Sacramento County Assessor
The Sacramento County Assessor establishes property assessments and maintains records used in the property tax process. This article explains how to look up a parcel and its assessed value, request ownership information, review an assessment, prepare forms, and reach the office that handles your question. It also covers supplemental assessments, exemptions, mailing address changes, and business personal property reporting.
Which Office Handles Your Property Question?
The Sacramento County Assessor’s Office handles questions about assessed values, property assessment records, ownership information, parcel maps, new construction, and changes in ownership. Its services also include homeowners’ and disabled veterans’ exemptions, certain reassessment exclusions, and assessments of business equipment, boats, and aircraft.
The Assessor and the Tax Collector have different responsibilities. Contact the Assessor about the value assigned to your property or information in an assessment record. Property tax bill payments belong with the Tax Collector. A request to review an assessed value does not replace payment of a bill or suspend payment requirements.
Other questions belong with a different office. The Assessment Appeals Board handles formal assessment appeals. The city or county where a property is located assigns its street address, and the applicable planning department determines zoning. Building permitting agencies are the official sources for permits and plans.
Parcel Maps and Assessment Searches
Information Available in Parcel Viewer
The Assessor Parcel Viewer provides access to parcel maps, assessment information, and property-related data. Free parcel information includes assessed values and limited residential and commercial building characteristics. Owner information is withheld from the online system because of privacy concerns.
Have the property address and Assessor’s Parcel Number, commonly called the APN, available when researching a property or contacting staff. The APN identifies the parcel in assessment records. When requesting information, provide the address or parcel number rather than relying on an owner’s name alone.
Parcel Viewer is not updated continuously. Assessed values are updated in early July and mid-September. Changes resulting from roll corrections after September 15 are not reflected in the application. If an online value does not appear to reflect a correction, contact the Assessor about the assessment record.
Land Use Codes Versus Zoning
An Assessor land use code describes the actual or proposed use of a property as determined for assessment purposes. It may not reflect pending changes or changes that have not been reported to the office. The Assessor cautions that these codes may not be reliable for other purposes.
Zoning describes the approved use of property under the applicable jurisdiction’s land use ordinances and regulations. For questions about what a property is allowed to be used for, contact the planning department responsible for that location. An assessment land use code should not be treated as confirmation of zoning approval.
Reading Your Assessed Value
The Assessed Value Look-Up page provides 2026–27 roll assessed values for secured parcels. Enter the APN to retrieve the assessment. This system is separate from information for business property, boats, and aircraft assessed on the unsecured roll.
Two columns help explain the result. “This Year’s Prop 13 Assessment” shows the property’s 2026–27 factored Proposition 13 value. “This Year’s Assessment” shows the assessed value on which the 2026–27 tax bill will be based.
If the two figures differ, the property is in a temporarily reduced assessment status known as Proposition 8 Decline In Value. This distinction matters when comparing an assessment notice, an online record, and the value used for a tax bill. Some calculations displayed in the application may differ slightly because of rounding.
Assessed Value Look-Up is updated at the end of June and again in mid-September. The Assessor encourages owners to check their values again before review and appeal filing deadlines. A Proposition 8 reduction does not reduce direct levy special assessment amounts appearing on a property tax bill.
Assessment Reviews and Formal Appeals
If “This Year’s Assessment” exceeds your property’s market value as of January 1, the Assessor identifies two ways to dispute it: an informal review by the Assessor’s Office or a formal assessment appeal. These processes have separate filing periods and should not be treated as interchangeable.
Informal Review by the Assessor
The informal review period runs from July 1 through December 31. There is no charge. An appraiser reviews the assessment and the property’s market value to determine whether a reduction is appropriate.
Staffing and workload can cause the review to take several months. The office notifies the owner of its determination and processes a roll change if it finds that a reduction is warranted. Continue paying property tax bills on time while the review is pending to avoid penalties.
Because an informal review may take months, consider the formal appeal filing period separately. Do not assume that submitting an informal review request preserves the opportunity to appeal after the appeal deadline.
