LA County Property Tax: Rates, Deadlines & Exemptions (2026)

Direct answer: For Los Angeles County’s 2026 regular assessment roll, the appeal window is open now and ends November 30, 2026 at 12 midnight PST. File online through the Los Angeles County Assessment Appeals Board portal, or file paper Form AAB100 / BOE-305-AH, Assessment Appeal Application by mail or in person at 500 West Temple Street, Room B4, Los Angeles, CA 90012; the filing fee is $46 per application unless you qualify for a fee waiver. (lacaab.lacounty.gov)

How assessments work in Los Angeles

Los Angeles County property taxes start with the Los Angeles County Assessor, who appraises taxable property, places the assessed value on the Assessment Roll, and applies exemptions. The Auditor-Controller then applies the general 1% tax levy plus voter-approved debt rates for your Tax Rate Area, and direct assessments may appear separately on the bill. (propertytax.lacounty.gov)

For the 2026 appeal cycle, you are usually challenging the value as of the January 1, 2026 lien date, for the fiscal year that begins July 1, 2026. Under California rules, regular roll appeals normally run July 2 to September 15, but the deadline is extended to November 30 if countywide value notices are not timely mailed; LA County’s own AAB site states the 2026 regular assessment filing ends November 30, 2026 at midnight PST. (boe.ca.gov)

The most common homeowner appeal is a decline-in-value appeal: you are saying your home’s market value on January 1 was lower than the assessed value enrolled for that year. A decline-in-value reduction is generally temporary and applies to the year appealed; later years normally need separate review or filing if the value is still too high. (assets-us-01.kc-usercontent.com)

Do not confuse the formal Assessment Appeals Board case with the Assessor’s informal decline-in-value review. LA County’s Assessor has a 2026 decline-in-value status page and separate request process, but the formal AAB appeal is what preserves your right to a hearing before the independent appeals body. (assessorapp.lacounty.gov)

Whether you should appeal

Appeal if you can show the Assessor’s value is above market value on the correct valuation date. For a 2026 decline-in-value case, that date is January 1, 2026. Your best evidence is not “my taxes are too high” or “my neighbor pays less”; it is comparable sales of similar properties, ideally close to January 1 and not more than 90 days after the valuation date. LA County’s hearing guide specifically warns that assessed values of other properties, tax amounts paid, your financial condition, and sales more than 90 days after the valuation date are not useful evidence. (assets-us-01.kc-usercontent.com)

A practical test: if the roll value is $850,000 and three similar homes in your neighborhood sold around the valuation date for an adjusted range of $760,000 to $790,000, an opinion of value around $780,000 may be worth filing. If your comps cluster around $840,000 to $870,000, the $46 filing fee, preparation time, and hearing risk probably are not worth it.

Use your actual tax bill’s Tax Rate Area (TRA) for exact savings. The Auditor-Controller’s lookup explains that TRAs appear on tax bills and determine the voter-approved debt portion of the rate. For a conservative savings estimate, use the County’s ad valorem base rate of 1%: a successful reduction from $850,000 to $780,000 lowers assessed value by $70,000, saving about $700 for that tax year before any voter-approved debt effect. If your actual TRA rate is higher than 1%, your ad valorem savings will be slightly higher; direct assessments generally do not fall just because assessed value falls. (onlineapps.auditor.lacounty.gov)

Published success rates: I did not find an official LA County publication giving homeowner appeal win rates or median reductions. The official performance materials I found report workload measures such as numbers of appeals scheduled and heard, not outcome percentages or median tax savings. (ceo.lacounty.gov)

Step-by-step how to file

1. Pull your numbers. Get your Annual Secured Property Tax Bill and Assessor Identification Number. For online filing, LA County’s instructions say you will need the exact name from the tax bill plus the Assessor’s ID and PIN shown on the bill. (lacaab.lacounty.gov)

2. Choose the correct filing path. For most homeowners disputing the 2026 annual value, select Regular Assessment – Value as of January 1 of the current year and reason Decline in Value on AAB100. If you are appealing a supplemental assessment after purchase or new construction, the deadline is usually within 60 days of the mailing date or postmark of the supplemental notice or tax bill, whichever is later. (lacaab.lacounty.gov)

