Public Records - Many records required to be kept or prepared by the Assessor are considered public documents and are available for viewing at our self-service public information computers. Staff is also available to provide assistance at our General Information counter, Monday through Friday, during office hours, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. This public information is available for purchase in various formats. View Information and Service Fees. 

Among such public records are:

Assessment Rolls (Secured and Unsecured) which include:

• Assessor's Parcel Number
• Owner's Name (as of January 1st lien date)
• Property Address
• Mailing Address
• Assessed Land, Building, Fixture, and Business
• Property Values (as of January 1st lien date)
• Homeowner's and Other Exemption Values
• Total Assessed Value (as of January 1st lien date)
• Tax Rate Area Code
• Zoning Code
• Land Use Code
• Recorder’s Book and Page Reference

Assessor's Parcel Maps
Property Characteristics (such as building size, lot size, bed room and bath count, etc., ref. R&T 408.3, 409).

• Limited residential building characteristic information is available on the Assessor's Parcel Viewer.
• Certain types of residential building characteristics (such as duplexes, 4-plexes, mobile homes, etc.) as well as commercial building characteristics is not part of the Assessment Roll, is not maintained in an electronic format and is available for purchase only.

Information Available by Telephone and E-mail - Assessor’s staff will provide general information for up to 3 parcels per telephone call or e-mail. You will need to provide the property address or parcel number to obtain information by telephone or e-mail. Ownership name searches and building characteristic information is not available by telephone or e-mail.

Telephone: 916-875-0700, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m
E-mail: assessor@saccounty.net

Viewing Records at the Assessor's Office - Property ownership, assessed valuation, Assessor's maps, and other public information may be viewed using the self-service computers located at the Assessor's Office, 3701 Power Inn Road, Suite 3000, Sacramento, CA 95826-4329, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Most of the Assessor's public records may be viewed for no charge. A fee is charged for building characteristic information. A property owner may view all information pertaining to his/her own property at no charge.

Parcel Viewer - Assessment and parcel information including building characteristics for most residential properties is available on the Assessor's Parcel Viewer. Due to privacy concerns the Assessor's ownership information is not available on the internet.

Building (Structure) Characteristics - The Assessor's Office maintains building characteristics information for assessment purposes. Building characteristics information such as number of bedrooms, bathrooms, square footage, etc, is not part of the public Assessment Roll, and is available for purchase only. The actual drawing (footprint) is a confidential document made available only to an owner or the owner’s agent (with an original letter of authorization signed by the property owner). Limited residential building characteristic information is available on the Assessor's Parcel Viewer.

Confidential Non-Public Records - The Assessor also keeps many records which are confidential under the law. Examples of documents that are not open to public inspection include:

• Property Appraisal Records
• Property Building Records (except for property characteristics)
• Change in Ownership Statements
• Preliminary Change in Ownership Reports
• Homeowners' Exemption Claims
• Exclusion Forms (which contain Social Security Numbers)
• Business Property Statements
• Property statements and correspondence of any sort requested from owners by the Assessor
• Property Sales Data (Market Comparables) collected by the Assessor

The law also specifies that certain law enforcement, certain governmental investigative agencies, and certain agencies of the State of California also have access to all Assessor’s records (ref R&T 408).

If you wish to explore Assessor's record confidentiality in more detail, recommended reading would include Revenue and Taxation Code Sections 162, 218.5, 327, 408-408.3, 409, 481, 531, 601-602, Property Tax Rule 135(e), and Government Code Sections 6250-6254, also known as the Public Records Act.

Access to Owners' Confidential Records - The owner of any property (with photo identification) or that owner's agent (with an original letter of authorization signed by the property owner and bearing an original signature of the property owner) may view all public and confidential information pertaining to his/her own property at no charge.

• Property Owner's Letter of Authorization

Department of Finance, Tax Collection Division offers "e-PropTax", an online property tax system.

You will need your Assessor's Parcel Number to access tax bill information. e-PropTax provides:

• The most recent secured annual property tax bill and any bill(s) issued and/or due in the most recent fiscal year and prior year delinquencies.
• Direct levies and special assessments subject to foreclosure with description, amount and a link to contact information.
• An on-line link to a private vendor to make on-line credit card and e-check payments on current year property tax bills. (A vendor fee is added to your payment.)

California State Board of Equalization oversees the practices of all 58 County Assessors and maintains comprehensive property tax information. Some of the resources available at the California State Board of Equalization website include:

• Property Tax Laws
• A Practical Index to Property Tax Laws and Resources
• Appraisal Handbooks
• Advisory Letters to Assessors