Santa Clarita placed third among cities in the Los Angeles County area with the most growth in real estate and business property values, according to the 2019 tax assessment roll released by the Assessor’s office.
The roll indicates growth and new all-time highs in these areas across the county and new records also include total tax savings for homeowners and charitable organizations. Data showed a record high roll value of $1.60 trillion in total net value, a growth of 6.25% over the prior year of $94.41 billion.
The leading indicators in the roll’s increase are property sales, which added $48.34 billion; new construction, which added more than $11 billion; and a consumer price index adjustment prescribed by Proposition 13, which added $28.74 billion.
“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 Jeff Prang in a statement. “From education, healthcare, and mental health services, to public safety, transportation, and the homeless crisis, our schools, cities, and county programs will have approximately an additional $1 billion for vital local public services.”
The 2019 roll comprises 2.57 million real estate parcels and business assessments, including more than 1.8 million single-family homes, nearly 250,000 apartment complexes and 248,000 commercial and industrial properties.
The city of Santa Clarita ranked third with the highest amount of growth at $2.5 billion, ahead of Inglewood at $2.4 billion and behind Long Beach at $3.1 billion and Los Angeles at $41.7 billion.
Growth for a city could be brought on by the construction or selling of a single development such as the Rams/Chargers stadium in Inglewood, according to Robert Kalonian, communications director for Assessor’s office.
In Santa Clarita, the highest-valued activity in the city is comprised of mostly commercial construction and sale properties, according to data provided by the Assessor’s office.
The leading events include: the construction of the four-story Kaiser Permanente building on Tourney Road in Valencia, which added $40 million to the roll; the sale of a shopping center at the 28200 block of Newhall Ranch Road, adding $22.5 million; and partial construction on industrial land for the Needham Ranch project, which added $7.9 million.
For a city the size of Santa Clarita, these and other sales and construction activity have contributed to a healthy 7.8% growth in the local assessment roll, said Kalonian.
“Santa Clarita is trending higher than the county average with a $35 billion total value,” said Prang. “Santa Clarita continues to be a desirable place to live and work. This is a reflection of a couple of things: an exceptionally, well-managed city, high-quality services, good schools and that you can still get comfortable sized homes with good amenities.”
On the flip side, he said, it’s becoming less affordable for first-time homebuyers than for those looking to upgrade.
For the overall county, Prang said he does not see any radical changes in the market at the moment that could cause alarm.
The assessor also emphasized the average growth in assessed values in Santa Clarita and across the county does not mean property owners will be subject to a corresponding increase of 6.25% on their property tax bills. Existing homeowners will only see the 2% standard annual adjustment for inflation due to the protections under Prop. 13.
