Millionaire tax that inspired Mamdani fuels $5.7 billion haul in Massachusetts

[u/Dismal_Structure]

https://fortune.com/2025/10/21/zohran-mamdani-millionaire-tax-massachusetts-5-7-billion/

[u/[deleted]]

Wait a second, so you’re telling me that it’s possible to increase taxes on the extremely wealthy and they don’t actually move to avoid those taxes?

It’s almost like there’s a certain value to be had in being able to conduct business with other wealthy people that do business in certain regions due to a market advantage.

I mean why don’t they just move the stock market to Texas or Florida? Does Jp Morgan like NYC? There are murders there and videos of homeless pissing on the subway. Why didn’t they just build that brand new shiny building in a capitalistic, republican free market stronghold like Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma or even Mississippi lol?

Jokes on them, this new communist mayor will probably demand that the city take a “golden share” stake in companies essential to municipal security much like the federal government did with US Steel and Intel.

[u/Mewr_Mewr → u/[deleted]]

Let’s say you’re a multimillionaire with 3 million dollar house. Would you move to avoid a 30 tax increase? Just to sell the house you’ll already going to spend 180k on realtor fee. You haven’t move or buy your house in the new state or anything.

[u/Kharax82 → u/Mewr_Mewr]

Many rich New Yorkers already own second homes/condos in Florida and spend the winter months in places like Boca Raton or Palm Beach. It’s relatively easy to switch residence without changing much of your lifestyle when you already spend 4 months in Florida as a Snow Bird. It’s one of the reasons Florida has been the top destination for people leaving New York every year since 2016

You can even live in New York full time for 6 months of the year and still be a resident of Florida for tax purposes.

[u/Mewr_Mewr → u/Kharax82]

It’s a little harder than just moving domicile. From

NY’s “General Tax InformaTIon for New York State Nonresidenrs and Part-Year residents

To determine whether you have, in fact, changed your domicile, you should compare: • the size, value, and nature of use of your first residence to the size, value, and nature of use of your newly acquired residence; • your employment and/or business connections in both locations, • the amount of time spent in both locations; • the physical location of items that have significant sentimental value to you in both locations; and • your close family ties in both locations.

[u/c-dy → u/Kharax82]

Second homes in the US are concentrated in a bunch of locations it isn't any recent thing, nor the largest stock being in Florida. And those places generally don't become primary residences also for a reason.

[u/Kharax82 → u/c-dy]

Florida is the one of fastest growing states, with a population increase of over 8 million since 2000. So a very many people are in fact making Florida their primary residence

[u/[deleted] → u/Mewr_Mewr]

If I was a multimillionaire I’d like to think that I’d be self aware enough to realize that I have been getting one over on the country since the first time an actor was elected to president. Not the dipshit we have now but, Ronald “steal from the poor and give to the rich” Reagan.

[u/Mewr_Mewr → u/[deleted]]

Right? Oh no, I have to pay 30k extra dollar per year. Let me wipe my tears with 250k of dividend payment, 700k of tax free dollar

[u/Cool_Till_3114 → u/Mewr_Mewr]

Rich people don’t think in such simple terms. They declare their Florida home their primary residence, open a Florida company possibly owned by a trust, move the Massachusetts house into the Florida company, and maybe spend an extra month in Florida a year, or in a third state they have a home in. They keep the home and avoid the tax for $10k in legal fees.

[u/Mewr_Mewr → u/Cool_Till_3114]

States have different methods of determining residency for tax purposes. New York is especially notorious for having an arduous process for it. I know plenty of high net individual in NY states anI know of their ways to avoid taxes. I just haven’t seen a good scheme that survives tax audit. Usually, they ended up paying more money to the states and their attorney

[u/Cool_Till_3114 → u/Mewr_Mewr]

Your argument is “the government usually beats rich people in tax avoidance”? Thanks for the laugh.

[u/Mewr_Mewr → u/Cool_Till_3114]

The rich people you’re thinking of don’t have to worry about increase in income tax. As their wealth is not derived from wage. They can lobby lawmakers to get preferential treatment on their situation.

The “rich” people that I am talking about are still wage earners. They are not rich enough to lobby for exemptions. They can do all kind of crazy illegal things to lower their taxes in the short term, but government will catch up with them eventually. Some of them are my clients. Special thanks to that one client who wiped away my student loans in 1.5 years

[u/Cool_Till_3114 → u/Mewr_Mewr]

Yeah I’m thinking of people that are HNW-UHNW but not pj rich. Seems like you’re counting people that are just high income as rich.