Property Records in Placer County

Property records for Placer County are kept by the County Recorder and County Assessor in Auburn. These offices track deeds, liens, tax data, and ownership info for all land in the county. You can search documents online or visit their offices to get copies. Most property files date back many years and are open to the public. Placer County serves over 400,000 people across foothill and mountain areas east of Sacramento. The recorder files about 80,000 documents each year while the assessor maintains values on more than 150,000 parcels throughout Placer County.

Placer County Recorder Office

The County Recorder in Auburn keeps all property deeds and liens for Placer County. This office records grant deeds, trust deeds, and other documents that affect land title. When you buy a house or take out a loan on property in Placer County, those papers get filed at the recorder. Staff can help you search old records or get copies of documents. The recorder maintains an index that goes back to when Placer County was formed in 1851.

You can search property records online through the Placer County website at placer.ca.gov. The online system lets you look up documents by name, date, or book and page number. Images of recorded documents are available for recent years. For older records, you may need to visit the office in person or call to request copies.

Recording fees in Placer County follow state law. The base fee is fifteen dollars for the first page and three dollars for each added page. Additional fees may apply, such as the SB2 housing fee of seventy-five dollars for most real estate transfers. A fraud prevention fee and monument preservation fee may also be charged. The recorder accepts payments by cash, check, or credit card. For mail requests, include a check made out to Placer County Recorder.

Placer County Assessor Office

The County Assessor sets values on all land and buildings in Placer County. Each year the assessor reviews property values and sends out tax bills based on those values. The assessor keeps maps that show lot lines and parcel numbers for every piece of land. You can search by owner name or address to find assessment data. The office also handles appeals if you think your value is too high.

Placer County uses Proposition 13 rules to limit how much your assessment can go up each year. Most properties can only increase by two percent per year. When a property sells, the assessor resets the value to the purchase price. That new value becomes the base for future years. Some transfers, like gifts between parents and kids, do not trigger a reassessment. The assessor staff can explain which transfers cause a value reset in Placer County.

The assessor website offers property search tools. You can look up your parcel to see the current value, tax amount, and ownership info. The site also has forms for filing appeals or reporting changes to your property. If you add a room or make other improvements, you should tell the assessor so they can update the value.

Assessment appeals must be filed during specific time periods. For regular appeals based on market value, the deadline is from July 2 to September 15 in most years. Some counties extend the deadline to November 30. If you get a supplemental assessment after buying a house, you have sixty days from the date on the notice to file an appeal. The Placer County Assessment Appeals Board hears these cases and decides whether to lower your value.

Property Tax Payment in Placer County

The Placer County Tax Collector sends out tax bills each fall. Property taxes are due in two parts. The first half is due November 1 and becomes late after December 10. The second half is due February 1 and becomes late after April 10. A ten percent penalty applies if you miss these dates. If taxes stay unpaid for five years, the property can be sold at auction.

You can pay property tax online through the county website. The site accepts eCheck payments for free or credit card with a small service fee. You can also mail a check to the tax collector office in Auburn. Make sure to include your parcel number on the check. If you lose your tax bill, you can look it up online using your address or APN.

Many homeowners pay their property tax through an escrow account. Your mortgage lender collects tax money each month and pays the bill when it comes due. If you pay this way, check with your lender to make sure they sent the payment on time. You are still responsible if the lender misses the deadline, so it helps to verify with the Placer County Tax Collector that the bill got paid.

How to Search Property Records Online

Most Placer County property records can be searched from home. The county website has separate search tools for recorder documents and assessor data. Each system works a bit different. The recorder search shows deeds and liens. The assessor search shows values and tax bills. Both are free to use.

To search by owner name, go to the recorder website and pick the name search option. Type in the last name first. The system shows a list of all documents that match. Click on a document to see more details or view an image. Some old records may not have images online. For those, you need to visit the office or call to request a copy.

Searching by address works well on the assessor site. Enter the street number and name. The system finds the parcel and shows the owner, value, and tax info. You can also search by parcel number if you know the APN. Each parcel in Placer County has a unique number that the assessor assigns. This number stays with the land even when it sells.

Note that Assembly Bill 1785 may affect some search features. This law took effect in December 2024 and limits APN searches on some county websites. If you cannot search by parcel number online, you can still do that search at a public kiosk in the county office. The law aims to reduce property scams by making it harder for bad actors to get owner info.

Other Property Resources in Placer County

The County Clerk handles vital records like birth and death certificates. Sometimes these records relate to property transfers. For example, when someone dies, their property may pass to heirs. The death certificate gets recorded along with probate documents. The clerk office is in the same building as the recorder in Auburn.

The Planning Department reviews permits for new construction and remodels. If you want to build on your land or change your house, you need a permit. The planning staff check that your project follows zoning rules. Once work is done and inspected, the permit file becomes part of the public record. These files can show what changes were made to a property over the years.

The California Secretary of State tracks business liens called UCC filings. These liens attach to equipment and inventory rather than real estate. But sometimes a business loan includes both types of collateral. You can search UCC records at businesssearch.sos.ca.gov to see if a business has liens that might affect property deals.

Title companies use all these records to create title reports. When you buy a house in Placer County, the title company searches deeds, liens, tax records, and court files. They issue a policy that protects you if someone later claims they own the property. Most lenders require title insurance before they will give you a loan. The title search process reviews many years of recorded documents to make sure the title is clear.

Cities in Placer County

Placer County has several incorporated cities. Property records for all cities are kept at the county level by the recorder and assessor in Auburn. City offices handle building permits and zoning but not property deeds or tax bills. Those stay with the county.

No cities in Placer County meet the population threshold for individual city pages on this site. All property recording and assessment functions are handled at the Placer County offices in Auburn.

For building permits or zoning questions in a specific city, contact that city hall. For property deeds, liens, or tax records anywhere in Placer County, use the county recorder and assessor in Auburn.

Nearby Counties

Placer County borders several other counties in Northern California. If you need property records from a neighboring county, each has its own recorder and assessor office. Here are the nearby counties:

• Sacramento County (south of Placer County)
• El Dorado County (east of Placer County)
• Nevada County (north of Placer County)
• Yuba County (northwest of Placer County)
• Sutter County (west of Placer County)

Each county keeps its own set of records. A deed recorded in Placer County does not show up in Sacramento County files. If you own land in more than one county, you need to check records in each place. County lines sometimes run through the middle of large parcels, so a single piece of land might have files in two counties.