Property values rising; Stanislaus County leads the state

Stanislaus County property values had the highest year-over-year increase in California, rising 11.4percent to $39.7billion for the 2014-15 tax year.

Merced County’s 9.3percent increase to $19.4billion ranked second, and San Joaquin County’s 8.8percent increase to $61billion was the fourth highest percentage gain among California’s 58 counties.

Assessed property values statewide rose 6.1percent to $4.9trillion, according to data released Tuesday by the state Board of Equalization.

“Higher property values are an encouraging sign that California’s economic recovery is finally gaining traction throughout our state,” Board of Equalization member George Runner said. “This is good news, especially for homeowners still underwater and workers who still need jobs.”

Increasing values also mean increasing property taxes. Homeowners were mailed their tax bills this month, and the first payment on those bills is due Dec.10.

There’s no secret about why Northern San Joaquin Valley property values rose so much compared with other parts of the state: It’s because they plummeted so far when the housing market crashed.

Despite this year’s big gains, the region’s property values lag behind what they were before the Great Recession and the foreclosure crisis.

Stanislaus property values reached nearly $43billion during the 2007-08 tax year. Values then plunged for five straight years, dropping to $33.5billion by 2012-13. They edged up a bit last year, and then made the big leap this tax year.

But Stanislaus values still are $3.3billion less than what they had been before the crash.

Of California’s 58 counties, 55 posted year-over-year increases in assessed values this year. Some of those gains, however, were fairly small.

Tuolumne County’s property values rose just 2.7percent to $6.3billion; Calaveras County increased 6.1percent to $6billion; and Mariposa County edged up only 0.7percent to $2.1billion.

This story was originally published October 21, 2014 at 1:57 PM with the headline "Property values rising; Stanislaus County leads the state."