Property Taxes and Your Mortgage

/ Jennifer Larson
This is an overview of local property tax rates of popular cities in the CV.

Here is a breakdown of the most popular cities in the Coachella Valley and their respective property tax rates.

As you can see La Quinta and Indian Wells are the lowest of the desert’s primary cities of residence of their 2021 bill.

Below I will share screenshots of actual homes from the area to show exact tax rates and their breakdowns of how they are allocated to city services. You will notice the city of Indian Wells not only has the smallest tax rate but also the shortest list of allocation because it doesn’t allocate to any vector control, sewer services, parks and recreation divisions, or even emergency services as individual recipients. The city uses its general fund primarily.

Actual screenshot of a property’s tax bill as of 9/14/2022 in Palm Desert.
Actual property in Rancho Mirage for 2021 as of 9/14/2022.
Full breakdown of a 2021 property tax bill for Indian Wells as of September 14, 2022. Notice it is significantly shorter and more basic than the rest of the valley.
Actual tax bill of a property in La Quinta of the previous tax year as of September 14, 2022.
Actual property tax bill of a recent sale in Cathedral City as of September 14, 2022.
Actual property taxes of a home in Indio as of 9/14/2022.
Actual property tax bill of a home currently listed on MLS in Palm Springs as of 9/14/2022.

As you can see, property taxes throughout the valley vary and the rates will impact your mortgage payment as well as price at sale and slightly rise a little each year. So how do you calculate your annual and monthly taxes? Look below!

Remember that taxes go up maximum 2% every year, on average about 1%, based on the property’s last assessment (usually last price it sold at) until it is sold again and the new tax rate becomes based off the new sales price. Calculate your local tax rate off the purchase price of a home you are intending to buy. To look up local tax rates in your local area, visit the County Assessor’s site. For Riverside County here in SoCal:

Visit this website and insert the address you are researching.