Los Angeles is about a year and a half old the so-called “property tax” levy fees on sales of high-end properties to raise money for affordable housing and homelessness initiatives.
Measure ULA charges a 4% fee on all property sales over $5.1 million and a 5.5% fee on all sales over $10.3 million. Now, with a new dashboard, Angelenos can see exactly where and how that money is being collected.
Named ULA Revenue Dashboard, The interactive data center was released by the Ministry of Housing at the end of August. It breaks down the numbers based on the types of properties sold and location.
So far, 670 sales have been subject to the tax, raising just over $439 million as of October 31.
That’s a significant sum, but still well below initial projections, which promised between $600 million and $1.1 billion per year. But monthly data shows the real estate tax market is heating up.
August was Measure ULA’s biggest month so far, raising $39.6 million. October was the second largest month, raising $35.9 million.
The data also shows that the majority of properties subject to property tax are indeed homes. Of the 670 total sales, 388 were single-family homes, accounting for about 58 percent of the total and raising $178.3 million.
Commercial properties — office buildings, retail buildings, warehouses, etc. — accounted for 135 sales, or 20% of the total, and brought in $117.4 million.
Multi-family residential properties make up the third largest share, with 72 sales accounting for 11%, followed by unlisted properties at 8%, vacant properties at 3% and mixed-use properties at 0.3%.
Westside neighborhoods accounted for nearly half of all “mansion tax” sales. Unsurprisingly, the 5th City Council District – which includes neighborhoods such as Bel-Air and Beverly Crest – raised the most, $83.3 million from 138 sales.
District 11 – which includes Brentwood, Pacific Palisades and Marina del Rey – came in second with $73.9 million from 174 sales.
District 4 – home to the Hollywood Hills as well as San Fernando Valley neighborhoods such as Encino and Sherman Oaks – raised the third largest amount with $59.4 million from 127 sales.
“We believe in transparency and accountability, and it’s important that people know how ULA shows up and operates,” said Greg Good, director of strategic engagement and policy for the Department of Housing.
Good said the order, which took effect in April 2023, includes rigorous provisions for data collection, and the Department of Housing has strengthened its data team to ensure funding transparency.
“The reality is it’s a lot of money. People made the choice to approve this measure, so it is important to highlight the impacts,” said Good. “This way we see how things work and evolve the program to ensure we meet ULA’s goals.”
This is the second dashboard launched by the Department of Housing linked to Measure ULA. Earlier this year, the department published data on ULA’s Emergency Tenant Assistance program, which directs money to low-income renters at risk of homelessness.
According to this dashboard, the program received 31,380 applications and paid a total of $30.4 million to 4,302 households.
