Home prices may be inching upward, but San Diego County is still anticipating a multi-million dollar drop in property tax revenues next fiscal year.
If you think of the economy as a dog, says San Diego County Tax Collector Dan McAllister, property tax revenues are like the tail. They’re always trailing behind. So even though the housing market is showing signs of turning around, McAllister is still anticipating a $50 million decline in revenues when the fiscal year ends next summer.
“There was an impact from the valuation of homes in San Diego County going down, which is now starting to be felt when it comes to tax collection,” he says.
McAllister says he’s expecting one more year of declines before tax revenues start to increase again. The county is projecting revenues of about $4.4 billion this year. More than 40 percent of that is slated to go toward county schools.