Property tax in San Bernardino County, California
In San Bernardino County, the property tax bill comes from the San Bernardino County Auditor-Controller/Treasurer/Tax Collector, Tax Collector Division. The 2026-2027 bill is paid in 2 installments, and the next one is due November 1, 2026. You can look up and pay the bill on the county's own payment page. Taken from San Bernardino County's own pages, checked September 23, 2026.
The median property tax bill in San Bernardino County, California is $3,538 a year, which is about 0.7% of the county's median home value of $505,000. That effective rate is about the same as the typical California county (0.7%) and lower than the national median (0.81%). These are American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024); your own bill depends on your home's assessed value and any exemptions.
Who sends the property tax bill in San Bernardino County, and how do you pay it?
The bill comes from the San Bernardino County Auditor-Controller/Treasurer/Tax Collector, Tax Collector Division. The value it is based on is set by a separate office, the San Bernardino County Assessor-Recorder-County Clerk, which is who to ask if the value looks wrong. For how to look up and pay the bill, go to the county's own payment information.
The Assessor-Recorder-County Clerk sets the value and the Auditor-Controller/Treasurer/Tax Collector sends the bill and takes the payment; they are separate offices. Secured bills are mailed in October. Paying from a checking or savings account is free; debit and credit card payments carry a 2.30% fee with a $1.95 minimum (3.95% for commercial or international cards), and debit cards used in the office cost $2.95.
When are property taxes due in San Bernardino County?
For the 2026-2027 bill, San Bernardino County splits the bill into 2 payments, the first due November 1, 2026 and the last February 1, 2027. A first installment not paid by 5 p.m. on December 10, 2026 gets a 10% penalty. A second installment not paid by 5 p.m. on April 12, 2027 gets a 10% penalty plus a $10 cost. Taxes still unpaid on June 30 move to the delinquent roll, which adds penalties of 1.5% a month on the unpaid tax plus a $15 redemption fee.
| Payment | Due | Note |
|---|---|---|
| First installment | November 1, 2026 | The county lists November 1 as the due date, but no penalty applies until after 5 p.m. on December 10, 2026 (a Thursday), the last day to pay without penalty. A mailed payment must be received or carry a U.S. Postal Service postmark by that day; metered mail and postage from bill pay services and kiosks are not postmarked. State law sets these dates for every California county. |
| Second installment | February 1, 2027 | The county lists February 1, 2027 as the due date. The last day to pay without penalty is normally April 10, but April 10, 2027 is a Saturday, and state law and the county both move a deadline that falls on a weekend or holiday to the next business day, Monday, April 12, 2027. The same postmark rule applies. |
From San Bernardino County's published schedule, checked September 23, 2026. If a date falls on a weekend or holiday, the county's own rules on the next business day apply.
Estimate the property tax on a home in San Bernardino County
Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at San Bernardino County's average effective rate of 0.7% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.
Estimated property tax: $3,535 / year
Property tax in San Bernardino County at a glance
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median annual property tax | $3,538 |
| Median home value | $505,000 |
| Effective tax rate | 0.7% |
| Typical California county rate | 0.7% |
| National median county rate | 0.81% |
Effective rate = median real estate taxes paid divided by median home value. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates.
How does San Bernardino County compare in California?
Among California's 58 counties, San Bernardino County has the 28th highest effective property-tax rate: 27 rank higher and 30 rank lower. That is near the middle for California. Nationally, it ranks 1879th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every California county ranked.
How much do homeowners in San Bernardino County actually pay?
The median is only the middle bill. Across San Bernardino County's 418,836 owner-occupied homes, 55.7% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 72.3% pay at least $2,000, and 7% pay under $800. Another 4.4% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.
| Annual bill | Homes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $800 | 29,239 | 7% |
| $800 to $1,499 | 38,768 | 9.3% |
| $1,500 to $1,999 | 29,682 | 7.1% |
| $2,000 to $2,999 | 69,501 | 16.6% |
| $3,000 or more | 233,085 | 55.7% |
| No property tax paid | 18,561 | 4.4% |
Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $3,904 and owners without one pay $2,600. Owners who have paid off a home have usually held it longer, and in states that cap how fast an existing owner's assessment can rise, long-held homes carry lower assessed values. Census table B25103.
How does the San Bernardino County property tax bill compare with local incomes?
The median property tax bill of $3,538 is about 3.4% of the median income of San Bernardino County homeowner households, $104,606 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 62.1% of San Bernardino County's occupied homes are lived in by their owners; renters pay property tax too, just folded into rent.
Have property taxes gone up in San Bernardino County?
Yes. The median bill went from $2,615 in 2015-2019 to $3,538 in 2020-2024, a 35.3% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 53.9%, from $328,200 to $505,000. Bills rose more slowly than values, which is what assessment caps and falling millage rates do: the county is taxing a smaller share of each home's worth.
Two Census ACS 5-year periods with no survey years in common, in each period's own dollars. A change counts only if it exceeds the combined 90% margin of error.
Property tax in counties next to San Bernardino County
San Bernardino County borders 8 counties, 3 of them across the state line.
| County | Effective rate | Median bill | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kern County, CA | 0.88% | $2,984 | $338,300 |
| Riverside County, CA | 0.78% | $4,348 | $557,300 |
| Inyo County, CA | 0.74% | $2,576 | $348,700 |
| San Bernardino County, CA (this county) | 0.7% | $3,538 | $505,000 |
| Los Angeles County, CA | 0.68% | $5,675 | $834,200 |
| Orange County, CA | 0.66% | $6,330 | $962,600 |
| La Paz County, AZ | 0.64% | $873 | $135,800 |
| Clark County, NV | 0.48% | $2,057 | $431,000 |
| Mohave County, AZ | 0.44% | $1,238 | $281,000 |
How is a home assessed in San Bernardino County?
California sets the assessment rules and San Bernardino County applies them. How California assesses and reappraises homes.
Is there a homestead exemption in San Bernardino County?
Yes. California's Homeowners' Exemption takes $7,000 off the assessed value of an owner-occupied home. File form BOE-266 with the county assessor by February 15 for the full exemption. That is the California rule, and it applies in San Bernardino County. California's exemptions and relief programs in full.
San Bernardino County does not add relief programs of its own beyond the California ones (checked September 23, 2026).
How to appeal your San Bernardino County property assessment
In San Bernardino County you appeal to the San Bernardino County Assessment Appeals Board or Hearing Officer (filed with the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors). The deadline: For the regular annual assessment, file between July 2 and November 30; for 2026 the window runs to Monday, November 30, 2026. An appeal of a supplemental or escape assessment is due within 60 days of the mailing date or postmark date on that notice, whichever is later. Each application needs a nonrefundable $45 processing fee. The county suggests contacting the Assessor first for an informal review. How to file. Checked September 23, 2026 against the official appeal rules.
How California's appeal process works, including the next level if the first one turns you down.
California rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the California page.
Work out your own numbers
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How much house can I afford?
Your income, debts and down payment against the 28/36 rule lenders actually use, with San Bernardino County's tax rate to hand.
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Mortgage calculator
Monthly payment with principal, interest, tax and insurance, plus what an extra payment saves you.
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California income tax
Brackets, standard deduction and what California actually taxes.
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Sales tax in San Bernardino County
The other local tax: combined state and local rate for this county.
Sources
- Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for San Bernardino County, California: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2020-2024), tables B25103, B25077, B25102, B25119 and B25003; the five-year comparison uses the 2015-2019 estimates. Neighboring counties: Census county adjacency file.