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Assessor: wildfires affected about 23,500 parcels; preliminary assessed‑value loss roughly $10.7 billion
Summary
Los Angeles County Assessor Jeffrey Prang told the Board that wildfire damage has affected roughly 23,500 parcels, including about 12,000 destroyed properties, and that the office has processed 17,000 calamity assessment reductions so far; estimated assessed‑value loss is about $10.7 billion and may rise to $12–13 billion.
Jeffrey Prang, Los Angeles County Assessor, told the board May 7 that the assessor’s office has identified approximately 23,500 parcels impacted by this year’s wildfires and has already taken steps to reduce the assessed values for many owners.
Prang provided the office’s working numbers: about 12,000 parcels are completely destroyed and roughly 2,000 are damaged; to date his office has processed about 17,000 “misfortune calamity” assessment reductions. He said about 60% of those reductions were based on claims filed by property owners; the office proactively adjusted the remaining 40% without a claim.
Prang estimated the total loss of assessed value so far at about $10.7 billion and said the figure may reach $12–13 billion as reviews continue. He also said the office expects a backlog of recorded deed work to grow from roughly 15,000 to about 60,000 items because of gaps in recorded deed data and the volume of processing work generated by the fires.
Operational impact and capacity Prang said nearly 13,000 production hours — equivalent to about 30 full‑time appraisers — were dedicated to disaster relief efforts and that staff reallocations and contracts were used to meet workload needs. He credited recent technology modernization for enabling volume processing but said the wildfire work will be long‑term; some properties affected by prior fires still require ongoing annual review.
Tax and payment implications Prang explained the assessment adjustments are applied to the portion of the fiscal year during which the damage occurred. That method means some residents who lost homes may still receive bills for the half of the fiscal year before the damage; Prang said property tax forbearance would require separate legislative action. He also told supervisors the treasurer‑tax collector reported that over 98% of tax accounts have paid and that delinquencies remain close to recent years' norms.
Ending note Prang asked the board to continue supporting requested positions and technology investments that he said are necessary to protect the county’s long‑term property tax base and revenue collection.
