Fact Check: Did Mamdani tell Robert De Niro to sell his NYC home to avoid wealth tax?
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Amid the debates and controversies surrounding New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani over his wealth tax, a rumor began circulating on social media platforms claiming that the mayor asked Hollywood actor Robert De Niro to sell his home in the city to avoid paying the tax. The claim sparked speculation online, prompting a fact-check.
A viral post alleged that Mamdani had directly confronted De Niro over the proposed tax and told him to leave the city if he did not support the policy.
Claim: Zohran Mamdani told Robert De Niro to sell his home over wealth tax
🚨ZOHRAN MAMDANI JUST TOLD ROBERT DE NIRO TO SELL HIS TRIBECA HOME AND GET OUT IF HE DOESN’T LIKE THE WEALTH TAX!
— John McAfee 🇺🇸 News (@mcafeenew) August 8, 2026
Follow @RedLivesMatterQ
The communist mayor is done with the Hollywood hypocrite.
New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani says he’s “getting pretty tired” of Robert De… pic.twitter.com/7C832XUzD7
According to a viral post on X, Mamdani told De Niro to sell his home in Tribeca if he did not like the wealth tax.
Referring to Mamdani as a communist, the post claimed that he was growing intolerant of the actor’s alleged criticism of the wealth tax.
“He knew my plans when he campaigned for me,” Mamdani allegedly said. “I think he was under the impression that I would exempt him, even though he’s worth $150 million.”
The post ended by calling De Niro a wealthy Hollywood hypocrite who initially supported Mamdani’s taxing the rich initiative.
Based on the comments, many appeared to believe the claim was real, while a few others dismissed it as fake and called for verification of the viral rumor.
Fact Check: No credible evidence supports the claim
However, the claim is false, as there are no publicly available records showing that Mamdani asked the Oscar-winning actor to sell his home in the city.
There are also no reports of the ‘Taxi Driver’ actor criticizing Mamdani’s wealth tax.
A Google search for the claim yielded no relevant news reports supporting it, apart from fact checks debunking similar claims of a clash between Mamdani and De Niro over the tax-the-rich initiative.
Additionally, the account that posted the claim is not credible and has posted similar fake and unverified claims for engagement.
NYC homeowners challenge Zohran Mamdani’s pied-a-terre tax
The claim surfaced after three homeowners in the city legally challenged Mamdani’s pied-a-terre tax, claiming that the city shifted the burden of proving tax exemptions onto property owners rather than identifying eligible homes itself.
According to the lawsuit, the Department of Finance acted illegally by listing nearly one million properties that could face the surcharge.
It also highlighted that the department sent about 17,000 notices warning homeowners that they could face five-figure tax bills unless they proved that they qualified for an exemption.
