Los Angeles daily herald., 1889-03-22
ASSESSING THE COUNTY.
What Will the Valuation
Be This Year?
A COMPLICATED SUBJECT.
The Relative Duty of the Assessor
and of the Taxpayers in
the Premises.
A COMPLICATED SUBJECT,

For two years past there has been no
small amount of discussion az to the
proper method of assessing the property
of this county. The true spirit Of the
law is one that would equalize the valua-
tons put on the property of this county
and those put on the property Of similar
counties of the State. 1t is question
largely Of equity between the several
counties. Los Angeles has been under
going boom in realty such as no
other section perhaps ever ex-
perienced. In single year
near $10O0OO,0OO worth of property
changed hands. In such an event there
was inevitably more or less wild apeeu.
lation INDUCED in. Population was COM
ing in here like a great flood, and it
appeared as if the people of the entire
Union would try to crowd into the
small space OF country embraced in
Southern California. Towns were laid
out in all directions, and thousands OF
acres of land were cut up into twenty-five
or fifty foot lots. 1t would require d
round million of people to occupy all
these lots. Now that the present is but
a iull in this great era of growth and
development is not to be doubted. Los
Angeles will be in short time the most
densely populated district in the Union,
and it will be by far the most productive
section from an agricultural point OF
view. Lands and lots here will be
, worth much more than in any other
portion of the Republic, and they will be
worth more than in any other portion OF
the State. But it is not the province of
the Assessor to attempt to discount
the future, nor should he be
too quick to follow the upward trend OF
prices in boom period. If these re-
Elections had any force year ago, they
apply with greatly increased emphasis
to the current year. There is no boom
on now Matters have, in the calm mo-
ments of second thought, settled to a
basis more nearly in accordance with
present facts and with the outlook for
the immediate future. If the Assessors
task was a hard one last year it will
be doubly difficult this season. He
and his deputies will be obliged to make
a most careful revision of all the property
of the county. The HERALD has tried
not to do Mr.. Mason any injustice in the
criticisms it has INDUCED in on his Off
Cldl Ii Will 10 Eldti W
a new departure on his part this year,
and to say, when the assessment is COM
plete, that it ia fair one to the taxpay.
ers. There are not wanting signs that
he and his deputies all try to readjust
the valuation to the eSigencies OF the
situation. 1t has never been held that
all the property Of the county was
assessed too high. 1t is more than
probable that in many cases the Valua-
tion of even last year is quite low
enough. Indeed, there may be cases
where paying property might be rated
even higher now than it was year ago.
The rents, profits and issues of some
pieces of improved realty would justify
such a course. But in the cases of town
lots which sold at high fig
ures during the boom, very
careful estimate should be made.
All the letter of the law requires is that
the property should be rated at what it
would bring if forced on man in pay
ment of a solvent debt. That is far from
what it would bring in times OF specula-
tive excitement, or from what it would
bring even from a man who wished to buy
it as an investment or for q home. The
question is not what the property might
sell for to some person who puts fancy
price on it, but what will man give for
il in payment of debt when he does
not want it, and would much prefer to
have his money.
HOW THE LAW STANDS.