Does STAR transfer to the new owner when a house sells on Long Island?

No. The seller's STAR benefit ends with the sale. The new owner registers once with New York State, online at tax.ny.gov/star or by phone at 518 457 2036, as soon as the house is their primary residence, and the credit arrives before the school tax bill is due. The income limit for the Basic STAR credit is $500,000.

When is the property tax grievance window in Nassau County and in Suffolk County?

Nassau homeowners file with the county's Assessment Review Commission, form AR1, and the window opens January 2 and runs to March 1, with extensions common; in 2026 it ran to March 31. Suffolk homeowners file form RP-524 with their town's Board of Assessment Review in the weeks before Grievance Day, the fourth Tuesday of May in most towns. Filing is free in both counties and an assessment can only go down or stay the same because you filed.

How are property tax bills different in Nassau and Suffolk?

Nassau sends two bills a year from the town receiver of taxes, the General tax bill in January and the School tax bill in October. Suffolk sends one town bill in December, paid in two halves, the first by January 10 and the second by May 31.

Buying on Long Island · after the keys

Closing day, and the first thirty days.

Q: The county site still shows the seller as the owner after closing. Is something wrong?

No. The deed is filed with the county clerk after the closing table and the public record lags, about seven weeks in Suffolk on the closings we track. The closing package is the new owner's proof until the record catches up.

The sale ends at the table. Owning starts there, and the first moves are different in Nassau and in Suffolk. Pick your county and this page shows only your numbers, your offices and the days that matter. Every one names the office it came from, read on September 11, 2026.

On this page

At the tableWhat you bring, what you sign, what you leave with
The first weekLocks, lights, water, STAR, the DMV, the deed alert
The first monthYour tax calendar, the grievance window, the cesspool or the sewer
Who to callThe offices, with phones and links, by county
Questions people askThe deed, STAR, the grievance, the old owner's bill

At the table

Closing on Long Island happens in a room, usually at the seller's attorney's office or the lender's. It takes one to two hours. Here is the whole day in order.

The morning: one phone call before any money moves. Wire instructions arrive by email, and email is where wire fraud lives. Before you send anything, call your attorney at the number you already have, not a number in the email, and read the instructions back. Then send. This is the one rule on this page that can save your down payment.

The walk through. Same day, before the table. The house is empty, the systems work, agreed repairs happened, everything included in the sale is still there. Bring the inspection report and a phone charger to test outlets.

What you bring. Government photo ID for every buyer, the wire confirmation or the certified funds your attorney asked for, the homeowner's insurance policy or binder that names the lender, and your checkbook for the small adjustments that surface at the table.

What you sign. The note, which is your promise to repay, the mortgage, which is the lien that secures it, the Closing Disclosure you already received three business days earlier, and a stack of affidavits. Your attorney reads each one with you. Nothing here is a surprise if the Closing Disclosure matched.

Apportionments. The seller paid some taxes and fuel ahead and you pay them back to the day. Oil in the tank is measured and bought at the table. These lines are why the final number moves a little from the Closing Disclosure.

What you leave with. The keys, the garage openers, the codes, and the closing package, which is your proof of ownership until the county records the deed. Keep every page of that package for as long as you own the house, and a copy somewhere that is not the house.

The deed records later. In Suffolk the County Clerk in Riverhead records your deed and the new mortgage after closing, and the public record catches up about seven weeks later on the closings we track, a quarter of them past three months. In Nassau the County Clerk in Mineola records your deed and the new mortgage after closing; the public record catches up in the weeks after. Your attorney or the title company files it; you do nothing, and a fresh sale not showing online yet is normal.

The first week

Seven things, most of them a phone call. Do them in this order.

Change the locks and every code. First hour, first day. You do not know who holds copies. The garage keypad and the alarm too.

Electric and gas. Put PSEG Long Island, electric in your name from the closing date, 1 800 490 0025, and National Grid, gas if the house has gas, 1 800 930 5003. Both counties, same two companies. An oil house has no gas account; find the oil company's sticker on the tank and call them for the account and the last fill date.