3. Complete the exact form. The paper form is Assessment Appeal Application AAB-100, also identified as BOE-305-AH. LA County also provides AAB-101 for economic units, agent authorization forms, withdrawal, postponement, waiver/agreement, request for board hearing, and fee-waiver forms. (bos.lacounty.gov)

4. State your opinion of value. This is critical. AAB100 warns that failing to state your opinion of value can result in rejection. Enter the roll value and your proposed value for land/improvements or total value. Do not attach your full evidence packet to the application; LA County says evidence is presented at the hearing. (assets-us-01.kc-usercontent.com)

5. Pay the fee or request a waiver. LA County charges a non-refundable $46 application fee per application. For paper filings, payment can be made by check or money order payable to County of Los Angeles; applications without payment or a fee-waiver form can be denied. (lacaab.lacounty.gov)

6. File by the right method. Online: use the AAB portal at lacaab.lacounty.gov and select Applicant Login. Mail or walk in: Los Angeles County Assessment Appeals Board, Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration, 500 West Temple Street, Room B4, Los Angeles, CA 90012. LA County publishes an email address for questions, aaboffice@bos.lacounty.gov, but the official filing methods shown for applications are online, mail, or in person—not email filing. (lacaab.lacounty.gov)

What happens after

The appeal authority’s proper name is the Los Angeles County Assessment Appeals Board. It sits as the local Board of Equalization and resolves valuation disputes between taxpayers and the Assessor’s Office. LA County has multiple assessment appeals boards; a regular Board hearing is a recorded hearing before a three-member panel, while the Assessment Hearing Officer Program is designed for less complex residential cases and other qualifying properties. (bos.lacounty.gov)

LA County hearings may be in person or virtual through the County’s hybrid hearing platform. At a Board hearing, you check in with the clerk, witnesses are sworn, the Assessor’s representative and you present evidence, and both sides may ask questions. For an owner-occupied single-family residence, LA County’s guide says the Assessor’s representative has the burden of proof and presents first. Bring six copies of evidence for a Board hearing or three copies for a Hearing Officer hearing. (bos.lacounty.gov)

A Hearing Officer makes a recommendation, not the final binding decision. Either you or the Assessor can request a new Board hearing within 14 days; if nobody does, the Board normally reviews the recommendation within about three weeks and either accepts it or rejects it and schedules a Board hearing. For Board hearings, the County says you will receive notice of the decision no later than 120 days from the hearing date unless otherwise stated at the hearing. State law generally requires the Board to hear and decide timely filed applications within two years, unless extended. (assets-us-01.kc-usercontent.com)

There is a limited non-oral path: under LA County rules, the Board may waive the applicant’s examination and decide on the merits of the application if the issues are fully presented or have been considered in prior years, but this is discretionary and must be requested. If you simply do not appear, your application can be denied for nonappearance. (assets-us-01.kc-usercontent.com)

Local tips

Use LA County’s own sales data, but organize it like an appraiser. The hearing guide says Assessor sales lists are available at the Assessor’s main and regional offices on a do-it-yourself basis. For single-family homes, look for similar use codes, age, square footage, bedrooms/bathrooms, and deed type “Y” for regular transfer, then compare dollars per square foot and adjust for condition, lot, view, pool, and location. (assets-us-01.kc-usercontent.com)

Check exemptions before appealing. The Homeowners’ Exemption is separate from an appeal and reduces assessed value by $7,000, roughly $70 per year, for an owner-occupied principal residence as of January 1. LA County’s property tax FAQ also points homeowners to other exemptions, and the Auditor-Controller’s guide lists veterans, disabled veterans, churches, charitable institutions, and other categories; exemption eligibility disputes generally are not decided by the AAB. (propertytax.lacounty.gov)

Pay the bill even while appealing. Filing an appeal does not stop penalties or extend tax due dates. If you win after paying, the County processes the resulting reduction/refund through the normal property tax system. (assets-us-01.kc-usercontent.com)

Do not file just because Zillow is lower. Convert your best three to five comps into a table with address/AIN, sale date, sale price, living area, lot, bed/bath count, condition notes, and adjusted value. Your goal is to make it easy for the hearing officer or Board to see why your January 1, 2026 value is lower than the roll value.

