Property Tax Rules for Domestic Partners

Re “Though They Can’t Wed, Gays May Now Divorce,” Jan. 1: The article said it is unclear “whether a couple’s home can be reassessed when a partner dies or the union is dissolved.” I would like to inform you that the State Board of Equalization adopted two property tax rules in 2003 allowing registered domestic partners to avoid property tax reassessment in certain circumstances. These rules broaden the exclusion from reassessment for transfers between domestic partners who are registered with the secretary of state.

The first rule prevents reassessment when a surviving domestic partner inherits property from a partner who dies. The second applies to joint tenancies and allows co-owners to transfer property to themselves as joint tenants without adding new owners, and allows joint tenants to transfer their property interests to a trust for the benefit of each other so that future reassessment is delayed.

John Chiang

Chair, State Board of Equalization, Los Angeles