Water, Suffolk. One authority serves most of the county. Move in online or by phone and the account starts on your closing date. A few villages and the East End run their own systems; the closing package names yours. Suffolk County Water Authority, 631 698 9500.

Water, Nassau. Nassau has dozens of water districts and village water departments, not one authority. Your town or village site lists yours by address. Call before the first bill lands on the old owner.

Register for STAR. The school tax relief credit does not come with the house. Register once with the state, online or by phone, as soon as the house is your primary residence, and the credit arrives before the school bill is due. It is for owners whose combined income is under $500,000. Register at tax.ny.gov/star or by phone, 518 457 2036. Per the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance.

The DMV, inside ten days. State law gives you ten days to move your license and registrations to the new address. Online through MyDMV takes five minutes. Miss it and every notice keeps going to the old house. dmv.ny.gov, or 518 486 9786.

Mail forwarding and the insurance policy. Forward the mail at usps.com. Then confirm the homeowner's policy is in force, not only the binder the lender needed; the first premium is usually paid at the table and the policy should show your name and the address within the week.

The free deed alert, Nassau. A free email the County Clerk sends you whenever a deed, mortgage or lien is recorded with your name or your lot and block on it. Have the lot and block from your closing package ready when you sign up. Sign up at nassaucountyny.gov, or ask the Clerk at 516 571 2664.

The free deed alert, Suffolk. A free alert from the County Clerk whenever a document is recorded against your property. It does not stop a fraudulent filing; it tells you the day it happens, which is what lets you act. Sign up through the Suffolk County Clerk, 631 852 2000.

The first month, side by side

The money calendar, and the two things Long Island houses have that other places do not. This is where the counties split.

What	Nassau County	Suffolk County
Tax bills	Two bills a year, from your townGeneral tax in January, School tax in October, each payable without penalty for months. Late bills go to the county treasurer. Hempstead receiver	One bill a year, from your townIt arrives in December. First half by January 10, second half by May 31, then one percent a month late. Smithtown receiver
Challenging the assessment	County, January 2 to March 1Form AR1 to the Assessment Review Commission, online through AROW. Extended to March 31 in 2026. Free, and the value can only go down or hold. Assessment Review Commission	Town, the weeks before late MayForm RP-524 to your town's Board of Assessment Review before Grievance Day, the fourth Tuesday of May in most towns. Free, and the value can only go down or hold. the state's procedure
Water	A local district, by addressDozens of districts and village departments. Your town or village site names yours.	Suffolk County Water AuthorityOne authority for most of the county, 631 698 9500. A few villages and the East End run their own. moving in
Sewer or cesspool	County sewer, mostlyThe sewer charge rides on the tax bill. No cesspool to pump for most houses.	A cesspool or septic, mostlyPump and inspect every two to three years. The county's Septic Improvement Program paid up to $45,000 toward a replacement in 2026. ReclaimOurWater.info
Garbage and permits	Town sanitation, or the villageInside one of the county's incorporated villages the village owns garbage, permits and parking. Your closing package shows the village line.	Town sanitation districtThe schedule and the sticker are on your town's site. Permits go through the town building department.

Permits before projects. Any renovation that needs a permit follows the house through its certificate of occupancy. Filing first costs days; skipping it costs a future closing weeks. Town building department in Suffolk, village or town in Nassau.

The old owner's bill. A water, tax or oil bill in the seller's name still arrives for a month or two. Do not pay it and do not throw it out; send a photo to your attorney, who settles it against the apportionments from the table.

The binder for the house. Closing package, inspection report, survey, the certificate of occupancy, every permit, the boiler and the roof paperwork, the septic or sewer record. One folder, one copy off site. The next buyer's attorney will ask for all of it, and so will your insurer after a storm.

Who to call, and why

Every office a new owner deals with in the first year, what it is for, and the number that reaches a person. Phones ring during business hours, Monday to Friday.

