9.5% Increase in Property Values in 16 Cities Reported : Real estate: Figure is considered quite high for period marked by severe downturn in economy. Gardena official calls increase “staggering.”
It may not have been a good year for selling houses in Los Angeles County, but it appears to be a bit early to start shedding tears for property owners in the South Bay.
Property values in 16 South Bay cities rose 9.5% overall from $47.4 billion last year to $51.7 billion this year, according to figures released recently by Los Angeles County Assessor Kenneth P. Hahn.
The increase in property values was just under the average 9.7% increase in parcel values countywide for fiscal 1991. And while the jump in value was less than recorded in the last few years, the figure is considered quite high for a period marked by a severe downturn in the economy.
“Even though we were in the middle of a recession, we were still able to produce a fairly good rate of growth,” said Gilbert Parisi, special assistant to the assessor. “There was still a lot of activity throughout the county.”
Property values have increased countywide between 7% and 12% in recent years, according to analysts. Thus, the percentages reported by the assessor indicate healthy growth.
The value of all taxable property in the county--buildings, land, boats, planes and office and manufacturing equipment--grew to $453 billion, a $40-billion increase from last year, according to the figures.
Indeed, some city officials could barely contain themselves when informed that property values in their cities outpaced neighboring municipalities. Three South Bay cities--Avalon, Gardena and Rolling Hills--recorded more than a 13% increase in property values, with Avalon topping the list at 19.12%.
“I knew we were prospering, but the jump is staggering when you consider the recessionary times,” Gardena City Manager Kenneth Landau said of his city’s 15.72% property value increase. “This is good news, very good news. It means we’re doing the right thing.”
Landau said the jump could be attributed to the recent opening of the Haagen Development and another commercial shopping center, which were built at a cost of more than $20 million each. The city has also experienced a boom in apartment construction. Overall, Gardena’s property tax assessments increased from $2 billion to $2.34 billion.
Avalon’s property value increase, one of the highest recorded in the county, could be linked directly to the success of the Hamilton Cove condominium and townhouse development. A majority of the 150 units that have been sold since Hamilton Cove opened several years ago just went on the county tax rolls for the first time, said Norman Stow, the project’s director of administration and sales.
“It is good news, especially if people on the (tax) rolls pay their bills,” said Kevin Plett, finance director for the city of Avalon. “We’re optimistic that the trend will continue.”
And while sluggish home sales throughout the county have been blamed on the recession, Parisi attributed the property value increase in Rolling Hills to “an active market” among luxury homes on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Parisi said that since many of the homes cost well in excess of $1 million, even moderate home sales would result in higher property values. The city’s property tax assessments increased from $423 million to $480 million.
Nearly all the cities in the South Bay recorded property value increases between 7.5% and 9.5%, Parisi said. The only city that fell far below the county average was El Segundo, which recorded only a 4.7% increase.
City officials blamed the figure on the fact that property turnover in El Segundo is historically low. The Chevron oil refinery takes up about one-quarter of all the land in the city, according to Ron Cano, city manager.
“Not a lot of our property changes hands so it’s not subject to reassessment,” Cano said. “And when you consider that only about 25% of the city is residential and homes sales have been down, the figure is not surprising. Because of our situation, property values are just not going to fluctuate very much.”
South Bay Property Values
Here is a look at the assessment roll for taxable pr o perty in South Bay cities at the end of fiscal 1991. Countywide , the tally came to $452.8 billion, an increase of $40 billion, or 9.7%, over fiscal 1990.
Total No. of City 1990 1991 % Change Parcels Avalon 245,279,115 292,176,206 19.12 1,636 Carson 6,048,141,157 6,527,465,507 7.93 22,859 El Segundo 5,345,140,479 5,594,699,805 4.67 4,741 Gardena 2,023,764,782 2,341,898,804 15.72 12,802 Hawthorne 3,004,197,867 3,165,536,297 5.35 11,503 Hermosa Beach 1,387,886,176 1,513,910,257 9.08 6,527 Inglewood 3,001,511,892 3,287,289,343 9.52 20,206 Lawndale 905,708,736 984,099,670 8.66 5,562 Lomita 761,398,455 825,438,743 8.41 5,105 Manhattan Bch. 3,518,988,675 3,796,699,418 7.89 12,560 P.V. Estates 1,785,478,134 1,948,644,030 9.14 5,231 Rancho P.V. 3,582,330,168 3,875,510,366 8.18 15,413 Redondo Beach 4,629,169,429 4,980,421,998 7.59 19,143 Rolling Hills 423,025,853 479,662,615 13.39 758 R.H. Estates 965,141,605 1,044,243,166 8.20 3,183 Torrance 10,144,038,069 11,077,048,082 9.20 37,701
SOURCE: Los Angeles County Assessor Kenneth P. Hahn.
