Property taxes on a manufactured home in California: HCD vs local assessment

A manufactured home in California is taxed one of two ways: either an annual HCD in-lieu vehicle license fee, or local property tax assessed by your county under Proposition 13. Which system applies depends largely on when the home was first sold new, and homes sold new on or after July 1, 1980 are automatically on local property tax. Most new homes our Central Valley buyers purchase fall under local property tax, so knowing your system tells you who to pay and how your bill can change.

The HCD in-lieu vehicle license fee

Older homes first sold new before July 1, 1980 can remain on the in-lieu vehicle license fee unless they were converted. This fee is based on the home's depreciated value, and HCD sends an annual registration renewal you pay directly to the state. It is administered like vehicle registration rather than real estate tax.

Local property tax under Prop 13

Under local assessment, the county assessor sets a base year value, generally the market value at purchase. After that, annual increases to the base value are capped at the lesser of the California CPI inflation rate or 2 percent. Your bill comes from the county, the same as a site-built home.

What this means for a new-home buyer

If you are buying a new manufactured home today, plan for local property tax. Placing the home on a permanent foundation and recording the 433A also ties it to the land as real property, which is consistent with local assessment and with most real-property mortgages. Because tax treatment carries real dollars, confirm specifics with your county assessor or the State Board of Equalization, and we are happy to point Fresno-area buyers to the right office for their parcel.