L.A. County Assessor Jeffrey Prang
“Current property tax law provides several programs to help disaster-impacted property owners secure relief before, during, and after the rebuilding process,” L.A. County Assessor Jeffrey Prang wrote in his newsletter. He noted that three bills regarding the wildfires have been signed into law.
Senate Bill 663 (authored by Senators Ben Allen, Jerry McInerney, and Sasha Perez) – This bill extends the deadline to file a Misfortune & Calamity claim from 12 month to 24 months. It lengthens the time to rebuild and will keep a property’s pre-fire tax base from 5 to 8 years. It also allows property tax exemptions to continue for eligible properties.
Assembly Bill 245 (authored by Assemblymember Mike Gipson) – The law also extends the rebuilding window from 5 to 8 years and allows the Assessor’s Office to factor in wildfire-related damage or Decline in Value – such as destruction, depreciation, or removal – when determining 2025 property assessments for properties impacted by the 2025 Palisades, Eaton, Hurst, Lidia, Sunset, or Woodley fires as of the 2025 lien date.
Senate Bill 293 (authored by Senator Sasha Perez) – This law extends the deadline to resolve ownership documentation issues – as a result of the fire – from 6 months to 3 years after receiving a reassessment notice from the Assessor. This is important as it was discovered that numerous homeowners in the disaster area had inherited property from parents but never recorded a change in ownership by filing an updated deed. SB 293 allows the Assessor to update records without penalties.
After a death of a loved one, if that person owned real estate, the Los Angeles County Assessor’s Office must be notified. State law requires that a “Change in Ownership Statement – Death of Real Property Owner” be filed within 150 days of the date of death.” This reporting requirement applies even if title to a property was held by a trust.
The Assessor’s Office has created a special packet, “Assessor’s Informational Packet – Death of a Property Owner,” which explains the steps you need to take and includes all the necessary forms. For more information, please visit: assessor.lacounty.gov/homeowners/death-of-an-owner
The Assessor’s Office issues a monthly email newsletter with helpful information that will benefit anyone who owns property in Los Angeles County. Subscribe to the Newsletter today.
Hi Sue, the big question many of us have (and maybe you know) is: How will the like-for-like rebuild impact our property tax base? As Assessor Prang said during his Eaton Survivors’ Webinar back in June (https://youtu.be/3TN_g53v-PY), the “like for like” standard does not conform with tax assessment standards of “essential equivalence.” If you build an additional 10% it is new construction, open for assessment at market value. (He said that about 5% additional is “equivalence” max; 10% would be outside the normal standard.) Prang seems to be fighting for fire-impacted homeowners on this issue, but what I got out of this webinar is that his hands are tied unless he finds a workaround. So if we build an additional 10% we might be avoiding permitting onstacles—but will we be hit hard later with a property tax re-assessment that is higher than anticipted? I can’t find any good answers on this yet. Thanks