Property Tax Information
One of the biggest questions when buying a home is what the taxes will be. There isn't a simple amount as many cities have different tax rates.
The base tax rate is determined at the time a property transfers(sells). Proposition 13 that the voters of California passed back in 1976 caps the amount to 1% of the sales price. Think of this as the base tax rate. If a house sold for less money than the prior sale, the base tax rate decreases. If a house sells for more than what the seller paid for the property, a supplemental tax bill will be issued making a difference of the current tax rate to the new tax rate. Property tax bills are due twice a year so once the bill has been issued, that amount is due and payable.
Special Assessments, landscaping, library taxes, fire district taxes, Mello-Roos, are just some examples of taxes that could be on a property on top of the base tax rate. Typically the special taxes remain constant when a property is sold but occasionally these will also be adjusted based on the sales price.
When looking at homes it is often important to compare the tax bills between properties that interest you. Here are direct links to see the current tax bill for different areas surrounding Davis and Sacramento.
Yolo County Tax Bills - This site also allows lenders and owners to pay the tax bill. Typically it is easist to search for the property address with the search type set to "contains".
Sacramento County Tax Bills This page requires the Assessor's Parcel Number which you can get by typing in the property address here Click on the Direct Levy link to see any additional taxes on top of the base amount.
Placer County Tax Bills Again this requires the Assessor's Parcel Number which you can find if you type the address into this site
Do not hesitate to ask me if you have any questions.