How does Culver City's transfer tax work when you sell?

Crossing a transfer tax threshold when you sell in Culver City doesn’t put your entire sale price into a higher rate. The city uses marginal brackets: each rate applies only to the part of the property’s taxable value within that bracket. The county’s transfer tax comes on top.

This explains the rule and is not tax or legal advice.

What tax applies when you sell in Culver City?

Culver City’s real property transfer tax, or RPTT, is a one-time tax on property sales within the city, added to Los Angeles County’s documentary transfer tax.

It applies to residential and commercial sales. Measure RE (Ordinance No. 2020-016), approved on November 3, 2020, amended Culver City Municipal Code Section 3.08.400 and created the current four-bracket structure, effective April 1, 2021. Before that, the city charged $4.50 per $1,000 of value.

For your sale, the practical point is to include both taxes when estimating proceeds. A city tax calculation alone doesn’t give you the combined transfer tax amount.

The California documentary transfer tax guide explains the broader tax. Culver City’s brackets and its treatment of remaining liens need a closer look.

How do the marginal brackets work?

Each city rate applies only to the portion of taxable value inside its bracket.

The city’s published transfer tax page gives these brackets for property sold or conveyed on or after April 1, 2021, for more than $100:

Under Municipal Code Section 3.08.400(B), the City Manager adjusts the bracket thresholds in line with the Los Angeles area Consumer Price Index no more than once every five years, and the thresholds cannot drop below the original amounts. The rates stay the same. No adjusted thresholds were found in the city’s published materials, and the ordinance took effect April 1, 2021. Confirm the current thresholds with the city before pricing.

That marginal structure matters. A higher bracket changes the rate on the value within that bracket. It doesn’t replace the rates on the value below it. The Santa Monica transfer tax guide describes a different structure, where the bracket determines the rate applied to the whole price.

What do the city’s formulas produce?

The city’s published formulas combine the tax from lower brackets with the tax on value above the next threshold.

For value up to $1,499,999, the formula is $4.50 per $1,000. From $1,500,000 to $2,999,999, it is $6,750 plus $15 per $1,000 of value above $1,500,000.

From $3,000,000 to $9,999,999, the published formula is $29,249.99 plus $30 per $1,000 above $3,000,000. At $10,000,000 and above, it is $239,249.96 plus $40 per $1,000 above $10,000,000.

These are estimates from the city formula, before any exemption. Escrow confirms the actual figure:

At the old flat city rate, a $2,000,000 sale would have produced $9,000 in city tax. Using that old rate for a sale in a higher bracket would understate the estimate.

Keep the calculation with your other costs to sell a house in California, so the transfer tax is part of the proceeds estimate you’re reviewing.

How do remaining liens and county tax affect the calculation?

Culver City includes remaining liens or encumbrances in taxable value, while the county excludes them.

The city rounds its taxable value down to the next dollar. Its page specifically notes that including remaining liens differs from the approach in many jurisdictions. If a lien will remain on the property at the time of sale, have escrow check the value used for each calculation.

The Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk identifies Culver City as a special-rate city. The county documentary transfer tax is charged at the full $1.10 per $1,000, in addition to the city RPTT.

On a $2,000,000 sale with no lien remaining, the county tax is $2,200. That’s separate from the $14,250 city formula estimate above. County and city transfer taxes must be listed separately, so review each amount on its own.

Who pays, and when is the tax collected?

Either the seller or buyer may pay the city transfer tax, and the county recorder collects it when the property sale is recorded.

Your purchase contract allocates the cost. The city’s rule allows either party to pay; it doesn’t establish who customarily pays in Culver City.

Whatever the contract says, the city’s page states that the seller and buyer are jointly and severally liable to the city if the tax is not paid.

Before recording, confirm with escrow how the contract allocates payment and what amounts will be collected for the city and county. The city’s online calculator isn’t a final check: the city provides it as a courtesy and says it should not be relied on.

Can a transfer qualify for a reduced rate or exemption?

Certain affordable housing transfers and qualifying first transfers of newly constructed multi-family housing receive the lowest city rate on the entire value.

The affordable housing provision covers property transferred to a nonprofit or a partnership or LLC managed by a nonprofit. The property must carry a recorded covenant, enforceable by the City, keeping all residential units other than on-site manager units affordable to lower income households.

The new multi-family provision covers property containing four or more dwelling units designed for permanent residential occupancy, including accessory dwelling units. At least one unit must have been newly built within five years before the transfer, measured from its certificate of occupancy, with a net increase in units. A remodel or renovation does not count, and this must be the first transfer after that certificate of occupancy.

For the reduced rate, you can seek verification before paying by submitting an Application for Report of Building Records to the Building Safety Division. Alternatively, you can claim a refund afterward with documentation. Under the city’s rules, the full tax is due at recording unless the reduced rate is established with the city first; otherwise, you claim a refund afterward.

For exemption eligibility, email documentation to [email protected]. Whether your transfer is exempt is a question for the city, escrow, or an attorney.

How do you request a refund?

Use the Claim for Real Property Transfer Tax Refund Form to request a refund.

Email it to [email protected] or mail it to City of Culver City, Finance Department, 9770 Culver Boulevard, Culver City, CA 90232. Include documentation of eligibility for the reduced rate.

The city says refunds are issued within 45 days of the request, after it verifies payment using the county’s monthly report. You can contact the Finance Department at (310) 253-5865.

The short version

Estimate Culver City’s tax by marginal bracket, add the separate county tax, and have escrow confirm the actual amounts.

Check the current thresholds with the city before pricing. Review any remaining liens, the contract’s payment allocation, and any reduced-rate or exemption eligibility before treating an estimate as your final cost.

For a starting point on value, use the home value tool.