Says Mortgage Tax Collections up 16.8% Over Same Period Last Year

Erie County, NY-Erie County Clerk Chris Jacobs announced his office will soon distribute to local governments throughout the County their share of the Erie County Mortgage Tax collections based off of real estate transactions recorded in the Clerk’s Office.  The total to be distributed on May 15th is $7,896,969.86 and covers the six month period October 1, 2012-March 31, 2013.  This amount is 16.8% higher than the same period last year.

“Record low interest rates have fueled both refinancing and home purchases throughout Western New York.  This is a positive development for Erie County’s municipal governments since mortgage tax distributions are a major source of revenue for many of the County’s cities, towns and villages,” stated County Clerk Jacobs.

Court filings for foreclosure in Western New York continue to be a problem, a report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York states that there are roughly 2,000 homeowners in active foreclosure in Erie County alone. A Mortgage Check-Up event on Saturday, September 29 will provide Western New York homeowners worried about their mortgages with the opportunity for a quick, easy and confidential way to address their concerns.

The Mortgage Check-Up is sponsored by West Side Neighborhood Housing Services in partnership with Fillmore Leroy Area Residents (FLARE), Western New York Law Center, Legal Aid Bureau of Buffalo and Legal Services for the Elderly & Disabled. Counselors and lawyers will consult homeowners privately from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the FLARE office at 307 Leroy Ave.

The reason for the expected increase in Western New York foreclosures lies in the state’s long foreclosure waiting period, made longer by legislation passed last year.

Senator Mark Grisanti (R-60) today announced that the Senate has passed his bill S.6248 to help Buffalo fight its vacant building problem by passing a labor law exemption for contractors employed by the City of Buffalo from payment of asbestos project notification fees for demolitions.  

The cost of an asbestos notification fee can be more than $4,000.  This fee is ultimately paid by the city and the taxpayers in the City of Buffalo.  Since July of 2008, over half of all demolitions in Buffalo have required an asbestos notification fee.  When a project is large, subdivided and has a garage, it is often viewed to be multiple projects thus requiring the submission of several notification fees to the state.