[Calclg-l] Mills Act Information Request

Mon Jun 16 10:01:07 PDT 2008

Hi Jennifer,

1.       How old is your program? 

The City of Santa Ana adopted the Mills Act program in 1999.

2.       Eligibility: Are all listed buildings eligible for Mills Act

All designated or Contributors in a district qualify to apply.

3.       Additions: Do you allow additions to historic structures under
the Mills Act if they follow the standards?  What size additions do
communities allow under the contract?  Are they assessed under the
special assessment?

We do allow additions, and do not restrict by "size" per se - we look
more at the overall massing and appearance of the original house. The
new square footage is assessed using the regular valuation method. 

4.       Restoration Conditions: What type of improvements do
communities require within the 10 years, if any?  Do you add more after
the initial 10 years? What other restrictions/clauses does your
community require?

We do not require any specific improvements, rather, we choose to make
sure that the structure is in excellent condition prior to adopting the
Mills Act contract. This alleviates the problem of having to cancel a
contract due to non-performance, but still allows the property owner to
do routine maintenance (that is usually more costly than non-designated
homes). 

5.       Monitoring: How does your community track their contracts and
the improvements?

Yes

6.       City Revenue Loss: Does your community maintain an assessment
tracker to understand the amount of city revenue "lost" every year due
to the special tax assessment?  

We perform a "fiscal impact" section for each staff report, but we
monitor the actual revenue "lost" via a report sent annually by our
County Tax Assessor. 

7.       Lessons Learned/Recent Issues...

1.  Our tax assessor will always select the lower of the two assessments
(regular vs. Mills Act), and will usually give estimate calculations to
owners of historic properties.  2.  Property owners often use this
contract to help them sell their homes at a greater price - realtors are
now on board.
3.  Owners that have purchased within the past 5 years are saving
approximately 75% off their property taxes. 
4.  Even Mills Act contract assessments are adjusted.  They are supposed
to be adjusted for inflation annually, but we have found they may not be
adjusted for a couple of years, then have a year of "catch up". 

-----Original Message-----
From: calclg-l-bounces at ohp.parks.ca.gov
[mailto:calclg-l-bounces at ohp.parks.ca.gov] On Behalf Of Gates, Jennifer
Sent: Sunday, June 15, 2008 2:15 PM
To: calclg-l at ohp.parks.ca.gov
Subject: [Calclg-l] Mills Act Information Request

Good Morning CLGs!  On Monday the 23rd, CPF will be holding a workshop
in San Clemente on the Mills Act and we would like to share what's
happening in other communities with the Mills Act program.  Please share
what's going on in your community when you have a minute. 