Picture two Silver Lake hillside homes that both sell for $5.35 million. The first one closed on June 30, 2026, and the second closed a day later. Under Measure ULA, the City of Los Angeles transfer tax on high-value sales, the first sale owed 4% of its full price. That's $214,000, on top of the city's base transfer tax. The second sale owed no ULA at all. The threshold for the 4% tier was $5.3 million through June 30 and became $5.4 million for transactions closing after that date.
Most coverage of the "mansion tax" focuses on estates on the Westside. Silver Lake's top end sits right where the line falls, though. So for anyone selling near it, the threshold and the date it resets belong in the pricing conversation from the first walkthrough.
How the line works, and why it keeps moving
Three mechanics matter more than anything else.
- The tax applies to the whole price. A sale above $5.4 million and below $10.9 million owes 4% of the full transaction value, not just the amount over the line. At $10.9 million and up, the rate is 5.5%.
- It stacks on the base tax. Every City of Los Angeles conveyance already pays a base transfer tax of 0.45%. ULA is charged on top of that.
- The seller usually pays. In typical Los Angeles transactions the seller covers ULA, and RAND's analysis describes it as a tax paid by sellers.
The thresholds rise every July 1, and the closing date decides which threshold applies:
| Closing window | 4% tier begins above | 5.5% tier begins at |
|---|---|---|
| April 2023 launch | $5,000,000 | $10,000,000 |
| From July 1, 2024 | $5,150,000 | $10,300,000 |
| From July 1, 2025 | $5,300,000 | $10,600,000 |
| After June 30, 2026 | $5,400,000 | $10,900,000 |
Most of the time, a seller who closes a week late just gets their money a week late. Near this line, the same delay can change the tax bill by six figures.
The dead zone just above the line
Since the tax applies to the full price, crossing the threshold by a single dollar triggers a large charge all at once. Here's what that looks like at the current $5.4 million line, before the base tax, commissions and other closing costs:
- A sale at exactly $5,400,000 owes no ULA.
- A sale at $5,400,001 owes about $216,000, so the seller keeps roughly $5,184,000.
- To keep as much after ULA as a clean $5.4 million sale, the price has to reach about $5,625,000.
Any accepted price between $5.4 million and about $5.625 million leaves the seller with less than a $5.4 million sale would. An offer just over the line is effectively worth about $5.18 million to the seller.
Buyers and sellers have worked this out, and the transaction data shows it. UCLA researchers studying Los Angeles sales between $4 million and $6 million found a large spike right below the original $5 million threshold once ULA took effect. It was about three times the pre-ULA share of sales at that price. They found a second clear spike at $4.8 million, which is the price where a seller nets the same as at $5 million after paying the tax. The researchers called this clear evidence that both parties understand they're better off pricing to avoid the tax.
Volume above the line also fell. In the first nine months after ULA, monthly City of Los Angeles sales over $5 million dropped about 65%, from roughly 80 a month to around 30. Sales over $5 million in the rest of Los Angeles County fell about 36% over the same stretch. A separate UCLA Lewis Center analysis estimated a 49% to 55% decline in above-threshold sales over ULA's first 20 months. It found the strongest evidence in non-single-family transactions, which were down 30% to 50%. These are citywide figures measured against the original $5 million line, not a Silver Lake study, but the incentive behind them works the same way at $5.4 million.
Silver Lake's top end sits right on the notch
This matters more in Silver Lake than in most neighborhoods because of where its highest prices actually land. In June 2025, 1844 Silverwood Terrace, a five-bedroom estate on more than four acres near the reservoirs, sold for $10 million. It was the neighborhood's highest residential sale on record. The previous record had stood since 2014: $8.6 million for Silvertop at 2138 Micheltorena Street, a property with a historic designation from the Los Angeles Conservancy. One of the agents on the Silverwood sale said that, until then, Silver Lake had rarely seen anything above $5 million or $6 million.
Even the record sale sat close to a tier line. Silverwood Terrace was listed in May 2025 at $9.8 million and closed at $10 million. The 5.5% tier then started at $10.3 million. At 4%, the tax on $10 million comes to $400,000. At 5.5%, the tax on a $10.3 million sale would have been $566,500.
The same mid-2025 run included a three-bedroom hilltop mid-century house with a pool at 1936 Redcliff Street, which sold for $6.3 million. That price is well past the dead zone. At 4%, the ULA on it comes to $252,000.
ULA isn't limited to houses. It applies to qualifying property transfers within the city regardless of property type. In July 2026, L.A. Business First reported that Samuelian Group bought the vacant three-parcel site at 835 North Hyperion Avenue for nearly $5.3 million. That's below the line under either the 2025 or 2026 threshold. Samuelian is building Silver Lake Flats there, a 105-unit affordable project that broke ground in July and is expected to take about two years. Owners of multifamily buildings and entitled parcels deal with the same math as hillside homeowners.
Escrow timing works as a pricing tool
Put the dead zone and the July 1 reset together, and a few practical moves follow for anyone pricing near the top of Silver Lake's market.
Plan the calendar backward from July 1. A home expected to sell between the old and new thresholds pays the tax on a June closing and doesn't on a July closing. That affects when photography, staging and the launch should happen. Any plan should be confirmed against the current threshold, because the next adjustment won't be published until it's announced. Our pre-sale concierge timelines start from the target closing date for this reason.
Know what an offer just over the line is really worth. In the dead zone, a higher offer can leave the seller with less. Counters, credits and price adjustments after inspection all need to be checked against the threshold, because a repair credit can move the final price under it.
List with the line in mind. A list price a little above the threshold invites offers that land in the dead zone. Deciding where to set it means weighing the real comparable sales against the tax math, and our Silver Lake pricing strategy guide covers the comparable-sales side.
Hold-or-sell decisions for investors. Given the steep citywide drop in non-single-family sales above the threshold, owners of Silver Lake rental buildings near the line have one more variable to weigh, alongside the factors in our guide to selling or holding a Silver Lake rental.
This is pricing context, not tax advice. Talk with a tax professional or an attorney before you build a sale around the threshold.
Is the tax going anywhere?
As of September 2026, Measure ULA remains in effect. On December 15, 2025, the California Court of Appeal upheld it against the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association's challenge. We haven't confirmed whether the California Supreme Court will take up the case. In late June 2026, a statewide measure backed by Howard Jarvis that would have effectively repealed ULA was withdrawn as part of a deal that left existing transfer taxes in place. On July 1, 2026, the Los Angeles City Council voted 14–0 to shelve a November ballot proposal that would have exempted new apartment buildings. Proposition TE on the November 3, 2026 city ballot applies only to qualifying residential property damaged or destroyed in the Palisades Fire.
FAQ
Does ULA apply to the whole sale price or just the amount over the threshold?
The whole price. A sale above $5.4 million and below $10.9 million owes 4% of the full amount, and a sale at $10.9 million or more owes 5.5%. The city's 0.45% base tax is charged on top of either rate.
Which threshold applies if I go into contract in June and close in July?
The rate follows the closing. The current thresholds apply to transactions closing after June 30, 2026.
Is there an exemption for owner-occupied homes or new construction?
Not for most sellers. The city's exemptions depend on who the buyer is, such as qualifying affordable-housing organizations, certain nonprofits and public entities. There's no general exemption for owner-occupied homes or new construction.
If your Silver Lake home might sell anywhere near the ULA line, Alex Lozano can work through the threshold math, the closing calendar and the comparable sales with you before you set a list price. Start with a home valuation, and let's connect.
