How to Quick Search for Mello-Roos in Elk Grove

Many homes in Elk Grove are assessed with a special tax called Mello-Roos.

Us old-timers in Sacramento real estate realize that Mello-Roos was not invented by Donovan, your Mellow Yellow dude, because we were still working in real estate in 1982 when Mello-Roos legislation became law. It’s the weirdest name ever for a special assessment property tax imposed on homes, generally newer homes, located in a Community Facilities District (CFD). The tax goes to pay off municipal bonds that support schools and public services. Mello-Roos was co-authored by two politicians: former D-Senator Henry J. Mello, who served Monterey, Santa Cruz and San Benito counties for 22 years and died in 2004, and former D-Assemblyman Mike Roos from Los Angeles, who served from 1977 to 1991.

Mello-Roos should not be confused with Proposition 13. I owned three real estate offices as a broker in Newport Beach (Orange County) when Proposition 13 passed as an amendment to the California constitution. Although the effects of Proposition 13 felt today, some 38 years later, are hurting tax revenues and hobbling local governments, when we voted for Proposition 13 in 1978, it was very popular. Democrats and Republicans (mostly homeowners) alike supported limiting property taxes to 1% of the resale value and rolling back property values to 1975. Just thank goodness it wasn’t named after its major Republican supporters, Howard Jarvis and Paul Gann. Instead, we see the Jarvis name in the cellphone game Ingress, which calls it’s enlightened virus weapon Jarvis.

Below are quick search links to find the tax rate of Mello-Roos in Elk Grove, which would be the Sacramento County link. Below that are other links to find tax rates of neighboring counties to Sacramento.

Mello-Roos Searches

Here is a link to quick search Mello-Roos in Sacramento County

Here is a link to quick search Mello-Roos in El Dorado County

Here is a link to quick search Mello-Roos in Placer County

Here is a link to quick search Mello-Roos in Yolo County

Let’s say for instance, that when you find the Mello-Roos in Elk Grove for a specific property, you would like to see the breakdown of that direct levy tax. Once you enter the APN number (don’t worry, you can also use the property address if you don’t have the APN), the website will bring you to a page that shows both the total assessed property tax and the direct levy or Mello-Roos. Click on the direct levy (which is included in your total property tax bill) for the specifics. Below is an example.

I used the address of a property in Elk Grove located north of Whitelock and east of Franklin High because I met with a seller there yesterday to talk about listing his home in Elk Grove. He said his wife did not want to pay Mello-Roos in Elk Grove, she was deadset against it when they bought that house, and it wasn’t until after escrow closed that he discovered the home did indeed have a Mello-Roos assessment. Too bad his agent didn’t tell him. The Mello-Roos for that home includes two assessments of $180 for the Elk Grove Unified School District CFD 1, and $840 for East Franklin CFD No. 2002-01. The total Mello-Roos in Elk Grove for this four-bedroom home built in 2003 is $1,020 per year, which means the homeowner is paying an additional $85.00 a month.

Three Odd Facts About Mello-Roos in Elk Grove

• People, like the above seller’s wife, often complain about Mello-Roos but Elk Grove schools, which benefit from this levy, are highly  rated. You could buy in a less expensive neighborhood elsewhere but you might not like the neighborhood as well or the schools, so it’s a trade-off. And eventually Mello-Roos goes away when the bond is paid off. The term is around 20 to 30 years.
• Developers and builders do not have to pass on Mello-Roos to the buyer, they have the option to pay the bond in full directly, but consumers still pay for it, regardless. A home without Mello-Roos often sells for more money to make up for the difference the builder had to pay upfront. It’s a wash.
• If you do not pay your property taxes, you can get away with non-payment for 5 years before the property will be auctioned off. Not so if you do not pay your Mello-Roos. There is a provision in the legislative act that allows a foreclosure for that portion of property taxes within 150 to 180 days.

If you’re looking for an Elk Grove Realtor, please call top producer Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Driven every kind of rig that’s ever been made. That’s just a song going through my head right now.