People Ex Rel. Hudson River Day Line v. Franck

The Tax Law (Cons. Laws, ch. 60, § 2) defines “ land,” “ real estate ” and “ real property ” to include “ all buildings and other articles and structures,” as well as “all wharves and piers ” erected upon land above or under water. In cases involving tax assessments, therefore, it matters not that, at the common law, a building erected upon the lands of another, pursuant to an agreement with the landowner that at the end of a term the builder may remove it, is sometimes classed as personal property belonging to the builder. (Smith & Britton v. Benson & Peck, 1 Hill, 176.) The building is real…