Santa Monica's $39.5 billion in Assessed Real Estate Values Places in Third Among LA County Cities

According to the assessment roll from the LA County Assessor, Santa Monica's 25,000 or so assessor's parcels are collectively worth $39.5 billion. This places Santa Monica 3rd in the County of Los Angeles for property values, which is totally impressive when you consider the relative populations of the top 3 cities.

Los Angeles, which has a population of 4 million, has $652.9 billion in real estate. Long Beach, with a population of 600,000, has $60.2 billion in assessed real estate value, and 600,000 residents. You would not expect Santa Monica, with just 100,000 residents, to place third at $39.5 billion in real estate; just ahead of Beverly Hills with its $36.6 billion in RE assessed valuation. But it does.

LA County has 69 cities, and Santa Monica ranks 8th in terms of population.

The complete press release from the County Assessor is below:

LOS ANGELES, CA – Los Angeles County Assessor Jeff Prang has certified the 2019 Assessment Roll, which represents record growth and new all-time highs in real estate and business property values across the County. New records also include total tax savings for homeowners and charitable organizations.

The roll grew by a record $94.41 billion (or 6.25%) over the prior year to an all-time high of $1.604 trillion in total net value. In addition to the values of the County's 2.38 million real estate parcels, this total amount includes $84.8 billion in business property (e.g. boats, aircraft, machinery, equipment), which rose by $3.9 billion from 2018 and is itself a new record.

"The strong growth in the local real estate market for the ninth consecutive year will have a positive impact on services for LA County's 10 million residents," said Assessor Prang. "From education, healthcare, and mental health services, to public safety, transportation, and alleviating the homeless crisis, our schools, cities, and county programs will have approximately an additional $1 billion for vital local public services."

Leading indicators for the growth in the local property assessment roll are: a) property sales, which added $48.34 billion to the roll as compared to 2018; b) the CPI adjustment prescribed by Proposition 13, which added another $28.74 billion; and c) new construction, which added a further $11.09 billion.

Among the greatest single additions to the roll are $1.95 billion for partially-complete construction of the Rams/Chargers stadium in Inglewood and $200 million for the Banc of California stadium in the City of Los Angeles.

The 6.25% overall growth reflects a county average, as there is substantial variation from one community to another. For instance, the total value of all assessments in Inglewood rose by 25.7% due in large part to the new NFL stadium, whereas communities without comparable construction or sales activity saw significantly lower growth rates.

Assessor Prang reminded residents that the average growth does not mean property owners will be subject to a corresponding increase on their annual property tax bills. Nearly 9 out of 10 property owners will see only the modest 2% adjustment prescribed by Proposition 13.

Among the benchmarks set by the 2019 roll is the total amount of $620 million in tax savings for seniors, veterans, and charitable organizations. Additionally, to date, the owners of 1,328 properties that were severely damaged or destroyed by the Woolsey fire have received tax relief totaling $684.8 million in property value, allowing them to rebuild their homes and their lives.

The 2019 Assessment Roll comprises 2.57 million real estate parcels and business assessments, including 1,878,470 single-family homes, 249,972 apartment complexes, 248,109 commercial and industrial properties, and more than 200,000 business property assessments.

Below are additional highlights from the 2019 Assessment Roll:

Cities with the greatest percentage growth:

Inglewood: 25.7%

Vernon: 13.2%

West Hollywood: 11.6%

Santa Fe Springs: 9.3%

Cities with the greatest amount of growth:

Los Angeles: $41.7 billion

Long Beach: $3.1 billion

Santa Clarita: $2.5 billion

Inglewood: $2.4 billion

Cities with the highest total assessed values:

Los Angeles: $652.9 billion

Long Beach: $60.2 billion

Santa Monica: $39.5 billion

Beverly Hills: $36.6 billion

A listing of assessments and parcel counts by city is attached. For more information, visit opendata.lacounty.gov or call 213/974-3101.