Measure ULA is the City of Los Angeles tax on home sales over $5.4 million: 4% of the whole price below $10.9 million and 5.5% at $10.9 million or more, for sales closing after June 30, 2026. It doesn't apply inside the City of Beverly Hills, so a $10 million sale there pays about $11,000 in transfer taxes against $456,000 in Bel Air, Holmby Hills or Beverly Park.
You're pricing a sale or an offer over $5 million on the Westside and need to know whether the parcel pays the City of LA's transfer tax, and how much.
At a glance
| Measure ULA, sales over $5.4M and under $10.9M | 4% of the whole price (closings after June 30, 2026) |
|---|---|
| Measure ULA, sales of $10.9M or more | 5.5% of the whole price |
| City of LA base transfer tax | 0.45% at every price |
| LA County documentary transfer tax | $1.10 per $1,000 |
| Applies in the City of Beverly Hills | No |
| In effect since | April 1, 2023 |
total transfer taxes at closing
- County transfer tax
- City base transfer tax
- Measure ULA
- Effective rate
Rates: LA County Recorder (documentary transfer tax, $0.55 per $500); City of Los Angeles Office of Finance (base tax $2.25 per $500; Measure ULA 4% over $5,400,000 and 5.5% at $10,900,000 or more, on the whole price, for sales closing after June 30, 2026). Beverly Hills is not one of the County's special-rate cities.
Measure ULA stops at the Beverly Hills city line
The price doesn't decide whether a 90210 sale pays Measure ULA. The city line does. A $10 million sale inside the City of Beverly Hills pays about $11,000 in transfer taxes, while the same price on the City of Los Angeles side pays $456,000. That $445,000 difference comes from one line on a map.
Beverly Hills has been its own city since January 28, 1914, and it runs as a General Law city under state law. ULA is a City of Los Angeles ordinance that taxes deeds conveying property inside the City of Los Angeles, so it ends at the Beverly Hills boundary. The County Recorder lists five cities with special transfer-tax rates, Los Angeles among them. Beverly Hills isn't on that list.
Which 90210 homes pay Measure ULA
The ZIP code is where people get caught. Census 2020 figures put about 60.5% of 90210's land in the City of Los Angeles and only 37.8% in the City of Beverly Hills. The Census geocoder places the main entrance address of North Beverly Park, which carries a Beverly Hills 90210 mailing address, inside the City of Los Angeles.
That puts Beverly Park's gated estates, the Beverly Crest canyons and the hillside sold as Beverly Hills Post Office on the ULA side. ZIP 90077 lies entirely in the City of LA, and so does Holmby Hills. Trousdale Estates and the flats sit inside Beverly Hills and don't pay it. Our 90210 ZIP code breakdown shows the split in more detail.
How to check which city a parcel is in
Don't trust the mailing address. Read the tax rate area on the parcel's property tax bill: central Beverly Hills parcels sit in TRA 2410, which carries a City of Beverly Hills line, while City of LA parcels show a City of Los Angeles line instead. The Census Bureau's address geocoder also returns the incorporated city for an address.
If a parcel straddles the boundary, the City of LA prorates its tax to the part inside Los Angeles. Ask escrow to confirm the city on the preliminary title report before you set a price.
How much is Measure ULA in 2026?
For sales closing after June 30, 2026, ULA has two tiers: 4% on sales over $5,400,000 and under $10,900,000, and 5.5% at $10,900,000 or more. The City's base transfer tax of 0.45% applies at every price, and the County adds $1.10 per $1,000 on top.
| Sale price (City of LA) | City base tax | Measure ULA | City total | With County tax |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Up to $5,400,000 | 0.45% | None | 0.45% | 0.56% |
| Over $5,400,000, under $10,900,000 | 0.45% | 4% | 4.45% | 4.56% |
| $10,900,000 or more | 0.45% | 5.5% | 5.95% | 6.06% |
| Any price, City of Beverly Hills | None | None | None | 0.11% (County) |
Why ULA taxes the whole price, not the slice above the line
ULA isn't a marginal tax. The County Recorder's rate table describes it as 4% of the total transaction value of sales above $5,400,000. A $5.5 million sale pays 4% on $5.5 million, which is $220,000, and not 4% on the $100,000 above the threshold.