Office, and when you call it	Phone	Site
Nassau County
Nassau County Clerk, land recordsYour deed is not in the record yet, or you need a certified copy of anything recorded on the house.	516 571 2664	nassaucountyny.gov
Property Fraud Alert, Nassau County ClerkOnce, the first week, to be emailed the day anyone records a paper against your house.	516 571 2664	nassaucountyny.gov
Nassau County Department of AssessmentExemptions, a wrong square footage or bedroom count on your record, or the assessed value itself.	516 571 1500	nassaucountyny.gov
Assessment Review CommissionTo challenge the assessment between January 2 and March 1, or for a paper AR1 form.	516 571 3214	nassaucountyny.gov
Your town's Receiver of TaxesA bill that never came, a bill in the seller's name, or the due date on the one in your hand.	516 538 1500	hempsteadny.gov
Your water district, by addressTo put the water account in your name the week you close; the district is on your town or village site.	your town hall	nassaucountyny.gov
Suffolk County
Suffolk County Clerk, land recordsYour deed is not in the record after two months, or you need a certified copy of anything recorded.	631 852 2000	suffolkcountyny.gov
Home Owner Watch List, Suffolk County ClerkOnce, the first week, to be told the day anyone records a paper against your house.	631 852 2000	suffolkcountyny.gov
Your town assessorSTAR questions the state sends back to the town, exemptions, and a wrong fact on your property record.	your town hall	tax.ny.gov
Your town's Board of Assessment ReviewTo challenge the assessment in the weeks before Grievance Day, with form RP-524.	your town hall	tax.ny.gov
Your town's Receiver of TaxesThe December bill never came, it came in the seller's name, or you want to pay a half early.	your town hall	smithtownny.gov
Suffolk County Water AuthorityTo move the water account into your name from the closing date, online or by phone.	631 698 9500	scwa.com
Both counties
STAR credit, New York StateTo register as the new owner the week you move in; the credit does not come with the house.	518 457 2036	tax.ny.gov
PSEG Long Island, electricTo start electric service in your name on the closing date, and for any outage after.	1 800 490 0025	psegliny.com
National Grid, gasTo start gas service on the closing date, if the house has gas; an oil house calls its oil company instead.	1 800 930 5003	nationalgridus.com
New York DMV, change of addressInside ten days of the move, for the license and every registration; online is faster than the call.	518 486 9786	dmv.ny.gov

My buyers get this list in their welcome email the morning after closing, with their county already picked. If you are reading it because you closed with someone else, it is yours too.

Call or text 631 528 5786

Questions people ask the week after closing

The county site still shows the seller as the owner. Is something wrong? No. The deed is filed after the table and the public record lags, about seven weeks in Suffolk on the closings we track. Your closing package is your proof until then.

The seller had STAR. Do I get it? Not automatically. The seller's benefit ends with the sale. You register once with the state as the new owner, and the credit comes to you before the school bill is due.

Can filing a grievance raise my taxes? No. Filing is free, and the review can only lower the assessment or leave it where it is. The only cost of not filing is the year you wait for the next window.

A tax bill came in the seller's name. Do I pay it? Send it to your attorney first. The taxes were split to the day at the table, so the bill may already be settled, and paying it twice is hard to undo.

Who do I call about a cesspool? In Suffolk, a licensed cesspool company for service, and ReclaimOurWater.info for the county grant when it is time to replace it. In Nassau most houses are on county sewer, so the answer is usually nobody.

This page explains what happens after closing in plain words. It is not legal or tax advice. Your attorney answers what your contract requires, and the offices above answer what they require; every number here was read from their pages on September 11, 2026, and offices change their rules, so confirm before you rely on one.

Sources

New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, STAR registration and the grievance procedure pages. Nassau County Assessment Review Commission, filing window and forms. Nassau County Clerk, Property Fraud Alert. Town of Hempstead Receiver of Taxes, the two bill calendar. Town of Smithtown Receiver of Taxes, the December bill and its two halves. Suffolk County Clerk, land records and deed scam information. Suffolk County Septic Improvement Program, Reclaim Our Water. New York DMV, change your address.

Call or text 631 528 5786 Under contract, the chapter before The closing dictionary