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One point for clarification: It's 1% at the state level, however, depending on which county you live in there's plenty of other local taxes (School districts et
by ProfessorLayton 8y ago
One point for clarification: It's 1% at the state level, however, depending on which county you live in there's plenty of other local taxes (School districts etc.) that end up nudging it to ~1.8% (SF and Oakland). Add "Special Assessments" which aren't %-based and it's even more. So "1%" is a bit misleading.
Unincorporated areas end up being a little less at around 1.3%, in the Bay Area at least.
Add state income tax + sales tax (9.75% where I am!) and California is a hilariously expensive state to live in.
- jedberg 8y agoI just checked my tax bill. I live in Cupertino, one of the highest cost areas in the state, and even including all special assessments and fees, my bill is 1.34%. But here's the problem: It's 1.34% of my base rate. I've lived here for 10 years. Using Zillow as a guide, my real tax rate is 0.56% thanks to Prop 13. My neighbor, who has owned their house for 35+ years, is paying 0.08% on a house worth just slightly less than mine. And more than 1/2 of that is special assessments. That's the problem with California property tax. We are all totally disincentivized to move or the encourage a drop in our property values, since eventually we want to sell it for top dollar and retire out of state.