The Los Angeles County documentary transfer tax is $1.10 for every $1,000 of property value changing hands, but that county charge is rarely the whole bill. Depending on which city the property sits in, a separate city transfer tax can stack on top, and inside the City of Los Angeles a high-value sale can trigger Measure ULA, which adds several percent of the sale price on its own.
How the County Rate Is Calculated
The statutory rate is $0.55 for every $500 of value, which works out to $1.10 per $1,000.1California Legislative Information. California Code Revenue and Taxation Code 11911 – Documentary Transfer Tax Act The tax applies to the consideration or value transferred, minus any liens or encumbrances that stay on title. If you sell for $800,000 but the buyer assumes an existing $200,000 mortgage, the taxable amount is $600,000.
When the value doesn’t fall on an exact multiple of $500, the county rounds up. A property valued at $750,250 gets taxed on 1,501 blocks of $500, so 1,501 times $0.55 equals $825.55. The tax only applies when the transferred value exceeds $100.2Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk. Documentary Transfer Taxes General Info
On a clean $750,000 sale with no assumed liens, the county piece alone comes to $825.
How City Location Changes the Total
Where the property sits within LA County decides whether a city tax stacks on top. There are three scenarios.
Unincorporated LA County. You pay only the county rate of $1.10 per $1,000.
Most incorporated cities. The city collects up to $0.55 per $1,000 under state law, and the county credits that same amount against its own tax. The combined bill stays at $1.10 per $1,000, just split between the two agencies.1California Legislative Information. California Code Revenue and Taxation Code 11911 – Documentary Transfer Tax Act
Five charter cities with their own rates. Culver City, Los Angeles, Pomona, Redondo Beach, and Santa Monica impose transfer taxes under their own city authority rather than state law. The county does not credit these, so the full $1.10 county rate plus the city’s separate rate both apply.2Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk. Documentary Transfer Taxes General Info
The City of Los Angeles charges $2.25 per $500, or $4.50 per $1,000.3Los Angeles Office of Finance. Real Property Transfer Tax and Measure ULA FAQ Add the county’s $1.10 and the combined base rate inside the City of LA is $5.60 per $1,000. On that same $750,000 sale, the transfer tax jumps from $825 in unincorporated territory to $4,200 inside LA city limits. Pomona and Redondo Beach each add $2.20 per $1,000. Culver City and Santa Monica use tiered rates that climb steeply for higher-value properties.2Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk. Documentary Transfer Taxes General Info
Confirm the exact combined rate with your escrow officer. The county’s Declaration of Documentary Transfer Tax form requires the county and city amounts to be listed separately.
Measure ULA on High-Value City of LA Sales
Properties inside the City of Los Angeles above certain price thresholds face an additional layer called Measure ULA, sometimes called the “mansion tax.” Voters approved it in November 2022 and it took effect April 1, 2023. The California Court of Appeal upheld it as constitutional in 2025 after a legal challenge, so it remains in full force.4Justia. Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assn. v. City of L.A.
The thresholds adjust annually based on the Chained Consumer Price Index. For transactions closing between July 1, 2025 and June 30, 2026:3Los Angeles Office of Finance. Real Property Transfer Tax and Measure ULA FAQ
- Sales from $5,300,001 through $10,599,999 pay 4% of the total transaction value, on top of the base city and county rates. Effective combined rate: roughly 4.45%.
- Sales of $10,600,000 and above pay 5.5% of the total transaction value, on top of the base city and county rates. Effective combined rate: roughly 5.95%.
Starting July 1, 2026, the thresholds rise to $5,400,000 and $10,900,000. The dollar impact is large. Selling a $7 million property in the City of LA triggers about $280,000 in Measure ULA tax by itself, plus roughly $39,200 in base transfer taxes.
Measure ULA doesn’t apply to every high-value transfer. Exemptions include transfers to qualified affordable housing nonprofits, transfers to government agencies, and transfers to entities constitutionally exempt from city taxation. Any transaction already exempt from the base city transfer tax is also exempt from ULA.3Los Angeles Office of Finance. Real Property Transfer Tax and Measure ULA FAQ Property outside the City of Los Angeles is not subject to Measure ULA even if it sits within LA County.
Transfers That Are Exempt
Several categories of transfers owe no documentary transfer tax under California Revenue and Taxation Code sections 11921 through 11930. The ones that come up most often:
- Deeds of trust and mortgages. Any instrument given to secure a debt is exempt, so refinancing or recording a new deed of trust does not trigger the tax.5California Legislative Information. California Code Revenue and Taxation Code 11921 – Exemptions
- Gifts and inheritances. A lifetime gift of property or a transfer at death carries no consideration, so no tax applies. Parents transferring property to children as a gift is the classic example.6California Legislative Information. California Code Revenue and Taxation Code 11930 – Exemptions
- Transfers into a revocable living trust. Moving your property into your own trust is treated as a change in how title is held, not a change in who owns it, and is covered by the same section 11930 exemption.
- Transfers to government agencies, including foreclosures to federally backed entities such as Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae.
- Court-ordered conveyances in bankruptcy proceedings, or other court orders that are not sales.
To claim an exemption, state the reason on the face of the deed or on an attached declaration and cite the applicable code section. Skip that step and the county will assess the tax at the full rate. Unwinding an assessed tax on a genuinely exempt transfer takes time and paperwork, so getting the language on the deed the first time matters.
Who Pays and How It’s Filed
California law does not assign the transfer tax to either the buyer or the seller. The purchase agreement decides. In LA County, local custom puts the county documentary transfer tax on the seller as a standard closing cost, and city transfer taxes usually follow the same custom unless the contract says otherwise.
The Registrar-Recorder does not care who writes the check. The only requirement is that the full amount is paid when the deed is submitted for recording. In most transactions, escrow pays the tax from closing funds and handles the paperwork.
Every taxable transfer, and most exempt ones, must include a Declaration of Documentary Transfer Tax with the deed. The form asks for the Assessor’s Parcel Number, the full legal names of the grantor and grantee, the legal description of the property, the total consideration net of assumed liens, and either the calculated county and city tax amounts listed separately or the specific code section supporting an exemption.7Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk. Declaration of Documentary Transfer Tax
Recording Fees on Top of the Tax
The transfer tax is the biggest recording cost but not the only one. For a standard grant deed, the first-page recording fees total $109, made up of a $15 base fee, a $75 Building Homes and Jobs Act (SB 2) fee, a $7 real estate fraud prosecution fee, a $2 restrictive covenant modification (AB 1466) fee, and a $10 survey monument preservation fee.8Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk. Recording Fees Each additional page is $3. A typical deed of two or three pages runs about $112 to $115 in recording fees before any transfer tax. These fees apply to every recorded document, including exempt transfers.