Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

I removed my name on the deed last year and gave all my shares to my sister as a gift. The property tax goes up more than $1K this year. Why? as the clerk said NO if the property is clean and clear (no loan).

If I add my name back to the deed, can the property tax will go back as before?

Thanks.


Asked on 5/01/12, 2:10 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

Property value gets reassessed upon transfer. There are exceptions for some family transfers, but sibling to sibling is not one of them. Under Prop 13 property value for tax assessment can only go up 1% per year, except when there is a transfer (and a few other less common triggering events). So if you held the property for some time, even with the housing crash, your property was worth more than the artificially capped assessed value. Once you made the transfer, they reassessed your share up to the full market value, and that made the taxes go up. Transferring back to you will accomplish nothing.

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Answered on 5/01/12, 2:17 pm


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