Prop 19 or capital gains: which matters more when selling a long-held home?

Two separate taxes

Prop 19 is about property tax. It lets you carry your current taxable value to the new home, and the tax you pay on it each year is based on that value.

The capital gains question is about income tax on your gain from the sale. The federal home-sale exclusion is $250,000 if you file single, or $500,000 if you’re married filing jointly.

What the calculator shows

For Prop 19, the calculator shows the yearly property tax on the new home with and without the transfer. It uses the tax rate each county publishes for the area you choose.

For capital gains, it estimates your gain and flags it if it’s over the exclusion. It never estimates the tax itself. The example below shows a gain that goes over.

Which weighs more for you

That depends on your figures. The property tax difference repeats every year you own the new home, while the capital gains question is about the sale itself. If your gain may be over the exclusion, talk to a CPA before you sell.

The City of Los Angeles transfer tax

There may be one more tax on a large sale. If the home you sell is in the City of Los Angeles, the city’s ULA transfer tax is 4% of the price on a sale over $5.4 million, or 5.5% from $10.9 million. The calculator’s estimate of your proceeds doesn’t include it.