Property Taxes

How Much Are Property Taxes in San Diego, CA? Rates and Bills on Homes Sold in 2026

Updated November 7, 2026

By Vinura Abeysundara

Head of Growth at TurboHome

Reviewed by:

Vinura Abeysundara

Head of Growth at TurboHome

Kevin Kretzmer

Head Agent, California · CalDRE #01997822

Property tax in San Diego runs about 1.25% of what you pay for the home (1.25114%, FY2025-26, City of San Diego tax rate area 08001). On the $950,000 median home sold in San Diego from May through October 2026, that is $11,886 a year, or $990 a month, before the $7,000 homeowners' exemption. Under Proposition 13 your bill is set by your purchase price, not by what the seller was paying, so the figure on the listing is usually too low. Below: the bill on the median home in 12 San Diego neighborhoods, by price tier and by home type, and how the supplemental bill works.

TurboHome Market Analysis · San Diego, CA · Closings May to October 2026 · Published November 2026

Key findings

Median bill: $11,886 a year ($990 a month) on the $950,000 median home, at 1.25114% (FY2025-26, City of San Diego tax rate area 08001).
Highest and lowest neighborhood: Black Mountain Ranch pays the most in our table, $24,397 a year on a $1,950,000 median home; Downtown San Diego pays the least, $8,508 on $680,000.
Price tiers: the median bill runs from $5,242 a year in the under $500,000 tier (median $419,000) to $32,530 in the $2,000,000 and up tier (median $2,600,000).
Year over year: the median sale price rose 4.4%, from $910,000 to $950,000, so the tax on the median home went from $11,385 to $11,886.
Listing caution: Proposition 13 resets the assessed value to your purchase price, so the seller's bill on the listing is usually too low for you.

What the median San Diego home pays

Property tax on the median San Diego home, May to October 2026, data table
Measure	Figure
Closings analyzed, May to October 2026	4,455
Median sale price	$950,000
Tax on the median home	$11,886 a year, $990 a month
Home at the 25th percentile	$665,000: $8,320 a year
Home at the 75th percentile	$1,400,000: $17,516 a year
Rate used	1.25114% (FY2025-26, City of San Diego tax rate area 08001)

The rate is a 1% base under Proposition 13 plus the voter-approved bonds for the city, schools and other local agencies in the home's tax rate area. Parcel taxes, Mello-Roos special taxes and direct assessments are charged as flat amounts on top, so they are not in the percentage.

Rate source: San Diego County Auditor and Controller, FY2025-26 Tax Rate by Tax Rate Area (from the county's FY2025-26 tax rate book): tax rate area 08001, City of San Diego, 1.25114% (read November 7, 2026). GoCodebook, citing the same tax rate book, puts the City of San Diego's 215 tax rate areas between 1.031% and 1.2821% of assessed value, excluding Mello-Roos and fixed charges (read November 7, 2026).

The California homeowners' exemption removes $7,000 of assessed value for an owner-occupied home, worth about $70 a year (California State Board of Equalization, read November 7, 2026).

Property tax by price point in San Diego

The 1.25114% rate applied to the purchase price. Each figure is the first full-year bill before the $7,000 homeowners' exemption.

Annual tax. Every figure is in the table below.

Property tax by purchase price in San Diego, data table
Purchase price	Annual tax	Monthly
$500,000	$6,256	$521
$750,000	$9,384	$782
$1,000,000	$12,511	$1,043
$1,500,000	$18,767	$1,564
$2,000,000	$25,023	$2,085

Most lenders collect property tax monthly with the mortgage payment, hold it in an escrow account and pay the county when the bill is due. The monthly column is roughly what tax adds to the payment on top of principal, interest and insurance, so on a $1,000,000 home in San Diego plan on about $1,043 a month for tax alone.

Property tax by home type

Property tax by home type in San Diego, May to October 2026, data table
Home type	Closings	Median sale price	Tax on the median home	Monthly
Single family	2,581	$1,250,000	$15,639	$1,303
Townhouse	450	$815,000	$10,197	$850
Condo	1,424	$585,000	$7,319	$610

A condo in San Diego sold for a median $585,000 and carries about $7,319 a year, against $15,639 on the $1,250,000 median single family home. Every type pays the same rate, so the gap in tax is the gap in price.

Property tax by price tier (what actually sold)

Property tax by price tier in San Diego, May to October 2026, data table
Price tier	Closings	Median sale price	Tax on the median home	Monthly
Under $500,000	483	$419,000	$5,242	$437
$500,000 to $750,000	948	$629,000	$7,870	$656
$750,000 to $1,000,000	966	$862,000	$10,785	$899
$1,000,000 to $1,500,000	1,109	$1,220,000	$15,264	$1,272
$1,500,000 to $2,000,000	472	$1,697,000	$21,232	$1,769
$2,000,000 and up	477	$2,600,000	$32,530	$2,711

These tiers group the homes that actually sold in our feed by sale price, so the closings column shows where the San Diego market traded.

Property tax by neighborhood in San Diego

The 12 neighborhoods below are the largest neighborhoods by closings, sorted by median sale price, each with at least 20 closings in our feed.

Tax on the median home. Every figure is in the table below.

