Would You Like to Keep Your Calif Property Taxes Lower?

Taxes Due

Take Your Tax Base Anywhere in California

First off, July 1 is the beginning of the first installment property taxes are due by 5pm on December 11th, after which you will pay a 10% penalty, so don't be late! Your next last day to pay is the following April 10th for the second installment.

Ballot Drive - Freedom to Move
Next, did you know there is a signature drive on to expand Proposition 13 tax legislation?  Currently, there are 11 counties in California which allow senior and disabled homeowners to transfer their current property tax bases (Alameda, El Dorado, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Tuolumne, and Ventura), which is a good thing; however, the new home has to be of equal or lesser value, which in some areas may prevent some owners from moving.
To create more opportunities for potential sellers, California Association of Realtors is circulating petitions (I have already obtained signatures) to expand this rule which would "also allow them to apply their old property tax assessment to a new home that’s more expensive than the old one. The new assessment would be a blend of the old and new assessments, combining the old assessment up to the sale price of the old home with an additional assessment for the amount paid over that price on the new home."  The entire purpose of this drive to put this on the ballot for 2018 is to provide new opportunity for those older homeowners who are staying put in order to keep this tax expense down.   New scenario per article in OC Register:

• More expensive: Say a couple owned a home for 30 years and its current assessed value is $75,000, meaning they pay $750 in annual property taxes. They sell the home for $600,000 and buy a new one for $700,000. Their new tax assessment would be $75,000 plus $100,000 (the difference between the old home’s sales price and the new home’s sales price). Their new property tax would be $1,750. (vs. initial standard property tax on a new purchase of a $700,000 home of $8750 per year).
• Less expensive: Say the same couple sold their old home for $600,000, then paid $500,000 for a condo. Since the condo’s price is 83 percent of the old home’s sales price, the new assessment would be 83 percent of the old, or $62,500. Their new property tax would be $625.

Under this proposal, there would be no limit to the number of times a homeowner could transfer their assessment to any of California's 58 counties.

For more information, please contact me!