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Prop 13
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Security Interest Exclusion from Reassessment
Adding someone to the title of your property in order to obtain or qualify for a loan may cause a reassessment of the property under Proposition 13 unless certain conditions are met.
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Assessment Roll
Once a change in ownership has been established or a new parcel has been created, the computer system generates a worksheet which goes to the appraisal staff to determine the change in value. To track new construction, support staff enter permit information received from the County and municipalities (approximately 2,000 per year) into the computer which again produces a worksheet for valuation.
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Assessor Does Not Do Assessments
While Assessor and assessment start with the same six letters, the two functions are totally unrelated and can be confusing to a property owner when reviewing the property tax bill that the County Tax Collector sends each October. The primary purpose of that bill is to collect property taxes, which are based on the assessed value of the property.
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Change in Ownership
Changes in ownership establish base year values. Learn more about exclusions and changes.
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Construction in Progress
Proposition 13 says that only the "new construction or addition" gets a new base year value, which is added to the old base year of the rest of the property. Learn more about construction in process.
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Death of Real Property Owner
Death can trigger a change of ownership and perhaps a reappraisal. Because the Assessor must review all changes of ownership for possible reappraisal, this office receives a list each week of all persons who die in Napa County from the Health Department and all probate filings.
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Declines in Value
Good News Worse News About Declines in Value. Proposition 13, passed by California voters in June 1978, created a new system for valuing property by establishing a base year value as of a change of ownership or new construction.
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Exclusions from Supplemental Assessment
The completion of construction triggers a supplemental assessment for the value added or subtracted from the prior value of the property. There are, however, times when new construction does not result in a supplemental assessment at the time of completion.
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Field Discovery of New Construction
Field discovery of new construction can trigger a reappraisal as well as find construction without a permit.
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Life Estates
A life estate vests the beneficial use of property to a person for their lifetime. The person who holds the life estate is called the life tenant.
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New Construction
New construction adds to base year value, learn more about how this affects property value.
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Non Pro Rata Distribution of Estates
California law provides for an exclusion from reappraisal for transfers between parents and children and, in certain cases, between grandparents and grandchildren. A non pro rata distribution means that each heir receives an equal proportion of the entire estate but not necessarily of each asset.
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Non Pro Rata Distribution of Estates - Intergenerational
California law provides for an intergenerational exclusion from reassessment for transfers between parents and children and, in certain cases, between grandparents and grandchildren. A non pro rata distribution means that each heir receives an equal proportion of the entire estate but not necessarily of each asset.
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Partial Interest Transfers
When a partial interest transfer occurs, the assessor must calculate a blended value for the entire property as of the date of the partial interest transfer. This blended value consists of the Proposition 13 factored base year value of the interests that did not transfer and the new, full cash value of the undivided interest that transferred.
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Personal or Business Property
While the California Constitution establishes that all property is taxable, the legislature over the years has decided that intangible personal property is not subject to property tax. Find more information on personal or business property.
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Preliminary Change of Ownership
To arrive at fair values for property in Napa County, the Assessor's office relies in part on information provided by the buyer of real property to determine whether a reappraisal is required and, if one is required, the new assessed value of that property.
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Proposition 13 & Public Agencies
Proposition 13 provides that the owner of property that is taken in whole or in part by a public agency for public purposes may be able to transfer the base-year value of the property that was taken to a similar property located anywhere in California.
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Repairs or Renovation
Replacing a roof, interior or exterior painting, and replacing carpet are usually considered routine maintenance and are not considered new construction. However, if a project becomes renovation or changes the use of the structure, a new base year value may have to be established for the renovated or changed improvements.
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Signatures on Assessor Forms
Find information on how to appeal an assessment, assessing manufactured homes, escapes and refunds, field discovery, penalties, and more.
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Supplemental Assessments
Proposition 13 changed that four-year mass-appraisal cycle to the reappraisal of individual properties whenever there was a change of ownership or new construction. This new process meant that the date of the recording of a deed or the completion of new construction became the "event" date for that reappraisal rather than the "lien" date.
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Valuing New Parcels
Changes in parcel configuration are under the control of local agencies. Using general plan and zoning ordinances, local agencies specify the minimum size of the parcels created, the uses permitted on those parcels, conditions for development and any improvements, such as streets, storm drains and sewers, that have to be built in order to gain approval.
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What the Assessor Does
The Assessor is charged with maintaining assessment maps which show each parcel of land and an assessment roll which describes the improvements on the property and the ownership of that property. The Assessor has always been independently elected in California by the voters of the County so that the position is not subject to pressure from the governing body of the county, cities or school and special districts to increase assessments in order to generate more revenue.
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When Local Government Pays Property Taxes
The taxation of lands owned by local governments outside their own boundaries began with an amendment to the California Constitution in 1914. The amendment was prompted by the purchase of large tracts of land in the area around Mono Lake by Los Angeles water agencies in order to obtain the rights to water for shipment to the growing population of the Los Angeles area.
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When the Market Recovers
Between 2007 and 2017, as real estate prices fell during a statewide economic recession, Assessor staff temporarily reduced values on over 12,000 properties as permitted by law. When fully restored, the assessed value cannot exceed the Proposition 13 factored base year value unless there has been a change of ownership or new construction during the temporary decline in value.