Kingston is the county seat of Ulster County. It was New York’s first state capital in 1777, and much of that history is still standing: stone houses from the 1600s and 1700s in the Stockade District, brick commercial blocks on Wall Street and Broadway, and a working waterfront on the Rondout Creek. Gene Rios Realty is a third-generation Kingston family firm, and this is our home market.
Kingston’s neighborhoods
Uptown and the Stockade District
The original Dutch settlement, laid out in the 1650s. Wall Street, North Front Street and John Street hold most of Uptown’s restaurants, shops and offices, with apartments above. The Senate House, the Old Dutch Church and the Ulster County Court House are all within a few blocks. Buyers here are usually looking at mixed-use buildings, condos and the stone and brick homes on the side streets.
Midtown
Broadway runs from Uptown down to the Rondout, and Midtown is the stretch in between: the Ulster Performing Arts Center, Kingston High School, the hospital campus and a large share of the city’s two- to six-family housing stock. It is where most of Kingston’s investment activity happens, and where rent stabilization matters most.
The Rondout
The 19th-century canal and steamboat port at the mouth of the Rondout Creek. Lower Broadway and West Strand Street have restaurants, galleries, the Hudson River Maritime Museum and the waterfront park, with row buildings and converted warehouses above. Flood zones near the creek are part of every purchase here.
Housing stock
Kingston’s housing is old and varied: pre-war two- and three-family houses, brick row buildings with storefronts, Victorian single-family homes, small apartment buildings and a growing number of new infill projects. Most residential buildings predate 1978, so lead-paint disclosure applies to most sales and rentals.
Zoning: Kingston Forward
In August 2023 the Common Council unanimously adopted Kingston Forward, a citywide form-based zoning code that replaced the old use-based zoning. It regulates the form of buildings more than their use. Among the changes:
- Accessory dwelling units are allowed citywide.
- Duplexes, triplexes, rowhouses, live/work units and cottage courts are allowed in many neighborhoods where they were not before.
- Minimum parking requirements and minimum lot sizes were removed.
- Small neighborhood corner stores are allowed within walking distance of most homes.
Districts carry transect names such as T5MS (Main Street Mixed Use). The zoning code printed on an assessment record can still show an older district, so always check the current zoning map. Our property package pulls the current district automatically for any Kingston address.
Rent stabilization (ETPA)
On July 28, 2022, Kingston became the first city in upstate New York to adopt the Emergency Tenant Protection Act. It covers buildings with six or more units built before January 1, 1974. Rents in covered units are set by the Kingston Rent Guidelines Board, and the state Division of Housing and Community Renewal administers the program. Court challenges ended in June 2025, when the Court of Appeals upheld the city’s adoption.
For buyers, this changes the math on every older building with six or more units, so it is worth talking through before you make an offer.
Schools
The city is served by the Kingston City School District, which also covers parts of several surrounding towns. Always confirm the district for a specific address, since district lines do not follow town lines.
Taxes
A Kingston property owner pays city, county and school taxes. The fastest way to get the real number for a property is the actual tax bills, not the listing sheet. A sale or a citywide revaluation can change the assessment, so we underwrite taxes at the purchase price.
Working with Gene Rios Realty in Kingston
We represent buyers, sellers, investors and landlords across the city: first homes in Midtown, mixed-use buildings on Wall Street and Broadway, multifamily portfolios and development sites under the new code. Every income property we list comes with a verified dossier, and any buyer we represent can request a property package on a Kingston address: zoning, assessment, flood zone and school district, checked by a licensed broker.
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General information only, not legal or tax advice. Rules and programs change; confirm current requirements with the City of Kingston and New York State.