Think Your Property Tax Bill is High? Check Out Orange County’s Biggest Bills!

Think Your Property Tax Bill is High? Check Out Orange County’s Biggest Bills!

March 12, 2025
devinlucas

Every year, Orange County homeowners get that dreaded property tax bill in the mail. With the second installments due around the corner (April 10), we thought it would be fun to compare some of the biggest bills in the County. While the 24-25 data has not yet been published, here’s a rundown of the biggest property tax payers from the 2023-2024 tax rolls. So before you start complaining about your assessment, let’s take a look at some of the biggest property tax bills in the county. Spoiler alert: they’re jaw-dropping.

🏆 The Top 20 Biggest Property Tax Bills in Orange County (2023-24):

If you’re wondering who’s shelling out the most, here are the biggest secured property taxpayers in Orange County this year:

Irvine Company – $192,000,000
Walt Disney Parks & Resorts US – $81,586,405
Southern California Edison (Edison International) – $69,190,004
Sempra Energy (SDG&E, So. Cal Gas) – $22,031,099
United Laguna Hills Mutual (Laguna Woods) – $14,047,335
AT&T (Pacific Bell Telephone Company) – $10,752,652
BEX Portfolio, Inc. – $9,191,610
AES Corporation (Power Generation) – $8,676,607
Olen Properties Corp – $7,845,345
Edwards Lifesciences (Heart Valve Manufacturer) – $6,976,413
B. Braun Medical, Inc. – $6,872,812
Bella Terra Associates, LLC – $6,843,645
LBA IV-PPI LLC (LBA Realty) – $6,562,874
Fertitta MLB Owner LLC (Ritz Carlton) – $6,332,743
South Coast Plaza – $5,687,072
Five Point Holdings, LLC – $5,637,351
United Dominion Realty LP – $5,328,160
Rexford Industrial Realty LP – $4,794,518
Knott’s Berry Farm – $4,692,716
Chapman University – $4,499,752

👉 Bonus Entry: T-Mobile West, LLC comes in just behind Chapman University with $4,327,866 in secured property taxes.

Yes, you read that right—Irvine Company alone pays more in property taxes than some small cities generate in revenue.

Disney’s tax bill is no joke either, but given that Disneyland is practically a city in itself, it makes sense. And if you’re paying a Southern California Edison electric bill, now you know where some of their property tax dollars are going. Author Devin R. Lucas is a Chapman University Alumni and wow, nearly $5mm a year of tuition payments are out the door in property taxes!

Unsecured Property Taxpayers (For businesses without fixed land holdings)

If you think the numbers above are big, check out the largest unsecured taxpayers, which include tech companies, major retailers, and even airlines:

Charter Communications (Time Warner) – $4,048,022
Cox Communications, Inc. – $3,929,705
Allergan, Inc. – $2,161,909
TGS Computing LLC – $1,905,864
Cerberus Capital Management (Albertsons/Vons) – $1,873,200
Applied Medical Resources Corp. – $1,623,090
Johnson & Johnson – $1,598,334
Luxottica of America (Oakley Inc.) – $1,542,207
Panasonic Avionics Corporation – $1,486,706
Amazon Inc. – $1,150,483

What Does This Mean for Orange County?

With $8.75 billion in secured property taxes collected that year, Orange County relies heavily on these top taxpayers to fund public services. From schools and infrastructure to police and fire departments, these tax contributions help maintain OC’s high quality of life.

Per the Assessor’s office, “Orange County’s largest landowners contribute significant revenues to local government, school districts and the county through property taxes, which allows our residents to continue enjoying our great quality of life,” said Orange County Treasurer Shari Freidenrich. “Without the large contributions from these taxpayers, many local government agencies might not have the funds to pay for general government services, such as public safety.”

But shockingly, and perhaps offensively, the County of Orange currently receives only 5 cents of each property tax dollar, significantly lower than the 21 cents received by the County of Los Angeles and 12 cents by the County of San Diego. More than 93 percent of the County’s discretionary portion of the general fund is comprised of property taxes.

In fiscal year 2020-21, Orange County had a secured collection rate of 99.3 percent that was the highest collection rate for all counties over 2 million in population and the third highest collection rate out of the 58 counties. In addition, during the fiscal years from 2014 through 2020, Orange County has had the first or second highest collection rate in the State of California for counties of more than 2 million people.

What Could You Buy with Irvine Company’s Tax Bill?

Just for fun, let’s put that $192 million Irvine Company tax bill into perspective. That’s enough to:
✅ Buy 384 $500,000 homes in Orange County 🏡
✅ Purchase 1,280 brand-new Lexus GX SUVs at $150K each 🚙
✅ Fund 4,800 four-year degrees at USC 🎓💰

So next time you write that property tax check, just remember—someone out there is paying a lot more!

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– Devin Lucas

Author Devin R. Lucas is a Real Estate Broker, REALTOR® and Real Estate Attorney specializing in Newport Beach, Costa Mesa, and Orange County coastal communities. Courtney Lucas, a licensed CPA, Real Estate Salesperson, and REALTOR®, provides expert financial insight alongside real estate services. Together, they lead Lucas Real Estate, operating in conjunction with Coldwell Banker, the region’s premier luxury brokerage.

Lucas Real Estate offers unmatched expertise in California real estate sales, capital gains strategies, and property tax matters, including Propositions 13, 58, 193, 60, 90, and new Proposition 19.

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sources:

OC Assessor’s office – https://www.octreasurer.gov/press/irvine-company-top-taxpayer-orange-county-fy-21-22

OC Assessor’s office – https://octreasurer.gov/sites/ttc/files/2024-09/FY%2023-24%20Top%2020%20Taxpayers%20final.pdf

—-Disclaimer —-

The content on this blog is for informational purposes only. Nothing on this blog should be construed to be legal advice, and you should not act or refrain from acting on the basis of any content on this blog without seeking appropriate legal advice regarding your particular situation, from an attorney licensed to practice law in your state. The content on this blog is not guaranteed to be correct, complete, or up to date. Devin R. Lucas’ office is in Newport Beach, California and is only licensed to practice law in California. Please be advised that Devin R. Lucas only provides legal services or advice pursuant to a written legal services agreement. The content on this blog is not intended to, and does not, create an attorney-client relationship between you and Devin R. Lucas, nor does our receipt of an email or other communication from you. Some jurisdictions may consider this site to constitute attorney advertising; accordingly, please be advised this is an advertisement.

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