What ULA counts as the price
The City figures ULA on gross value, which includes any loan the buyer assumes or any lien that stays on the property. The base tax works on net value and leaves those out. Taking over a seller's loan doesn't shrink the ULA bill.
Measure ULA on a $5M, $10M and $25M sale
Here's what the same price costs on each side of the line, using the rates the calculator above uses. The Beverly Hills column is the County documentary transfer tax at $1.10 per $1,000.
| Sale price | City of LA side (base + ULA + County) | City of Beverly Hills | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| $5,000,000 | $28,000 | $5,500 | $22,500 |
| $5,400,000 | $30,240 | $5,940 | $24,300 |
| $5,500,000 | $250,800 | $6,050 | $244,750 |
| $10,000,000 | $456,000 | $11,000 | $445,000 |
| $10,900,000 | $660,540 | $11,990 | $648,550 |
| $20,000,000 | $1,212,000 | $22,000 | $1,190,000 |
| $25,000,000 | $1,515,000 | $27,500 | $1,487,500 |
The $5.4M and $10.9M cliffs
Because the whole price is taxed, each threshold is a cliff. Moving from $5.4 million to $5.5 million adds $220,560 in transfer taxes for a $100,000 higher price. A City of LA seller nets less at any price from just over $5.4 million up to about $5.63 million than at exactly $5.4 million.
The second cliff works the same way. A $10.9 million sale nets $10,239,460 after transfer taxes, less than a $10.75 million sale nets at $10,259,800. Prices between $10.9 million and about $11.07 million net less than a sale just under the line. If you're pricing near either threshold, run both numbers before you pick a list price.
Redo the math with the calculator above
Enter your price and choose the city. Then try the price $100,000 lower and $100,000 higher and compare what you keep. If the parcel is in Beverly Hills, the same exercise shows why ULA isn't part of the pricing conversation there; our Beverly Hills and Bel Air comparison sets this cost next to the other differences across the line.
How Measure ULA thresholds have changed since 2023
Voters adopted ULA on November 8, 2022 as Ordinance No. 187692, and it has applied to sales since April 1, 2023. The City adjusts the thresholds every year using the Bureau of Labor Statistics Chained Consumer Price Index.
Measure ULA thresholds by year
| Effective | 4% tier starts above | 5.5% tier starts at |
|---|---|---|
| April 1, 2023 | $5,000,000 | $10,000,000 |
| July 1, 2024 | $5,150,000 | $10,300,000 |
| July 1, 2025 | $5,300,000 | $10,600,000 |
| July 1, 2026 | $5,400,000 | $10,900,000 |
Which year's thresholds apply to your closing
The thresholds in force are the ones for the date the sale closes. Today's $5.4 million and $10.9 million figures cover transactions closing after June 30, 2026. A sale near a threshold that closes after June 30, 2027 will be measured against whatever figures the City publishes for that year, so check the Office of Finance page before you sign.
Who pays the Los Angeles mansion tax: buyer or seller?
We couldn't confirm a rule or a local custom. The City's ULA FAQ and the ordinance tax the deed without naming which party pays, and we found no official source on who customarily pays in Los Angeles. Treat it as a deal term.
What the purchase contract decides
Your purchase contract and escrow instructions decide who pays the City and County transfer taxes. At $10 million on the City of LA side that's $456,000, so the clause matters as much as the price. Have your attorney read it before you counter, and see our guide to selling a Beverly Hills home for how the tax fits into net proceeds.
Measure ULA exemptions turn on the buyer
The Los Angeles Housing Department's ULA exemptions FAQ ties the exemptions to the buyer, not the seller. Qualified affordable-housing nonprofits, community land trusts and government agencies are the examples it gives. A private sale between individuals at these prices won't fit those exemptions.
