an itemized quote.
It is agreed in writing. Since August 17, 2024, buyers working with a Realtor sign a written agreement stating the agent’s compensation. A seller can still offer compensation to a buyer’s broker, though not on the MLS, and can offer concessions toward the buyer’s closing costs. Commissions are negotiable and not set by law.
By the days each side owns the home in each tax year. School taxes cover July 1 to June 30 and are usually due in halves on September 30 and January 31. County and town taxes cover the calendar year and are usually due April 30. Whoever prepaid the other side’s share receives a credit at closing.
Transfer taxes on a personal home are not deductible. Under IRS Publication 530, a buyer adds them to the home’s cost basis and a seller treats them as selling expenses. Your share of the prorated property taxes is deductible if you itemize, within the federal cap on state and local taxes.
Related Westchester Guides
This guide is general information as of September 2026 and is not tax or legal advice. Confirm costs for a specific property with your attorney, and tax bills and dates with the assessor or receiver of taxes.
Want the Closing Numbers for a Specific Westchester Home?
Francie Malina has been named to Westchester Magazine’s annual list of top real estate agents every year since the list began in 2021. We will work through the taxes, fees and adjustments on the exact property before you sign a contract.
Contact The Francie Malina Team