How a Riverside County property tax bill is figured, when each installment is due, the homeowners' exemption, the bill that comes after you buy, and how a Prop 19 move works here.
3 min read · Checked against BOE: 4 November 2026 · [Reviewer: pending attorney review]
Most Riverside County homeowners open the tax bill twice a year and pay it without thinking much about where the number comes from. If you are buying here, selling here or planning a move at 55 or older, a few rules decide most of what you will pay.
How the bill is figured
Under Prop 13, the base tax is 1 dollar for every 100 dollars of your home's taxable value. On top of that come voter-approved bonds and direct charges, which differ from one neighborhood to the next. Newer tracts often carry Mello-Roos or other special assessments, and those can be a large share of the bill.
Your taxable value is set when you buy. After that it can rise each year only by the state inflation factor, which is capped at 1.02. That is why a neighbor who bought decades ago can pay a fraction of what a new buyer pays for the same kind of house.
When it is due
Riverside County sends one bill with two installments.
- First installment: due November 1, late after December 10.
- Second installment: due February 1, late after April 10.
When December 10 or April 10 falls on a weekend or holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day. A late payment gets a penalty of one tenth of the installment, and a late second installment also gets an administrative cost. Source: Riverside County news release, November 2025.
The homeowners' exemption
If the home is your principal residence on January 1, the homeowners' exemption takes $7,000 off its taxable value. File the claim with the Riverside County Assessor by February 15 for the full exemption. A claim filed after that and by December 10 gets a reduced exemption for the year. Sources: Riverside County Assessor, Homeowners' Exemption and BOE, Homeowners' Exemption.
Tell the assessor by December 10 if the home stops being your principal residence, or a penalty can follow.
The bill that comes after you buy
A purchase resets the taxable value to the price you paid, and the county sends a supplemental bill for the difference between the old value and the new one for the rest of the tax year. It is due on its own schedule, separate from the regular bill, and it usually comes to you rather than to your lender, so plan to pay it yourself. Read what a supplemental property tax bill is.
No senior exemption, but two real options
California has no property tax exemption based on age alone. Two programs do help older owners:
- Prop 19. If you are 55 or older, severely and permanently disabled, or a wildfire or disaster victim, you can move the low taxable value of the home you sell to a home you buy anywhere in California, within two years, up to three times.
- Property tax postponement. The State Controller lets some owners who are 62 or older, blind or disabled defer the tax on their home, with income and equity limits. Check the State Controller's office for the current limits.
Buying in Riverside County with Prop 19
If you sell a home anywhere in California and buy in Riverside County, the claim goes to the Riverside County assessor, because it is filed where the new home is. Owners 55 or older use form BOE-19-B and have three years from the purchase to file. Nobody files it for you, and escrow does not either.
The price limit depends on timing: the old sale price if you buy first, that price times 1.05 if you buy in the first year after the sale, and times 1.10 in the second year. The Prop 19 calculator shows what your new taxable value could be, and the claim guide walks through the filing.
Think your value is too high?
You can appeal the assessed value. For the January 1, 2026 value, the filing period runs to November 30, 2026. Source: BOE, County Assessment Appeals Filing Periods for 2026.
Who to contact
- Tax bills and payments: Riverside County Treasurer-Tax Collector, countytreasurer.org
- Value, exemptions and Prop 19 claims: Riverside County Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder, rivcoacr.org
- Every county assessor in California: BOE county contacts
This is general information from the county and state sources linked above, not tax or legal advice. Dates and amounts change, so confirm with the county before you rely on them.
Quick questions
When are Riverside County property taxes due?
The first installment is due November 1 and is late after December 10. The second is due February 1 and is late after April 10. When a deadline falls on a weekend or holiday, it moves to the next business day.
What happens if I pay late?
The county adds a penalty of one tenth of the installment. A late second installment also gets an administrative cost on top.
Is there a senior property tax exemption in Riverside County?
No. California has no property tax exemption based on age alone. Owners 55 or older can move their old taxable value to a new home under Prop 19, and the State Controller runs a postponement program for some owners 62 or older with limited income.
Where do I file a Prop 19 claim for a home I buy in Riverside County?
With the Riverside County assessor, because the claim goes to the county where the new home is. The form for owners 55 or older is BOE-19-B, filed within three years of buying the new home.
Source: California Board of Equalization, Proposition 19
Selling and buying your next home? Talk to Zarko.
Zarko can walk through the sale and the purchase together. He can also point you to a CPA for the tax questions.
Call (831) 246-7773Zarko Maletin, Insider Realty · DRE #02440138 (CA) · [email protected]