Is Measure ULA going away? The court case, the pulled initiative and Prop 43
Not on anything decided so far. The tax was upheld in court, the statewide initiative that would have cut it was withdrawn, and the ballot proposition voters are deciding today doesn't repeal it.
The court challenge ended in June 2026
The Second District Court of Appeal upheld ULA in Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assn. et al. v. City of Los Angeles (2025). The California Supreme Court denied review, and the plaintiffs didn't seek U.S. Supreme Court review, so the decision became final in June 2026, according to the City's outside counsel.
The Howard Jarvis initiative was pulled from the ballot
CalMatters reported in April 2026 that the Howard Jarvis Local Taxpayer Protection Act was eligible for the November ballot and would have cut city transfer taxes such as ULA. LAist reported on June 26, 2026 that it was pulled after a deal in Sacramento, and that the Legislature put a substitute constitutional amendment on the ballot that leaves existing transfer taxes untouched.
Prop 43 is on today's ballot, and the result isn't known yet
Today's November 3, 2026 ballot includes Proposition 43, a legislative constitutional amendment. From January 1, 2027 it would require a two-thirds vote for new, increased or extended local special taxes that voters propose. ULA passed by simple majority as a voter-proposed tax, but Prop 43 looks forward and doesn't repeal it. As we publish, the result isn't known. We'll update this page when it is.
What Measure ULA has done to $5M-plus sales in Los Angeles
The research points one way on volume and is still argued on revenue. For a seller, the useful reading is that buyers on the City of LA side price the tax in, which is one more reason to know your threshold before you list.
The UCLA Lewis Center finding
UCLA Lewis Center researchers Michael Manville and Mott Smith found that ULA cut in half the likelihood that a property sells above the $5 million threshold. Commercial Observer's coverage of the study reported a 49% to 55% drop over ULA's first 20 months, with smaller declines below $5 million and elsewhere in LA County.
Measure ULA revenue against the ballot estimates
The Lewis Center reported that ULA raised about $480 million through December 2024, against ballot estimates of $600 million to $1.1 billion a year. A September 2025 report by researchers from UCLA, USC, Occidental College and Public Counsel disputed a companion Lewis Center study and said ULA had raised more than $830 million in total.
What the Beverly Hills numbers add
A Los Angeles Times analysis from April 2024, as quoted by Legal Insurrection, counted 366 City of LA single-family sales of $5 million or more in the year before ULA and 166 in the year after. Over the same period, single-family luxury sales fell 24% in Beverly Hills, where ULA doesn't apply. The tax isn't the only force at the top of the market, and our Beverly Hills housing market figures track the rest.
Measure ULA checklist for Beverly Hills and Bel Air sales
Use this before you set a price or sign an offer on a Westside home over $5 million.
Before you list
- Confirm the parcel's city on the tax bill or the preliminary title report, not the mailing address.
- On the City of LA side, price against the cliffs: compare your net at the threshold with your net just above it.
- Check which year's thresholds apply to your expected closing date.
Before you sign an offer
- Read who pays the transfer taxes in the contract and escrow instructions.
- If the seller is a foreign person, add federal and state withholding to the closing math; our FIRPTA guide for foreign sellers covers it.
- Set the annual cost next to the one-time tax: our Beverly Hills property tax guide shows the yearly bill on each side of the line.
If you'd like a local agent to price a home on both sides of the city line, the agent we feature on our recommended agent page works across Beverly Hills and the City of LA enclaves.
Reader check: this page explains how the tax works and isn't tax or legal advice. Before you price, sign or close, confirm the figures and the payer with a California real estate attorney or a CPA, and get the exact amount from escrow.
Measure ULA FAQs
What is Measure ULA?
Measure ULA is a City of Los Angeles transfer tax that voters adopted on November 8, 2022. It has applied since April 1, 2023 to sales above a price threshold. For sales closing after June 30, 2026 it is 4% of the whole price over $5,400,000 and under $10,900,000, and 5.5% at $10,900,000 or more, on top of the City's 0.45% base transfer tax.
