Seal Beach, CA · Updated Oct 2026

What a Seal Beach home costs each year

Property tax, water, trash and energy from public rates. Look up your address to make it yours, and see how to pay less.

Suggestions as you type come from Google; the lookup uses free public map services to find who serves it. Not stored unless you save your house.

Example · a Seal Beach house

$12,815a year · $1,068 a month

Starts at the typical market value, $486,800; your assessed value is often lower. Typical use.

A Seal Beach house at the typical market value ($486,800) costs about $12,800 a year: $5,740 property tax and charges, $1,680 water and sewer, $350 trash, $3,560 electricity and gas, $1,490 home insurance. Estimated from public rates, not anyone's actual bill.

Rates checked Oct 22, 2026. Insurance: what you enter, or a typical premium until you do. Sources are listed at the bottom.

Ways to pay less

Nothing here applies to every house automatically. These are worth checking:

Adjust to match your bills

What you know

Value before exemptionsUnder Prop 13 your assessed value starts at your purchase price and can rise at most 2% a year, so it is often far below market: use the assessed value on your tax bill.

I live here and have the Homeowners' exemption

Home insurance, a yearFrom your policy. We start at $1,492, NAIC data via the Insurance Information Institute; California figures from the California Department of Insurance.

Earthquake insurance, a yearSeparate from home insurance. Most owners don't have it.

Your use

Water, units a month

On your water bill. 1 unit (CCF) is 748 gallons. A typical house uses 7–12.

Electricity, kWh a month

On your Southern California Edison bill. An electric car adds about 300 kWh.

Gas, therms a month (yearly average)

Money dates

Nov 30, 2026in 37 daysLast day to file a 2026 regular assessment appeal in Orange County (filing runs July 2 to November 30 at 5:00 p.m.).
Dec 10in 47 daysFirst property tax installment (due Nov 1) is delinquent after Dec 10: 10% penalty.
Feb 15in 114 daysLast day for a first-time homeowners' exemption claim to get the full exemption for the year.
Apr 10Second property tax installment (due Feb 1) is delinquent after Apr 10: 10% penalty plus $23 per bill (the next business day if April 10 falls on a weekend or legal holiday).

Who serves this house

Water: City of Seal Beach; City of Seal Beach rates effective July 1, 2026, billed every two months: $86.94 for a 5/8-inch meter plus $6.40 per hcf for the first 17 hcf and $6.77 per hcf above 17 hcf (single-family).
Property tax: 1.11% of value; 2026-27 tax year, Orange County (tax rate area 12-009)
Garbage: Republic Services; Trash collection for residences is billed with the City of Seal Beach water bill.
Sewer: City of Seal Beach and OC San; The City's utility bill carries a flat wastewater charge; OC San's regional sewer fee is an annual charge on the property tax bill.
Electricity: Southern California Edison; Southern California Edison is listed as the electricity provider on the City's utilities page.
Gas: SoCalGas; Southern California Gas Company serves natural gas in each of the cities on its list, including Seal Beach, Orange County.

