Richmond, CA Property Tax: The Rate, the Assessor, and a Real Dollar Example

Proposition 13, in Plain Terms

California's Proposition 13, passed by voters in 1978, governs every property tax bill in the state, Richmond included. A property's assessed value is generally locked in at its purchase price when it changes hands (or at the value of new construction when completed), and that assessed value can then climb by no more than 2% per year regardless of how fast the property's actual market value rises -- until the next sale resets it. In a city with a documented, sourced price gap between Point Richmond and the rest of Richmond, that mechanic matters in a specific way: a longtime Point Richmond owner who bought decades ago, before the neighborhood's historic-district identity commanded today's premium, can carry an assessed value a small fraction of what a 2026 buyer would pay at the current $877,000-plus median.

The base rate is capped at 1% of assessed value at the state constitutional level. Actual bills run above a flat 1% almost everywhere in California because voter-approved local add-ons -- city and county bond measures, West Contra Costa Unified School District bonds and parcel taxes, and in some areas, Mello-Roos Community Facilities District assessments -- layer on top. Which specific add-ons apply to a given Richmond parcel depends on its exact tax rate area within Contra Costa County; the county maintains many distinct tax rate areas, each carrying its own stack of overlapping taxing districts.

A Real, Sourced Rate for Richmond -- and Two Numbers That Disagree

This page states real numbers rather than hiding behind a refusal to give one, and it states both when sources disagree rather than picking the more flattering figure. General Contra Costa County property-tax guides describe a practical effective rate -- base plus typical voter-approved add-ons -- running roughly 1.0% to 1.3% of assessed value countywide. Separately, Ownwell, a property-tax-appeal firm that publishes ZIP-code-level effective-rate data, cites a materially higher median effective rate for specific Richmond ZIP codes: 1.87% for 94801 and 1.74% for 94805. This page did not reconcile that gap to a single number; it may reflect ZIP-level differences in overlapping school and special-district bonds layered on top of the county's general range rather than a methodology error, and a buyer should treat both figures as directional rather than a confirmed rate for any one specific parcel.

Put the more conservative end in real dollars against Richmond's own two-tier market: at a 1.1% effective rate, a Point Richmond home purchased at the mid-2026 Redfin median of roughly $877,000 would carry a first-year property tax bill near $9,650. At the higher, Ownwell-cited 1.87% ZIP-level rate, that same purchase works out to roughly $16,400 per year. On a citywide-median Richmond purchase closer to $650,000, the same two rates produce roughly $7,150 to $12,150 per year. These are illustrative, rate-times-price calculations for planning purposes only -- not a substitute for the Contra Costa County Assessor's own parcel-specific figure, which is the only number that should be used to actually budget a specific purchase.

Why the Seller's Current Tax Bill Is the Wrong Number to Budget From

Because Prop 13 resets assessed value to the purchase price at every change of ownership, a seller's current property tax bill reflects whatever they paid -- possibly decades ago, possibly capped at 2% annual growth ever since. This distortion runs especially deep in Point Richmond specifically, where the historic district's 340 contributing buildings, most built between 1900 and 1920, include homes that have changed hands only a handful of times across a century -- a listing showing a seller's tax bill based on a purchase from the 1980s or 1990s tells a 2026 buyer almost nothing about their own future bill. Budget from the actual purchase price times a realistic current effective rate (roughly 1.0% to 1.87%, per the sourced range above, depending on ZIP), not from whatever figure appears in the listing disclosures.

Portability and Exemptions

California's homeowner exemptions and transfer rules apply here the same way they do statewide. A modest homeowner's exemption reduces assessed value for an owner-occupied primary residence, though it's a relatively small dollar benefit against Point Richmond's price levels specifically. Proposition 19 (approved 2020, effective in phases from 2021) lets eligible homeowners age 55+, severely disabled homeowners, and wildfire or disaster victims transfer their existing, lower assessed value to a replacement home anywhere in California -- generally up to three times for age- or disability-based moves -- which can matter for a longtime California homeowner relocating into Richmond and trying to avoid a full reassessment at current prices. Prop 19 also narrowed the prior parent-child transfer exclusion, generally now requiring the child to use an inherited home as their own primary residence to keep the parent's lower assessed value. This page does not restate every Prop 19 eligibility rule here; the Contra Costa County Assessor's Office maintains current guidance and forms.

Where the Add-Ons Come From: WCCUSD Bonds and Special Districts

The gap between the general Contra Costa County effective-rate range and the higher ZIP-specific figures Ownwell cites for Richmond likely traces to the layered local bond and parcel-tax measures that apply in the West Contra Costa Unified School District's boundaries -- a district that covers Richmond, El Cerrito, San Pablo, Pinole, and Hercules, and that has issued its own facilities bonds over the years, on top of Contra Costa County's general obligation bonds and any applicable special districts. Which specific bonds and parcel taxes apply to a given address depends on its exact tax rate area, and this page did not compile a full, current list of active WCCUSD and county bond measures affecting Richmond parcels specifically.

A buyer evaluating a specific Richmond or Point Richmond property should pull that property's actual current tax bill or use the Contra Costa County Assessor's parcel-lookup tool to see the full, itemized breakdown of base rate plus every specific add-on affecting that exact parcel, rather than relying on any general range -- including the ranges cited on this page -- to predict an exact bill.