What Orange County property tax looks like
Among the 30 counties covered here, Orange County has the 28th highest effective rate and the 6th highest median bill. Every $100,000 of value carries about $666 of tax a year at this rate.
On a $400,000 purchase that comes to roughly $2,664 a year, or $222 a month. Priced at the California average rate instead, the same home would cost $15 a month more in tax.
Newer master-planned communities often sit inside Mello-Roos community facilities districts, which add a special tax on top of the 1% base levy and are disclosed to buyers in the sale paperwork.
Parcel-level values and tax history are published by the Orange County Assessor.
Example monthly payment at the median home value
Borrowing $732,400 against a $915,500 Orange County home (20% down, 6.5% for 30 years, illustrative rather than quoted) works out as follows.
| Component | Per month |
|---|---|
| Principal and interest | $4,629 |
| Property tax | $508 |
| Homeowners insurance | $150 |
| Mortgage insurance (PMI) | $0 |
| Total | $5,287 |
Property tax is 9.6% of the $5,287 total, so a lender escrowing it would set aside about $508 each month toward the Orange County bill.
How reliable this figure is
For Orange County the Census Bureau reports a 90% margin of error of ±$50 on the $6,096 median tax and ±$3,753 on the $915,500 median value, so the 0.666% rate is a county-wide average rather than the rate on any one bill.
These medians describe today's owners, not today's buyers. How California values and caps a home, including what resets on sale, is set out on the California page.
Counties with a similar rate
Also in California: Los Angeles County (0.694%), Riverside County (0.821%), San Diego County (0.700%).
Frequently asked questions
What is the property tax rate in Orange County, CA?
The effective rate is 0.666%, which is the median real estate tax paid ($6,096) divided by the median home value ($915,500) in the Census Bureau's 2019-2023 estimates.
How much is property tax on a $400,000 home in Orange County?
At this county's effective rate the figure is about $2,664 a year, or $222 a month. That is $15 a month less than the California average rate of 0.71% would give on the same price.
How much of a Orange County monthly mortgage payment is property tax?
On a $915,500 home with 20% down at 6.5% over 30 years, property tax is about $508 of a $5,287 total monthly payment, or 9.6%.
Is property tax in Orange County high compared with the rest of California?
Orange County's 0.666% is 0.04 percentage points below the 0.71% California average, and its $6,096 median bill ranks 6th of the 30 counties covered here, with the rate ranking 28th.
Source and method
Census American Community Survey, ACS 2019-2023 5-year estimates, released December 2024. For Orange County: B25103 median tax $6,096, B25077 median value $915,500, B25003 606,605 owner-occupied homes. Formulas are on the methodology page; every result is an estimate, not a quote or tax advice.