Continuing an 11-year upward trend, the Los Angeles County Assessor’s Office has reported that the county’s property is valued at $1.76 trillion, a 3.7-percent increase from last year.
The $1.76 trillion Assessment Roll is $62.9 billion more than last year’s valuation of $1.7 trillion, the Los Angeles County Assessor Jeff Prang said.
“I am pleased to report that the 3.7-percent increase in assessed property values in Los Angeles County represents the 11th year of consecutive growth,” Prang said. “We continue to improve our ability to produce a fair, accurate and timely Assessment Roll, which is aided in large measure by new, enhanced technology.”
The county’s property valuation translates to about $17 billion in property tax dollars to fund public education, first responders, public health and other county, municipal and public education services. Property sales contributed $44.9 billion to the Assessment Roll, new construction added $8.8 billion and the Consumer Price Index adjustment mandated by Proposition 13 added $16.4 billion. About 90 percent of property owners saw about a 1.036-percent adjustment from Proposition 9.
The assessment includes 2.58 million real estate parcels and business assessments, including 1.885 million single-family homes, 250,190 apartment complexes, 248,293 business property assessments and 161,488 business property assessments.
While overall property value grew, business personal property—including machinery, equipment, boats and aircraft—decreased by $5.5 billion, reflecting the impact that COVID-19 had on small businesses. Reduced air travel resulted in reduced aircraft assessments, and stay-at-home orders created reduced fuel demand that lowered the price of fuel, causing major refineries to experience a decrease in net cash flow and a reduction in fixture value, according to Prange.
“Although the 2021 Assessment Roll reflects growth, which is good news, other factors are now indicating the exact nature of the economic slow-down caused by the COVID-19 pandemic,” Prange said. “The mixed implications of this past year will be felt for some time to come. Just as an example, the housing market experienced robust growth during the pandemic while small businesses were hit hard along with hotels, refineries and airlines.”
According to Prange, the Los Angeles County Assessor’s Office faced difficulty producing the Assessment Roll amid the COVID-19 pandemic, as county facilities were closed to the public and staff worked remotely.
“Most of my 1,300 employees were teleworking while county facilities were closed to the public,” he said. “This past year has been beyond a challenge but we pulled together and have produced a thorough, accurate and fair roll in a timely manner.”