Does Measure ULA apply in Beverly Hills?
No. Beverly Hills is a separate city, incorporated in 1914, and ULA applies only to property in the City of Los Angeles. A sale inside Beverly Hills pays the County documentary transfer tax of $1.10 per $1,000 instead. Many 90210 addresses, including Beverly Park and Beverly Crest, are in the City of Los Angeles and do pay ULA, so check the parcel, not the ZIP.
How much is the mansion tax on a $10 million house in Los Angeles?
In the City of Los Angeles, a $10,000,000 sale closing after June 30, 2026 pays 4.45% in city tax, which is $445,000, plus $11,000 in County documentary transfer tax, for $456,000 in total. The same sale inside the City of Beverly Hills pays about $11,000. At $10,900,000 or more the City of LA rate rises to 5.95%.
Is Measure ULA charged on the full sale price?
Yes. The County Recorder's rate table applies ULA to the total transaction value, not just the amount above the threshold. A $5,500,000 sale pays 4% on the full $5,500,000, or $220,000. ULA is also figured on gross value, so a loan the buyer assumes or a lien that stays on the property is counted in the price.
What were the Measure ULA thresholds before July 2026?
When ULA started on April 1, 2023, the thresholds were $5,000,000 and $10,000,000. They rose to $5,150,000 and $10,300,000 on July 1, 2024, then to $5,300,000 and $10,600,000 on July 1, 2025. The City adjusts them each year using the Chained Consumer Price Index, and the current $5,400,000 and $10,900,000 figures took effect July 1, 2026.
Did Prop 43 repeal Measure ULA?
No. Proposition 43, on the November 3, 2026 ballot, would require a two-thirds vote from January 1, 2027 for new, increased or extended local special taxes that voters propose. It doesn't repeal ULA, and its result wasn't known when this page was published. Separately, the courts upheld ULA in a decision that became final in June 2026.
Who pays Measure ULA, the buyer or the seller?
We couldn't confirm a legal rule or a local custom. The City's guidance taxes the deed without naming a payer, and we found no official source on who customarily pays in Los Angeles. The purchase contract and escrow instructions decide it, so read that clause with your attorney before you agree a price.
Sources
- City of Los Angeles Office of Finance: Real Property Transfer Tax and Measure ULA FAQ
- Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk: Documentary Transfer Taxes
- Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder: City Documentary Transfer Tax Bulletin (Historical Rates), rev. 4/1/2026
- City of Los Angeles: Initiative Ordinance ULA (Ordinance No. 187692)
- Los Angeles Housing Department: ULA Exemptions FAQ
- City of Beverly Hills: When was the City incorporated?
- City of Beverly Hills: General Law or Charter City
- U.S. Census Bureau: 2020 ZCTA5 to Place relationship file
- U.S. Census Bureau Geocoder: 13100 Mulholland Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90210 (Incorporated Places)
- LAUSD: Resident School Identifier (City of LA areas such as Bel Air, Holmby Hills, Beverly Crest)
- Los Angeles County Auditor-Controller: Tax Rates by TRA
- Burke, Williams & Sorensen: Burke successfully defends Los Angeles voters' approval of Measure ULA (June 15, 2026)
- CalMatters: proposition on realty and the mansion tax (April 22, 2026)
- LAist: Howard Jarvis measure pulled from the November 2026 ballot (June 26, 2026)
- California Secretary of State: Official Voter Information Guide, Proposition 43
- California Secretary of State: Proposition 43 analysis by the Legislative Analyst
- California Secretary of State: Qualified Statewide Ballot Measures
- UCLA Lewis Center: Los Angeles's mansion tax has raised less money for affordable housing than expected (May 14, 2025)
- Commercial Observer: Measure ULA and the UCLA study (April 3, 2025)
- Occidental College (host): Major Research Flaws Undermine Authors' Bold Claims, press release (September 4, 2025)
- Legal Insurrection, quoting the Los Angeles Times: mansion tax and LA's high-end market (April 2024)