The Santa Clara County transfer tax is $1.10 per $1,000 of sale price on every real estate transfer recorded in the county, but that base rate is only the starting point. If the property sits in San Jose, Palo Alto, or Mountain View, a city tax stacks on top. And in San Jose and Mountain View, progressive surcharges on higher-priced sales can add tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars more.
The Base County Rate
The county charges $0.55 per $500 of value, which works out to $1.10 per $1,000.1County of Santa Clara. Record Fees It applies to every real property transfer recorded in Santa Clara County, incorporated or unincorporated, and kicks in once the sale price (minus any existing liens staying on the property) exceeds $100.2California Legislative Information. California Code Revenue and Taxation Code 11911
On a $1,000,000 sale in an unincorporated area or in a city with no local transfer tax, the bill is $1,100 and nothing more.
Cities That Add Their Own Transfer Tax
San Jose, Palo Alto, and Mountain View each impose a city conveyance tax of $3.30 per $1,000 on top of the county rate, shown on recording documents as $1.65 per $500.3County of Santa Clara. Recording Document Fees A $1,000,000 sale in any of those three cities generates $1,100 in county tax plus $3,300 in city tax, for $4,400 combined. Every other city in Santa Clara County, along with the unincorporated areas, owes only the $1,100 county tax.
San Jose Measure E Surcharge
San Jose adds a progressive Measure E tax on transfers where the total consideration exceeds $2,300,000. The Clerk-Recorder’s Office has collected it since July 1, 2025, and it applies to the full sale price, not just the amount above the threshold.4County of Santa Clara. Measure E The tiers:
- $2,300,001 to $5,000,000: 0.75% of the full sale price
- $5,000,001 to $10,000,000: 1% of the full sale price
- Over $10,000,000: 1.5% of the full sale price
The numbers get large quickly. A $3,000,000 San Jose home owes $3,300 in county tax, $9,900 in base city tax, and $22,500 in Measure E, for $35,700 total. At the top tier, an $11,000,000 transfer triggers $165,000 in Measure E alone,4County of Santa Clara. Measure E on top of $12,100 in county tax and $36,300 in base city tax, pushing the combined bill past $213,000.
Mountain View’s Two-Tier Rate
Mountain View moved to a two-tier structure effective December 20, 2024. Sales of $6,000,000 or less are taxed at the standard $3.30 per $1,000. Sales above $6,000,000 jump to $15.00 per $1,000 on the full consideration.5City of Mountain View. Real Property Transfer Conveyance Tax As with Measure E, the higher rate applies to the entire price once the threshold is crossed, not only the excess.
Who Pays
California’s documentary transfer tax statutes don’t assign the tax to the buyer or the seller; it attaches to the recorded document itself.2California Legislative Information. California Code Revenue and Taxation Code 11911 Local custom in Santa Clara County is for the seller to pay the county portion, and for buyer and seller to split any city portion 50/50.
That’s custom, not law. The purchase agreement controls, and parties routinely negotiate a different split. Whatever you agree to belongs in the escrow instructions so there’s no argument at closing.
When No Transfer Tax Is Owed
California’s Revenue and Taxation Code exempts several common situations. To claim an exemption, you have to cite the specific code section on the deed or in a separate declaration at recording.
Divorce and Legal Separation
Transfers between spouses dividing community property under a divorce, legal separation, or annulment are exempt, provided the transfer is part of a court judgment or a written agreement made in anticipation of one.6California Legislative Information. California Revenue and Taxation Code 11927
Gifts, Inheritance, and Trusts
Property passing as a gift, transferring at death to an heir or beneficiary, or moving into a trust for someone’s benefit is exempt. The common estate-planning scenario (a homeowner retitling their house into a revocable living trust) falls here.7California Legislative Information. California Code Revenue and Taxation Code 11930 The requirement is that no money changes hands; if part of the transfer involves payment, the exemption doesn’t cover the paid portion.
Retitling to or From an Entity
Moving property between yourself and a legal entity (for example, into a single-member LLC) is exempt as long as the ownership interests are identical before and after. The same rule covers transfers between entities where the underlying owners don’t change.8California Legislative Information. California Code Revenue and Taxation Code 11925 Restructuring how title is held isn’t a sale.
Government Acquisitions
Any acquisition by a federal, state, or local government agency is exempt, whether by direct purchase, eminent domain, or otherwise.9California Legislative Information. California Code Revenue and Taxation Code 11922
Foreclosure and Deed in Lieu
A deed to a lender from a foreclosure (or in lieu of one) is exempt up to the unpaid debt plus accrued interest and foreclosure costs. If the lender pays anything beyond that, the tax applies to the excess. The deed has to identify the lender as the beneficiary or mortgagee and state both the total consideration and the unpaid debt.10California Legislative Information. California Code Revenue and Taxation Code 11926
Filing and Paying
Every deed recorded in Santa Clara County needs a documentary transfer tax declaration showing how the tax was calculated or which exemption applies. You’ll need the Assessor’s Parcel Number, the city or unincorporated area, and the sale price. The declaration also asks whether the tax is figured on the full price or on the price minus liens staying with the property.11County of Santa Clara. Recording Real Estate
A Preliminary Change of Ownership Report has to accompany the deed as well; it goes to the Assessor’s Office for reassessment purposes.12Office of the Assessor, Santa Clara County. Preliminary Change of Ownership Report (PCOR) BOE-502A Documents are submitted to the Clerk-Recorder’s Office in person at the San Jose office, by mail, or electronically through an authorized title company.11County of Santa Clara. Recording Real Estate Tax and recording fees are due at submission.
One jurisdictional note: refund claims and disputes over city taxes (including Measure E and Mountain View’s higher tier) go to the finance department of the relevant city, not to the county Clerk-Recorder.11County of Santa Clara. Recording Real Estate