Property tax discussions usually focus on how the bill goes up. There are also rules for when it can come down. If an EastLake home’s market value falls below its assessed value, or if a new value looks wrong, you have options, and one of them is free.
Property Tax Explained
Prop 8 Reviews and Property Tax Appeals in EastLake
When an EastLake home’s assessed value can go down: Proposition 8 reviews, how to ask for one, how appeals work, and what to gather before you file.
Proposition 8: a temporary reduction
Voters approved Proposition 8 in November 1978, alongside Proposition 13. It provides for a temporary reduction in assessed value when a home’s market value on the lien date, January 1, is lower than its assessed value. Once reduced, the value is reviewed every year and adjusted up or down with the market, and it can never rise above the Proposition 13 value, which is the original base value plus up to 2% a year.
Homeowners can ask for a review at no cost directly from the county assessor, using its Review of Assessment form, which the San Diego County Assessor makes available online and at its offices during a filing window each year. Check the assessor’s site for the current dates.
The data
Where EastLake values sit today
Typical values in ZIP 91913 now and at earlier points, since a review turns on a home’s market value on January 1.
Today against the last five years
Zillow typical value for ZIP 91913. A temporary reduction under Prop 8 depends on a home’s own market value on January 1, not on an area average.
| When | Typical value | Compared with now |
|---|---|---|
| Latest (Aug 2026) | $901,942 | — |
| A year ago | $898,778 | −0.4% vs now |
| Two years ago | $912,934 | +1.2% vs now |
| Highest in the last five years (Feb 2025) | $919,121 | +1.9% vs now |
The typical value today is about 1.9% below its highest point of the last five years ($919,121 in Feb 2025). An owner who bought near that point and whose own home’s market value on January 1 was below its assessed value could ask the assessor to review it.
Who might benefit
- Recent buyers whose purchase price was above what similar homes sell for now.
- Owners whose home has lost value because of condition, damage or a change nearby, not only because of the market.
- Owners of homes that were reassessed after a sale who believe the new value is too high.
The test is the market value of your own home on January 1, not the average for the ZIP code. Comparable recent sales are the usual evidence.
Appeals: disagreeing with a value
An assessment appeal is a formal request, filed with the county’s Clerk of the Board, to review a value you believe is wrong. Two timing rules stand out. A supplemental assessment, issued after a purchase or new construction, can be appealed within 60 days of the mailing date of the supplemental bill. Regular assessments have a filing period each year, which the county publishes on its assessment appeals page.
- What to gather: the notice of value, your purchase documents, an appraisal if you have one, and comparable sales close to January 1.
- What an appeal covers: the assessed value. Special taxes, such as Mello-Roos, are set by the district and are not part of the assessed value, so an assessment appeal does not change them.
- Getting help: Rudy can prepare a personal market report with recent comparable sales; the assessor or a property tax professional can advise on the process.
Worked example
What a reduction could be worth, in principle
The bill at today’s typical value and how a lower assessed value would change it, ten years out.
The base tax, ten years out
Illustration: buy at $901,942 (the typical home value in ZIP 91913, Aug 2026). Tax is figured at 1.15% of value. Column two follows the 2% ceiling on yearly increases; column four follows a market that grows 3% a year. These are not forecasts.
| Point in time | Assessed value | Property tax | Market value (3% growth) | Tax if bought then | Difference in value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | $901,942 | $10,372 | $901,942 | $10,372 | $0 |
| Year 2 | $919,980 | $10,580 | $929,000 | $10,683 | $9,019 |
| Year 3 | $938,380 | $10,791 | $956,870 | $11,004 | $18,490 |
| Year 5 | $976,291 | $11,227 | $1,015,143 | $11,674 | $38,853 |
| Year 10 | $1,077,904 | $12,396 | $1,176,829 | $13,534 | $98,926 |
Expect about $10,372 in the first year ($864 monthly) on $901,942. By year 10 the capped bill would be about $12,396, against about $13,534 for a new buyer at the then market value. Mello-Roos, exemptions and temporary reductions would change these figures.
Common questions
Does it cost anything to ask for a Prop 8 review?
No. The assessor’s review is free.
Will a reduction last?
It is temporary. The assessor reviews it annually and the value follows the market up or down, never above the Proposition 13 value.
Does the assessor act without being asked?
The San Diego County Assessor has proactively applied Proposition 8 reductions to many homeowners when the market fell, and owners can also ask.
What about a Mello-Roos tax?
It is not part of the assessed value, so a value review does not reduce it.
Keep exploring
- EastLake villages compared — A timeline, a table and a buyer’s checklist.
- Property tax estimator — Try your own numbers.
- Weekly market reports — Price tiers and the gauge.
- Blog — Buying, selling and rates.
Talk to a lender. Rates, loan programs and approvals come from lenders, not from websites or real estate agents. Talk to your own mortgage broker, or use our preferred lender, Rodrigo Ballon with CrossCountry Mortgage, at 858-735-0255. You are always free to choose any lender you like, and you can verify any lender’s license at nmlsconsumeraccess.org.
Sources
- San Diego County Assessor: real property assessment
- San Diego County: assessment appeals
- Public Policy Institute of California: Proposition 13, 40 years later
- San Diego County Assessor: Mello-Roos
General information for orientation, not legal, tax, financial or appraisal advice. Details change; confirm anything that matters with the official source, your lender and your agent.