Many Coronado homes have been in the same family for a long time, and the tax value on them can be a small fraction of the market value. Whether that value carries over when the home changes hands within the family is decided by Proposition 19. This page explains the rule and works through an example.
Property Tax Explained
Prop 19: Inheriting or Gifting a Coronado Home
How Proposition 19 treats a Coronado home that passes from a parent to a child, with a worked example, the requirements, and the questions to take to a professional.
The rule in plain English
Before 2021, a parent could pass a home and up to $1 million of other property to a child without a reassessment. Proposition 19, which took effect on February 16, 2021 for these transfers, narrowed the exclusion. Now:
- The exclusion applies to a family home, meaning the parent’s principal residence, and to a family farm. Other real property, including a second home or a rental, is generally reassessed at market value.
- The child must make the home their principal residence and apply for the homeowners’ exemption within one year of the transfer to keep the benefit.
- The parent’s factored base year value carries over only up to a limit: if the home’s market value exceeds that base value plus an inflation-adjusted amount, the excess is added to the assessed value. For transfers from February 16, 2025 through February 15, 2027 the adjusted amount is $1,044,586.
- The exclusion must be claimed with the county assessor. San Diego County, and every California county, publishes the forms.
Worked example
A worked example at today’s Coronado values
How the new assessed value could compare with a full reassessment, using a hypothetical parent’s value.
A parent-to-child transfer of a family home
Assumes the family home is worth $2,563,759 (the typical home value in ZIP 92118, Aug 2026), the parent’s factored base year value is $640,000 (hypothetical), the child makes it their primary residence within a year, and the reassessment exclusion amount of $1,044,586 that applies to transfers from February 16, 2025 through February 15, 2027. Taxed at 1.15%. An illustration, not tax advice.
| Case | New assessed value | Estimated annual tax |
|---|---|---|
| Reassessed at market value (no exclusion) | $2,563,759 | $29,483 |
| Parent’s value kept | $640,000 | $7,360 |
| Prop 19 result: market value minus the exclusion amount, but not less than the parent’s value | $1,519,173 | $17,470 |
Under Proposition 19, when a qualifying family home passes from a parent to a child who makes it their principal residence, the parent’s factored base year value carries over, but any market value above that base plus the exclusion amount is added to it. In this example the new assessed value is $1,519,173 rather than $2,563,759, a difference of about $12,013 a year in tax. The exclusion amount is adjusted for house-price changes, the child must claim the exclusion with the assessor, and other real property is generally reassessed in full, so confirm the details with the county assessor and an estate-planning attorney or tax professional.
Cases where the answer differs
- The child does not move in. If the home does not become the child’s principal residence, the exclusion is not available and the home is reassessed at market value.
- Grandparent to grandchild. Transfers from grandparents to grandchildren qualify only when the grandchild’s parents (the grandparent’s children) are deceased.
- A second home or investment property. These are generally reassessed in full.
- Sale by the heir. If the heir sells instead of keeping the home, the buyer’s purchase is a normal reassessment at the price paid.
Rules can be technical, and details change. An estate-planning attorney or tax professional can apply them to your situation, and the county assessor can confirm forms and deadlines.
Keep it or sell it: the numbers to gather
Families deciding what to do with a Coronado home usually need three numbers: the current annual tax and the parent’s factored base year value (from the tax bill and the assessor), the home’s current market value (a personal market report from Rudy can help), and the cost of carrying the home, including insurance, upkeep and any HOA dues. With those on paper, the choice between keeping and selling becomes a comparison instead of a guess.
If a sale is likely, the seller net proceeds estimator gives a first look at the numbers, and the buyer’s first-year bill can be estimated with the property tax estimator.
Common questions
Does Proposition 19 apply to a transfer to a spouse?
Transfers between spouses are generally excluded from reassessment under a separate provision. Ask the assessor or an attorney about your case.
Is the $1,044,586 figure permanent?
No. It is adjusted for changes in house prices, and the assessor publishes each new amount.
What is a factored base year value?
It is the assessed value after the yearly increases allowed under Proposition 13 have been applied.
Where do I file?
With the County Assessor. The San Diego County Assessor’s parent-child exclusion page has the form and instructions.
Keep exploring
- How buying works on Coronado — Offers, escrow and closing.
- Seller net proceeds estimator — What a sale could put in your pocket.
- Property tax estimator — A buyer’s first-year bill.
- Pricing a Coronado home — How asking prices are set.
Talk to a lender. Rates, loan programs and approvals come from lenders, not from websites or real estate agents. Talk to your own mortgage broker, or use our preferred lender, Rodrigo Ballon with CrossCountry Mortgage, at 858-735-0255. You are always free to choose any lender you like, and you can verify any lender’s license at nmlsconsumeraccess.org.
Sources
- California State Board of Equalization: Proposition 19
- San Diego County Assessor: parent-child exclusion
- San Diego County Assessor: real property assessment
General information for orientation, not legal, tax, financial or appraisal advice. Details change; confirm anything that matters with the official source, your lender and your agent.