Los Angeles County Property Tax Rate

General 1% tax levy ($1 per $100 of assessed value) applicable to all Los Angeles County property tax bills, plus voter-approved debt rates for the property's specific tax-rate area and any direct assessments; Los Angeles County does not have one single countywide effective rate for every parcel.

Source: https://auditor.lacounty.gov/faqs/

When Are Property Taxes Due in Los Angeles County?

Annual secured property taxes are due in two installments: the 1st installment is due November 1 and becomes delinquent after December 10; the 2nd installment is due February 1 and becomes delinquent after April 10. If a delinquency date falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the delinquency date is extended to the next business day. The annual secured property tax bill has two payment stubs; taxpayers may pay each installment separately or pay both installments simultaneously.

This is not the same as the assessment appeal deadline above. The appeal deadline is your window to contest your assessed value; the payment due date is when the resulting tax bill must be paid. Missing one does not affect the other, but missing either has real consequences — one forfeits your right to appeal for the year, the other can trigger penalties and interest.

Source: https://ttc.lacounty.gov/secured-property-taxes-frequently-asked-questions/

Property Tax Exemptions in Los Angeles County

• Homeowners' Exemption — An owner-occupied dwelling that is the owner's principal place of residence as of the January 1 lien date.. Reduces taxable value by up to $7,000. Yes, one-time filing with the county assessor using BOE-266; once granted, annual filing is not required unless eligibility changes. Apply by February 15 for the full exemption for that fiscal year; claims filed after February 15 and on or before December 10 receive 80% of the exemption.. (Source: https://www.boe.ca.gov/proptaxes/homeowners_exemption.htm)
• Disabled Veterans' Exemption — Qualified veterans whose service-connected disability is rated 100% or compensated at the 100% rate due to unemployability, and qualifying unmarried surviving spouses, for the principal place of residence.. For the 2026 lien date: basic exemption up to $180,671 of assessed value; low-income exemption up to $271,009 with household income limit of $81,131. Yes. Basic exemption requires an initial claim; low-income exemption requires annual filing. Apply by Initial claim generally must be filed by the later of January 1 after the qualifying event or 90 days after the qualifying event for 100% of the exemption. Low-income annual claims must be filed January 1 through February 15 for 100% of that year's exemption.. (Source: https://www.boe.ca.gov/proptaxes/dv_exemption.htm)
• Veterans' Exemption — Certain qualified veterans, unmarried surviving spouses, or parents of deceased veterans who meet service requirements, live in California on the January 1 lien date, and own limited aggregate property: not more than $5,000 if single or $10,000 if married.. Exemption of property value up to $4,000. Yes, annual filing with the county assessor using BOE-261. Apply by February 15 for the full exemption for property owned on the January 1 lien date.. (Source: https://www.boe.ca.gov/proptaxes/veterans_exemption.htm)
• Proposition 19 Base-Year Value Transfer — Homeowners who are at least age 55, severely and permanently disabled, or victims of wildfire or other natural disaster, transferring the base-year value of an original principal residence to a replacement principal residence in California.. Allows eligible homeowners to transfer the original home's factored base-year value to a replacement principal residence; if the replacement home's value exceeds the allowed comparison value, the excess is added to the transferred value. Yes, claim form filed with the assessor of the county where the replacement home is located. Apply by Within 3 years of the date the replacement dwelling is purchased or new construction of the replacement dwelling is completed.. (Source: https://www.boe.ca.gov/prop19/)

How to Look Up Your Property Record in Los Angeles County

You can look up your property's official record at https://portal.assessor.lacounty.gov/. The Los Angeles County Assessor Portal lets users search by AIN or address and shows parcel summary information such as situs address, use type, tax-rate area, parcel/tax status, exemptions on file, land/building characteristics, and assessed value/roll details.