A seller calls. Their Brentwood house should trade around $5.1M. They bought in 2011 for $3.4M, they've refinanced twice, and they're expecting to walk away with something close to a million.
If you don't mention Measure ULA on that call, the number you're both working from is wrong by roughly $204,000.
What it is
Measure ULA — the "United to House LA" transfer tax, live since 1 April 2023 — is an additional documentary transfer tax on high-value property sales inside the City of Los Angeles.
Sale price $5M – $10M 4% of the ENTIRE sale price
Sale price over $10M 5.5% of the ENTIRE sale price
It sits on top of the existing City of LA transfer tax (0.45%) and the LA County tax (0.11%).
Two things about that table cause almost every mistake.
Trap 1 — it's on the whole price, not the amount above the threshold
This is not a marginal bracket like income tax. Cross the threshold and the rate applies to every dollar.
Sale at $4,900,000 ULA owed $0
Sale at $5,000,001 ULA owed $200,000
One dollar of sale price, two hundred thousand dollars of tax.
That cliff is the single most important thing you can tell a seller in that price band. A property that lists at $5.1M and sells at $4.95M can net the seller more than one that sells at $5.05M. Pricing strategy near the threshold is a genuine conversation, not a rounding exercise.
Trap 2 — it's on the sale price, not the profit
ULA doesn't care what the seller paid, what they owe, or whether they made money. It is levied on gross consideration.
A seller who bought at $4.8M in 2022, refinanced to $4.2M, and sells at $5.2M:
Sale price $5,200,000
Mortgage payoff -$4,200,000
Commission (say 5%) -$ 260,000
ULA at 4% -$ 208,000
Other closing costs -$ 60,000
───────────
Seller nets $ 472,000
Now run the same deal at a $4.9M sale price — under the threshold:
Sale price $4,900,000
Mortgage payoff -$4,200,000
Commission (5%) -$ 245,000
ULA -$ 0
Other closing costs -$ 60,000
───────────
Seller nets $ 395,000
Still less. But the gap between those two outcomes is $77,000 on a $300,000 price difference — the tax ate two-thirds of the higher price. In thinner-equity deals the higher sale price genuinely can net less.
Where it applies, and where it doesn't
City of Los Angeles only. This is the part agents get wrong most often, because "LA" in conversation means the county.
Inside the city — including Venice, Brentwood, Bel Air, Hollywood, Silver Lake, Woodland Hills, San Pedro. Not Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, Culver City, Pasadena, Burbank, Glendale, Manhattan Beach or unincorporated county areas.
⚠️ Several of those cities have their own transfer taxes — Santa Monica and Culver City both have high-value tiers of their own. "Not in LA City" does not mean "no transfer tax." Check the specific jurisdiction every time.
Boundaries are genuinely confusing. Parts of a single street can fall either side. Verify the parcel, don't rely on the mailing address.
Things worth knowing
Thresholds adjust for inflation. The $5M and $10M figures are indexed annually. Confirm the current year's numbers with the City before quoting them — do not rely on a blog post, including this one.
It applies to all property types — residential, commercial, multifamily, land.
It applies even at a loss. A seller taking a haircut still owes it.
Some exemptions exist for qualified affordable housing organisations and certain non-profits. They are narrow and they require documentation in advance.
Legal challenges have not removed it. It has faced litigation since passage; as of writing it is being collected. Verify current status before advising.
How to handle it on a listing appointment
Bring it up before you talk price, not after.
"Before we land on a number — if we sell above $5 million, the city takes 4% of the whole sale price, not just the part above five. That's $200,000 at the threshold. So the pricing conversation for your house is a bit different from a normal one, and I want to walk you through it."
Then show them both scenarios in writing. A seller who understands the cliff will trust your pricing recommendation; one who discovers it at closing will remember that you didn't mention it.
You can model the whole thing, including county and city layers, with our transfer tax map.
General information for licensed agents, not tax or legal advice. Rates, thresholds and exemptions change, and jurisdiction boundaries matter enormously here. Confirm with the City of Los Angeles Office of Finance and route the client to their CPA before anyone relies on a number.