Formal Assessment Appeal Procedures
The supplied Assessed Value Look-Up page identifies a formal appeal filing period of July 2 through December 1 and a $30 filing fee. It also refers to November 30 in its discussion of appealing an informal review outcome. Consult the Assessment Appeals Board about the applicable filing deadline before relying on the later date.
A pending appeal does not suspend property tax payments. Bills must still be paid on time to avoid penalties.
Some appeals can be resolved through a written stipulation. If the Assessor, county legal officer, and applicant agree to a reduced value, they may submit a signed agreement to the Assessment Appeals Board. The applicant does not have to attend the scheduled stipulation hearing or testify about value. The board may accept the agreement and close the matter, or reject it and schedule a new hearing that the applicant must attend.
Public Records and Ownership Information
Online Records and Public Counter Access
The Assessor’s public records information explains which records are public and how to obtain them. Public information includes secured and unsecured assessment rolls, parcel numbers, secured property owners’ names, property and mailing addresses, assessed and exemption values, tax rate area codes, parcel maps, and property characteristics.
Although secured ownership information is public, it is not available through the Assessor’s website. Staff can provide ownership information for up to two secured parcels per day by telephone or email when you supply the property address or APN. Searches asking what properties a named person owns are not available through those channels.
For general information requests, staff assist with up to two parcels per telephone call or email per day. Building characteristic information is not provided by telephone or email.
Self-service lobby computers provide access to public assessment information Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Most public records can be viewed without charge. Hard copies may be purchased, and a fee applies to building characteristic information. Electronic records can be obtained without charge through Sacramento County’s NextRequest portal, accessible through the Assessor’s records page.
Confidential Records and Owner Authorization
Property owners may view public and confidential information about their own property without charge by presenting photo identification. An owner’s agent must bring an original authorization letter bearing the owner’s original signature.
Confidential records include homeowners’ exemption claims, change in ownership statements, preliminary change in ownership reports, business property statements, appraisal records, and certain correspondence requested from owners. The actual building drawing or footprint is also confidential and is available only to the owner or an authorized agent.
Permit records require a separate distinction. Permitting agencies provide information to the Assessor for assessment purposes, but the Assessor is not required to retain all permits and plans. Permit information held in assessment records is confidential except to the current owner of record or an authorized representative. Non-owners seeking permit information should contact the applicable permitting agency.
Forms and Filing Preparation
The Assessor’s forms page includes documents for exemptions, ownership changes, mailing address changes, calamity relief, new construction, base year value transfers, and agent authorization. Use the form appropriate to the property and request. Each California county has its own forms; property outside Sacramento County should be addressed with that county’s Assessor.
Complete the form as fully as possible. The office asks filers to provide:
Name or business name.
Mailing address.
Business location, when applicable.
Parcel number, if known.
Telephone number.
Include the work unit or topic on the envelope, such as Exemptions, Personal Property, or Change of Address. Missing identifying information may prevent the office from processing a form.
For filings mailed on a due date, the office requires a valid, timely postmark. Depositing an envelope in the mail does not guarantee a same-day postmark. The Assessor encourages early mailing and identifies a hand-stamped manual postmark requested at a post office, proof-of-mailing services, and available online filing options as ways to address mailing uncertainty.
Mailing Address Changes
Owners must keep a current mailing address for each parcel. The mailing address change instructions require a written request. Telephone requests are not accepted, and owners should submit an address change only once.
For real property, complete the Mailing Address Change form and return it by one of the accepted methods, or send a written note. A note must include your name, parcel number, property address, new mailing address, daytime telephone number, and signature. The form may be returned by fax, mail, or email according to the office’s instructions.
Business personal property owners use the Account Change Form or a written note. Their note must include the business name, parcel number, property address, new mailing address, daytime telephone number, and the signer’s name and signature. Business address changes go to the personal property unit.
A mailing address change concerns where correspondence is sent. It does not assign or change a property’s street address. Street address questions belong with the city or county where the property is located.
Ownership Changes and Supplemental Assessments
A change in ownership or new construction may cause the Assessor to reappraise a property. The office mails a Notice of Supplemental Assessment showing the new assessed value. That notice communicates an assessment change; it is distinct from a tax bill.
