San Jose property is valuable and complicated in equal measure: Eichlers and post-war ranches held in the same family since the orchards came out, ADU conversions done with and without permits, and heirs who inherited a house worth many times its assessed value. Real Estate with Causes accepts donated houses, condos, lots and commercial buildings across Santa Clara County. We prepare the deed and record it with the Santa Clara County Clerk-Recorder.
Federal tax rules are the same everywhere. These three are set by California and by Santa Clara County.
California counties charge documentary transfer tax at $0.55 per $500 of consideration, and many cities add their own. San Jose also imposes a city transfer tax on higher-value property transfers. How it applies to a gift with no consideration is confirmed when we prepare the deed.
Every California recording is accompanied by a preliminary change of ownership report for the assessor. Where a transfer qualifies for an exclusion from reassessment, that is claimed here rather than later. We prepare it with the deed.
Deeds are recorded with the Santa Clara County Clerk-Recorder. You sign before a notary wherever you live, and we handle the filing and the recording fee.
None of these is a reason a property is turned away. They are the reasons the phone rings.
Each links to the full guide for that type, including how a donation compares with selling.
California counties charge documentary transfer tax at $0.55 per $500 of consideration, and San Jose adds a city transfer tax at higher value bands. Transfers without consideration are treated differently, and we confirm the treatment for your deed before recording. Where the tax falls on the grantee, we pay it.
No. We prepare the deed in the form California requires, you sign before a notary where you live, and we record it with the Santa Clara County Clerk-Recorder.
A transfer to a charity is a change of ownership for the property being given, so it is reassessed in the charity’s hands, not yours. What matters more to most families is the opposite question: what Proposition 19 did to the parent-to-child exclusion on property they keep. See Proposition 19 and inherited property.
No. We do not ask for permits to be regularized, repairs to be made or work to be undone before a transfer. Tell us what was done and roughly when, because it affects value rather than acceptance.
California has a personal income tax, and how it treats a charitable contribution is set by California law rather than by us. Your federal deduction follows the usual IRS rules. Take the state question to your own advisor.
We do not provide tax or legal advice. State and local transfer tax rules change; we confirm current requirements when we prepare each deed. Consult your own advisor.
The address or the APN is enough to start.
