California’s Proposition 15 is an amendment to the state constitution that would update how the state assesses property taxes. Exempts small businesses from personal property tax; for other businesses, exempts $500,000 worth of personal property." So when you buy … How Property Taxes in California Work. Voters will likely consider a proposal in 2020 to limit Proposition 13's tax limits to homeowners, boosting assessments on commercial properties and using much of the money on K-12 schools.

California property taxes are based on the purchase price of the property. Few topics have been more intensely debated by public policy experts and interest groups than whether California’s commercial property owners deserve the same low-tax protections as homeowners. Now, since 1978, property taxes have largely been viewed as a third rail in state politics. Counties in California collect an average of 0.74% of a property's assesed fair market value as property tax per year.. California has one of the highest average property tax rates in the country, with only nine states levying higher property taxes. That’s when Proposition 13 passed. The median property tax in California is $2,839.00 per year for a home worth the median value of $384,200.00.

It rolled back property values for tax purposes to 1976 levels and froze them there. This compares well to the national average, which currently sits at 1.08%. "Taxes certain commercial and industrial real property based on fair-market value—rather than, under current law, the purchase price with limited inflation. The average effective property tax rate in California is 0.77%.

Exempts agricultural property and certain small businesses.