What percentage of Manhattan does the Catholic Church owns?

Answer 1

Okay, no one knows exactly how much of the island of Manhattan is owned by the Catholic Church, although it would appear from recent tax rolls that the Church is right in the neighborhood of Columbia and New York University for the total amount of land owned. Most of the land that the Church owns has been tied up for decades in Churches, schools, rectories, convents, hospitals, etc.

According to the most recent tax assessment rolls, provided by the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance and analyzed by The Observer, Columbia and N.Y.U. have amassed valuable properties rivaling the Catholic Church's long-held portfolio. The market value of city property owned by each of the three institutions appears to hover around $1.5 billion, based on the assessment rolls. The Catholic Church still claims a slight lead, but N.Y.U. and Columbia trail by only a couple of hundred million dollars each, and will almost certainly eclipse the church soon.

Though exact numbers are impossible to attain (the universities and the church own numerous properties under different registered names, and there are in total more than 11,000 registered property owners in the city), they clearly show that the gap has narrowed. Moreover, given the downward trends for membership in major religious organizations in the United States, time is on the universities' side.