Pay or manage your bills

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How these numbers are made

Individual bills are confidential in California, so we calculate yours from public rates and what you tell us.,City utility bill (rate sheet 'As of September 1, 2025', July 1, 2026 column, bi-monthly figures halved): water $86.94 a bill for a 5/8-inch meter and $6.40 per hcf up to 17 hcf per bill (8.5 a month) then $6.77; wastewater flat $77.89; trash $28.92 a month, Republic Services' own Seal Beach rate sheet effective 7/1/26-6/30/27 (republicservices.com, Seal-Beach-Rate-Sheet-2026-2027.pdf); the city's rate sheet trash table ends at the July 1, 2025 column ($49.12 a bill, $24.56 a month) and its 2026 trash figure is not published, so this is Republic's rate and the city's bill could differ slightly. Street sweeping and tree trimming appear as small line items on a 2021 sample bill and are not counted. The page starts at 9 Ccf because the City publishes no typical use.,Property tax: tax rate area 12-009 (Los Alamitos Unified, Coast Community College, MWDOC bonds), 1.11314% in 2026-27 from the Orange County rate book, less the $7,000 homeowners' exemption. Several other Seal Beach areas carry the same 1.11314% (e.g. 12-011, 12-012, 12-018 to 12-024); some are 1.11374% (12-005, 12-006, 12-014, 12-015, with North Orange County CCD), 1.03374% (12-007, no school bonds), 1.10226% (12-008, Westminster SD) or 1.10101% (12-017, Garden Grove USD); we could not tell which area holds the most homes. OC San's $397 regional fee is added as a yearly charge on the tax bill; OC San's $108 local fee is not counted because the City, not OC San, runs local sewers. The starting value is the Census median market value of owner-occupied units; under Prop 13 a home's assessed value can be far lower.,Electricity: SCE Domestic rate with SCE generation ($0.38865 per kWh plus the $24.15 Base Services Charge), as used for neighboring Orange County cities; Seal Beach is not assumed to be in the Orange County Power Authority. Gas: SoCalGas August 2026 average non-CARE bill at 35 therms. Leisure World is served separately (not modelled).,Insurance starts at the 2022 California average; home values here are above average, so quotes are likely higher.
Nothing here is legal, tax or insurance advice.

Sources

How Seal Beach compares

A typical Seal Beach house against the 207 California cities we cover, using the same default numbers as the total above.

Per year	Seal Beach	Median	Where it falls
Property tax rate	1.11%	1.13%	lower than 134 of the other 206 California cities we cover
Water	$1,215	$944	higher than 162 of the other 206 California cities we cover
Sewer and utility-bill fees	$467	$582	lower than 87 of the other 136 California cities we cover
Trash	$347	$443	lower than 157 of the other 187 California cities we cover
Electricity and gas	$3,556	$3,463	higher than 118 of the other 206 California cities we cover
Home insurance	$1,492	$1,492	in the middle of 201 other California cities we cover
Total	$12,815	$14,973	lower than 148 of the other 206 California cities we cover

Cities bill differently (some put trash on the tax bill, some cover more services), so a higher number isn't necessarily worse. The property tax rate is compared instead of dollars because house values differ.

Questions to ask your candidates

Each one starts from a number above. Any candidate can answer them.

1. Water

The fact: Water here costs about $1,215 a year at typical use, higher than 162 of the other 206 California cities we cover.

Ask: "Water here costs about $1,215 a year at typical use, higher than 162 of the other 206 California cities we cover. What drives that cost, and would you change anything?"

2. Trash

The fact: Trash pickup here costs about $347 a year for the standard cart, lower than 157 of the other 187 California cities we cover. Where trash is billed through the tax bill or a separate hauler, it is not counted here.

Ask: "Trash pickup here costs about $347 a year for the standard cart, lower than 157 of the other 187 California cities we cover. What drives that cost, and would you change anything about the service or the price?"

See who is running in your city →

Common questions about Seal Beach house costs

What is the property tax rate in Seal Beach?

About 1.11% of the value before exemptions a year (2026-27 tax year, Orange County (tax rate area 12-009)), plus flat charges on the same bill (OC San regional sewer service fee $397).

How much is property tax on a $500,000 house in Seal Beach?

About $5,885 a year on $500,000 of the value before exemptions with the homeowners' exemption, including $397 of flat charges.

How much is the water bill in Seal Beach?

About $140 a month for water and sewer at typical use (9 units, or 6,732 gallons a month) on City of Seal Beach.

How much does trash pickup cost in Seal Beach?

$29 a month for a house.

When is property tax due in Seal Beach?

Dec 10: First property tax installment (due Nov 1) is delinquent after Dec 10: 10% penalty. Apr 10: Second property tax installment (due Feb 1) is delinquent after Apr 10: 10% penalty plus $23 per bill (the next business day if April 10 falls on a weekend or legal holiday).

How much does a house in Seal Beach cost to run each year?

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