I was suprised when I read this, as I assumed that the tax rate was based on the purchase price. Since my wife and I are looking and waiting to buy a new home, there could be a possibility of a large difference in the amount of the property tax bill.
I am no lawyer, but in reading the tax code, it states that:
51. (a) For purposes of subdivision (b) of Section 2 of Article
XIIIA of the California Constitution, for each lien date after the
lien date in which the base year value is determined pursuant to
Section 110.1, the taxable value of real property shall, except as
otherwise provided in subdivision (b) or (c), be the lesser of:…
(1) the 1975 base rate +…
(2) Its full cash value, as defined in Section 110, as of the lien
date, taking into account reductions in value due to damage,
destruction, depreciation, obsolescence, removal of property, or
other factors causing a decline in value.
110. (a) Except as is otherwise provided in Section 110.1, “full
cash value” or “fair market value” means the amount of cash or its
equivalent that property would bring if exposed for sale in the open
market under conditions in which neither buyer nor seller could take
advantage of the exigencies of the other….
(b) For purposes of determining the “full cash value” or “fair
market value” of real property, other than possessory interests,
being appraised upon a purchase, “full cash value” or “fair market
value” is the purchase price paid in the transaction unless it is
established by a preponderance of the evidence that the real property
would not have transferred for that purchase price in an open market
transaction.
Maybe an REO is different (under the “market conditions” clause) and/or there are legalese details I am missing, but as I read this the Assessors valuation for tax purposes is what you paid for it regardless of that the previous owner’s tax basis was.
