Senator Liu secures refund for senior homeowner following massive property tax overcharge

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 7, 2022

Contact: Scott Sieber | press@johnliusenate.com | 917-789-8758

                             SENATOR LIU SECURES REFUND FOR SENIOR HOMEOWNER FOLLOWING MASSIVE PROPERTY TAX OVERCHARGE 

Little Neck, NY – State Senator John Liu joined with Little Neck resident, Livia Boyadjian, to declare victory after a year-long battle with the Department of Finance (DOF) and the Office of the Taxpayer Advocate over a nearly $20,000 property tax overcharge.

Beginning July 2020, Ms. Boyadjian’s property tax bill for her single-family home on Annadale Lane suddenly doubled, jumping from $2,492 to $4,802, due to an error by the city that combined her lot with construction on the vacant lot next door. Ms. Boyadjian, dealing with her critically ill husband at the time, was unable to address the matter, and her husband sadly passed away shortly thereafter.

When she continued to receive inflated property tax bills, she reached out to the Office of the Taxpayer Advocate in February, but for over 10 months, she received no resolution from them or any other city entity. Her requests to meet with an inspector were also denied by the DOF, as it was deemed “unnecessary.”

“Property taxes are already high enough but imagine the frustration of having your taxes double out of nowhere and through no fault of your own, only to have the city ignore your pleas for help,” said Senator John Liu. “When Ms. Boyadjian reached out to my office, she was at her wits end because for months nobody from the city was helping her.”

Upon Ms. Boyadjian’s contact in November, Senator Liu’s office set to work for Ms. Boyadjian with the Department of Finance and the Office of the Taxpayer Advocate. After substantial back and forth with the city agencies, new DOF Commissioner Preston Niblack contacted Senator Liu on New Year’s Day, and by the next day, Ms. Boyadjian received a refund of $18,051.71 and a corrected property value assessment so overcharges will not be repeated.

“Mistakes can happen, but when taxpayers ask for a correction, government must respond promptly. It should not have taken this long to correct what was ultimately just a simple clerical error. We are impressed that Commissioner Niblack quickly corrected this blunder on literally his first day in office, and are hopeful that the new administration will focus on rooting out inefficiencies and improving taxpayer services,” said Senator Liu.

“I just want to thank Senator Liu and his entire office for helping me because they were the ones who really got this fixed very quickly,” said Livia Boyadjian. “After John got involved, I got my refund the very next day, and my assessed value was corrected, so I’m very grateful and thrilled that I’m starting the New Year the right way!”

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