The supplemental assessment explanation states that an increase in value may produce a supplemental tax bill, sometimes more than one. A decrease may produce a refund. Supplemental bills are additional to the regular annual property tax bill.
Supplemental bills are mailed directly to the property owner. The owner remains responsible even when a lender normally pays annual property taxes through an impound account. Do not assume the lender will automatically pay a supplemental bill; discuss its handling with the lender.
The Assessor’s property transfer staff handle deed, transfer, and change in ownership inquiries. The office also has staff for Proposition 19 questions involving parent-child and grandparent-grandchild exclusions and transfers of base year value involving eligible replacement property situations.
Exemptions and Reassessment Exclusions
Property Tax Exemption Categories
The Assessor’s property tax exemption information identifies homeowners’, disabled veterans’, and nonprofit exemptions among the most common categories. Certain properties, or portions of properties, are exempt from taxation under the California Constitution.
Online filing is available for the homeowners’ exemption. The office has separate contacts for homeowners’ exemptions, disabled veterans’ exemptions, and institutional exemptions. Directing a question to the appropriate unit helps distinguish a residential homeowner claim from a claim involving a qualifying organization or another exemption category.
Transfers and Construction Exclusions
A reassessment exclusion addresses whether a qualifying ownership change or construction project triggers reassessment. It is a different issue from an exemption claim. The reassessment exclusion categories include certain transfers for refinancing, transfers between spouses or former spouses, transfers between registered domestic partners, and qualifying cotenancy transfers.
The office also identifies parent-child and grandparent-grandchild transfers, along with transfers between individuals and legal entities that solely change the method of holding title. These categories have qualifying conditions; a family relationship alone should not be treated as confirmation that a particular transfer is excluded.
New construction exclusion categories include certain builders’ inventory, active solar energy systems, fire safety improvements, disabled access, earthquake mitigation or seismic retrofit work, and rainwater capture systems. Contact the appropriate assessment unit about the category relevant to the project and the associated forms.
Business Equipment, Boats and Aircraft
The Business Personal Property information covers annual reporting of taxable supplies, equipment, and fixtures. Business personal property is assessed each year at its full market value as of January 1 and is not subject to Proposition 13 restrictions. Personal and real property at the same location have the same tax rate, although their assessment methods differ.
A business owner who receives a written request from the Assessor must complete, sign, and file a Business Property Statement, also called Form 571 or BPS. The statement reports the cost of supplies, equipment, and fixtures at each business location as of January 1. Anyone owning business personal property with a cost exceeding $100,000 must also file annually, even without a request.
The office identifies January 30 through June 9 as the electronic filing window through SDR. That window should not be treated as a substitute for the due date applicable to a required statement. Statements can also be returned by mail or fax. For those methods, sign the statement and return the original notice previously mailed by the office.
Contact the Personal Property Division if a Business Property Statement has not arrived between January 1 and March 1 or if you have reporting questions. Privately and commercially owned boats and aircraft are also subject to personal property taxes. Household personal effects, business inventories, and licensed vehicles paying an in-lieu property tax through registration are among the exempt categories identified by the office.
Office Visits and Telephone Assistance
The Assessor’s lobby is open Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; telephone assistance is available from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Bring the property address or APN for a parcel inquiry. Owners requesting confidential records should also bring photo identification, and agents should bring the required original authorization.
Free visitor parking is available. The designated guest parking area is east of the building, with a smaller lot in front on the north side. Parking is not available on the west or south sides. People with hearing impairments may access the California Relay Service by calling 711.
Assessor and Appeals Office Contacts
Sacramento County Assessor’s Office
3636 American River Drive, Suite 200, Sacramento, CA 95864-5952
(916) 875-0700
Property Transfer Information
(916) 875-0750
Mapping
(916) 876-6745
Business Personal Property Assessment
(916) 875-0730
Leasing and Leased Equipment
(916) 875-0745
Marine, Boats and Aircraft
(916) 875-0740
Homeowner’s Exemption
(916) 875-0710
Disabled Veterans’ Exemption / Institutional Exemptions
(916) 875-0720
Assessment Appeals Board
700 H Street, Room 2450, Sacramento, CA 95814
(916) 874-8174