Condominium registration and tax lots
Registration is the point at which the District allows units to be sold. Tax lots are what allow those sales to close. Both come near the end, and both depend on everything before them.
The Registration Order
When DHCD approves the Public Offering Statement it issues a Condominium Registration Order. Before the order, units can generally be marketed only as coming soon, with non-binding reservations. After it, they can be marketed for sale and placed under contract.
Recording and tax lots
The declaration, bylaws, and plat and plans are then recorded. Once they are, the Office of Tax and Revenue issues a separate tax lot number for each unit. With lots in place, contracts can go to settlement.
How long it takes
From eligibility to tax lots, a conversion typically takes two to four months, and much of it can run alongside permitting and construction. The projects that take longest are usually the ones where the legal work began after the building was finished.
Where it goes wrong
- Taking binding contracts before registration allows it.
- Finishing construction with months of approvals still ahead.
- Paying carrying costs on completed units that cannot yet be sold.