Homeowners to Save an Average of $300 on Taxes : Economy: Decreasing values of single-family houses will reduce revenues. But county real estate worth rose 4.34% overall.

Thousands of Ventura County homeowners will see an average $300 savings on their property tax bills to be mailed today, as the second year of recession continues the downward spiral of property values, the county assessor reported Tuesday.

While the overall assessed value of commercial and residential real estate in Ventura County rose 4.34% this year, the assessed value of the average Ventura County home continued its drop from $252,000 in 1990 to $220,000 this year, Assessor Jerry Sanford said.

The tax roll increased from nearly $40 billion to $41.7 billion, the smallest rise since the 1983-84 recession, Sanford said. The slight increase follows last year’s 5.4% increase and 1990’s dramatic 13.5% rise.

“It’s bleak,” Sanders said. “It’s very representative of the stagnant real estate market we are in.”

Sanders attributed this year’s slight growth to new construction and the resale of homes and business properties that had assessed values limited by Proposition 13. Under Proposition 13, property assessments can only increase 2% a year, often lagging behind increases in market value. When properties change ownership, the county reassesses the property at market value or sales price.

The county assessor’s office plans to mail notices today informing more than 31,000 homeowners of the property tax reduction. Last year, 26,000 homeowners were sent similar notices.

Lower property values mean less tax revenue for county, city and school services, Sanders said, but he added that this year’s below-average overall increase of 4.34% was expected.

“It’s an anticipated hit,” he said. “We’ve adjusted for it.”

The county had expected a 4.5% increase in property values, said Bert Bigler, county budget manager. The actual figure “means just a little less revenue” for the county’s already tight budget of $436 million, he said.

In better economic times, high property values often exceed county budget projections. The county had expected a 9.5% increase for the 1990-91 tax year, but was pleasantly surprised when the assessor’s office reported a 13.5% jump, resulting in an extra $13 million in tax revenue.

This year’s report reflects a continuing decline in property values in the newer high-priced neighborhoods of Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks and Moorpark, Sanders said. He added that he does not expect property values to rebound for at least two years.

The tax roll shows that slightly more than 12,000 single-family houses transferred ownership or were refinanced this year, contrasted with 22,405 in 1989-90. Unlike previous years, more than 4,000 homeowners took advantage of particularly low interest rates to refinance their property, a move that does not trigger a reassessment of property values or taxes. Sanders called this year’s refinancing numbers “unusually high.”

The forthcoming reduction in property taxes is a mixed blessing, said Anne Geib, past president of the Camarillo Board of Realtors and an agent at Mason-Churchill Realty in Camarillo.

Paying lower taxes is “a great thing for property owners,” she said. But for sellers, “it’s very difficult for them to lower the value of their homes.”

Sales of single-family houses in Ventura have dropped 22.6% in the past year, according to the California Assn. of Realtors.

“We have plenty of willing sellers,” Geib said. “A person should be able to make a pretty good buy.”