Property tax by neighborhood in San Diego, May to October 2026, data table
Neighborhood	Closings	Median sale price	Tax on the median home	Monthly
Black Mountain Ranch	161	$1,950,000	$24,397	$2,033
Carmel Valley	133	$1,700,000	$21,269	$1,772
Point Loma	219	$1,357,000	$16,978	$1,415
Pacific Beach	159	$1,340,000	$16,765	$1,397
Rancho Penasquitos	168	$1,320,000	$16,515	$1,376
Clairemont Mesa	350	$1,130,000	$14,138	$1,178
Mira Mesa	203	$970,000	$12,136	$1,011
Navajo	308	$968,750	$12,120	$1,010
Rancho Bernardo	292	$953,750	$11,933	$994
University City	175	$950,000	$11,886	$990
Uptown San Diego	243	$940,000	$11,761	$980
Downtown San Diego	263	$680,000	$8,508	$709

Black Mountain Ranch has the biggest bill in the table, $24,397 a year on a $1,950,000 median home. Downtown San Diego has the smallest, $8,508 a year on $680,000.

How San Diego compares with a year ago

San Diego, May to October 2025 vs May to October 2026, data table
Measure	May to October 2025	May to October 2026
Closings	4,519	4,455
Median sale price	$910,000	$950,000 (4.4%)
Tax on the median home	$11,385	$11,886

The median sale price rose 4.4%. A buyer's bill moves with the price paid, while an existing owner's assessed value can rise at most 2% a year under Proposition 13.

Why your bill will not match the listing

Proposition 13 resets a home's assessed value to the purchase price when it sells and then limits increases to 2% a year. The seller's bill, often based on a value set decades ago, is not yours: budget from the price you pay.

The county issues a supplemental bill for the months between closing and the next regular bill. It is mailed separately and is usually not paid from escrow, and a second regular bill follows on the normal cycle, so in the first year you can see two bills close together.

The $7,000 homeowners' exemption, worth about $70 a year, must be claimed with the county assessor.

What is driving San Diego's property taxes (local commentary)

San Diego's rate depends more on where you buy than in any other city here: the city's 215 tax rate areas run from 1.031% to 1.2821%, a spread of about $2,400 a year on the $950,000 median home. The bigger variable is Mello-Roos: newer communities such as Black Mountain Ranch ($1,950,000 median) and Carmel Valley ($1,700,000) commonly carry community facilities district special taxes on top of the percentage rate, which is why a rate table understates the bill there, while older neighborhoods like Clairemont Mesa ($1,130,000), Navajo ($968,750) and Point Loma ($1,357,000) usually do not. Downtown San Diego condos ($680,000 median) have the smallest bills in the table. Citywide, the median price rose 4.4% year over year, so the gap between a seller's Proposition 13 bill and a buyer's reset bill grew.

How to budget for property tax when buying in San Diego

Estimate from your price, not the listing. Multiply your purchase price by the rate on this page (1.25114%); on a $1,000,000 home that is $12,511 a year.
Divide by 12 and add it to the mortgage payment. Most lenders escrow property tax, so about $1,043 a month on that $1,000,000 home is part of the payment you qualify for.
Set aside the supplemental bill for the first year. It covers the months between closing and the next regular bill and is usually not paid from escrow.
Check the prior owner's full bill on the county portal. Look for parcel taxes, Mello-Roos and direct assessments that sit outside the percentage rate.
Compare two homes you like on tax, not just price. A district line can be worth over $1,000 a year.

Methodology

We looked at closings of single family homes, condos and townhouses, plus tenancies in common, in San Diego from our MLS feed, closed May 1 through October 31, 2026 (4,455 closings), compared with May through October 2025 (4,519 closings). The tax is the published total rate for the city's typical tax rate area, 1.25114% (FY2025-26, City of San Diego tax rate area 08001), applied to the sale price. The rate runs from 1.0310% to 1.2821% across the City of San Diego's 215 tax rate areas. The actual rate depends on the tax rate area. Parcel taxes, Mello-Roos and direct assessments are not included, and bills are shown before the homeowners' exemption. Neighborhoods need at least 20 closings; figures are medians. Every San Diego table uses the verified rate for tax rate area 08001. A home in another of the city's 215 tax rate areas pays between 1.031% and 1.2821%, which on the $950,000 median home is $9,794 to $12,180 a year. Published November 2026.

FAQ

How much is property tax in San Diego?

About 1.25% of the purchase price (1.25114%, FY2025-26, City of San Diego tax rate area 08001). On the $950,000 median home sold in San Diego from May through October 2026, that is $11,886 a year, or $990 a month, before the $7,000 homeowners' exemption.

Is a buyer's agent rebate worth it in San Diego?

On a $950,000 home, the median sold in San Diego from May through October 2026, the buyer-side commission is a much larger number than a year of property tax. TurboHome refunds most of it to the buyer at closing. Compare the companies that refund the buyer's agent commission.

Will my property tax be the same as the seller's?

No. Proposition 13 resets the assessed value to your purchase price when you buy, then limits increases to 2% a year. A seller who bought years ago is often paying on a much lower value, so budget from your price: $11,886 a year on the $950,000 median San Diego home.

What is a supplemental tax bill in San Diego?

After you buy, the county issues a supplemental bill for the months between closing and the next regular bill, based on your purchase price. It is mailed separately from the regular bill and is usually not paid from escrow, so set it aside yourself. A second regular bill follows on the normal cycle.

Which San Diego neighborhoods have the lowest property tax?

Among the 12 neighborhoods in our table, Downtown San Diego ($680,000 median, $8,508 a year) and Uptown San Diego ($940,000 median, $11,761 a year) have the smallest bills on the median home. Every row uses the same rate, so the smaller bills reflect lower prices.

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