Adding a new bathroom and property tax reassement
We live in a small house in Albany with one bathroom. We need to add one bathroom eventually, and we have a small dead space in or house in which we can put the new bathroom. I want to check if anyone just added a new bathroom recently. Cost, GC, etc. We are fine with adding one with shower. Also, want to check how that impact property tax re-assement. It's my main concern, because I feel our property tax is already high, and our base number (with minimum yearly increase) is using our house price from 2018. TIA.
Aug 29, 2021
Parent Replies
No direct recommendations to meet your need. But would invite you to advocate with Nancy Skinner and local officials to upzone the Bay Area/legalize housing construction. Increased ==> Increased # taxable parcels ==> decreased per-parcel tax revenue needed
Your property taxes will most definitely increase, if you do the job with permits - any time a permit is pulled, that information goes to the County, and your home value is re-assessed. Depending on the scope of the job (and your comfort level), you could possibly have the job done without permits. Some contractors will refuse to do the work without permits though. Doing construction with permits means your property taxes will go up.
When you add on to a house, only the new added space is reassessed at market rate, the rest of the house remains at the current tax rate. I'm not sure if the same is true when you add a bathroom to an existing space. But even if you were reassessed on a new bathroom it most likely would not dramatically impact your total property tax bill. But you can always call the Assessor's office and ask.
We live in Oakland. Our house was assed originally at about $500K. We converted a kind of basement crawlspace area to a bedroom and a new bathroom, all permitted. The new assessment put the house at about $600K. Over the years it has crept up to about $680k and our property tax is based on this. We also made other improvements without permits - updated the kitchen and other bathroom, painted the exterior, and eventually converted the garage to a playroom. We have had it appraised a couple of times for refis and so on, and it is now valued at $1.45M. Local realtors have said it may sell for $1.6M. I think the "market value" for your house (which is just a guess until it actually sells) has nothing to do with what the assessment or what the city believes it's worth. I think there must be laws governing how much the tax can be increased before you sell the house. At the point of sale, of course the new tax is based on sale price. I know people who did masses of improvements, all permitted, and the city still values the house at much less. I agree with the person who suggested you call the Assessors office. They can answer a general question and you won't be putting yourself at risk.