South El Monte, CA · Updated Oct 2026

What a South El Monte house pays

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

Sent only to free public map services to find who serves it. Not stored unless you save your house.

Example · a South El Monte house

$9,856a year · $821 a month

Starts at $315,610 of value before exemptions. Typical use.

Property tax$3,464
1.123% of $315,610, less $7,000 homeowners' exemption
Flat charges on the tax bill$152
Sewer $35 · LA County Measure W Safe Clean Water tax (median single-family parcel) $88 · San Gabriel Valley Mosquito and Vector Control assessment $20 · Metropolitan Water District water standby charge (Upper San Gabriel Valley MWD) $9
Electricity and gas$3,505
523 kWh a month $2,637 · 35 therms $869
Water$1,027
10.33 units (CCF) a month on San Gabriel Valley Water Company: water $86 a month
Trash$215
96-gallon trash, recycling and organics carts, $18 a month
Home insurance$1,492
Typical premium $1,492

A typical South El Monte house pays about $9,900 a year: $3,620 property tax and charges, $1,030 water, $210 trash, $3,510 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:

Low-income households: San Gabriel Valley Water discount
San Gabriel Valley Water Company's Customer Assistance Program (CAP) gives qualifying low-income households a discount on water bills; households with a CARE discount on electric or gas may also qualify.
How: Submit the CAP application to the water company by hand, mail or email; renew every two years.
Low-income seniors over 62: Safe, Clean Water parcel tax exemptionNo Safe, Clean Water tax
Owners over 62 who live in the home and head a low-income household can apply for an exemption from the Safe, Clean Water Program special parcel tax; the FY 2027-28 limit is $106,600 for a 2-person household.
How: Submit the claim form to the Safe, Clean Water Program by May 1 each year; call 833-275-7297.

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. Homes in other tax areas add an elementary school district bond rate (about 0.09% to 0.11%).

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 South El Monte house uses about 10.33.

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 38 daysLast day to file a 2026 regular assessment appeal in LA County (filing runs July 2 to November 30).
Dec 10in 48 daysFirst property tax installment (due Nov 1) is late after Dec 10: 10% penalty.
Feb 15in 115 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 late after Apr 10: 10% penalty plus $10.

Who serves this house

Water: San Gabriel Valley Water Company; San Gabriel Valley Water Company, Los Angeles County Tariff Area conservation rates for metered residential customers (its territory includes portions of South El Monte): a monthly service charge plus three tiers per Ccf, the Schedule LA-AS surcharges per Ccf, a $4.45-a-month sur-credit for customers not formerly served by the City of Montebello's water system, and a 0.70% surcharge to fund the Public Utilities Commission.
Property tax: 1.12% of value; 2026-27 tax year, Los Angeles County
Garbage: Athens Services; Athens Services provides trash and recycling services to residents in the City of South El Monte.
Sewer: City of South El Monte; The City charges a Sewer Service Fee on all parcels, collected on the County of Los Angeles tax roll.
Electricity: Southern California Edison; Southern California Edison is the electrical provider for the area.
Gas: SoCalGas; Southern California Gas Company lists South El Monte among the cities it serves.

Pay or manage your bills

Your water

Source: Except in its Whittier/Santa Fe Springs area, the company's 2025 water was groundwater from the Main San Gabriel Basin.
Standards: The company says the water it supplied in 2025 met all state and federal drinking water standards.
Lead pipes: Its service line inventory found no lead or galvanized service lines requiring replacement.

Other CA cities

How these numbers are made

Individual bills are confidential in California, so we calculate yours from public rates and what you tell us.
Property tax: tax rate area 9230 (the most common area for South El Monte's single-family parcels, 942 of about 2,150) and areas 9207 pay the 1% levy plus El Monte Union High School District and Rio Hondo Community College District bonds and the Metropolitan Water District's 0.0085%, 1.122567% in total per the County Auditor-Controller's 2026-27 tax rate area file; other areas add an elementary district bond rate (0.093018% or 0.107266%). The City levies no ad valorem rate of its own (0 in the file). The $7,000 homeowners' exemption comes off the value.
The starting value is the median 2026 roll value of South El Monte parcels coded single-family; Prop 13 values of long-held homes are far below market.
Flat charges on the tax bill: the City Sewer Service Fee ($35.37 per sewer unit in the FY2026-27 budget; we assume one unit for a single-family house), Measure W (2.5 cents per square foot of impermeable area, median $87.63 for South El Monte single-family parcels), the $20 mosquito district assessment and the Upper San Gabriel Valley MWD standby charge ($9.27). We did not find whether LA County Sanitation District charges apply to South El Monte parcels, so none is included and the sewer and flat-charge lines may leave out county sanitation charges.
Trash is the Athens 96-gallon three-cart rate of $17.91 a month set January 1, 2022; the City's later yearly CPI-plus-1% adjustments were not found, so current bills are likely higher. We found no City tax on energy bills, so none is included.
Water is San Gabriel Valley Water Company's Los Angeles County schedule LA-1C rates with surcharges and the 0.70% PUC fee; electricity is SCE's Domestic rate as of June 1, 2026 (from a July 2026 comparison), a flat all-in average rather than tiers or time-of-use, and gas is SoCalGas's March 2026 typical bill ($72.39 for 35 therms) less the fixed charge, per therm, which is below the $2.10 bundled average; the fixed charge is the September 2025 figure, as in neighboring El Monte.
Water uses the Schedule LA-1C sheet effective July 20, 2026 (service charge $32.78) less the $4.45 monthly sur-credit that applies to customers not formerly served by Montebello's system; we did not find the other tariff sheets for the 2026 rate case. Homeowners insurance is the 2022 California average; premiums have likely risen since, so this line is probably low.
Nothing here is legal, tax or insurance advice.

Sources

Common questions about South El Monte house costs

What is the property tax rate in South El Monte?

About 1.12% of the value before exemptions a year (2026-27 tax year, Los Angeles County), plus flat charges on the same bill (Sewer $35, LA County Measure W Safe Clean Water tax (median single-family parcel) $88, San Gabriel Valley Mosquito and Vector Control assessment $20, Metropolitan Water District water standby charge (Upper San Gabriel Valley MWD) $9).

How much is property tax on a $500,000 house in South El Monte?

About $5,687 a year on $500,000 of the value before exemptions with the homeowners' exemption, including $152 of flat charges.

How much is the water bill in South El Monte?

About $86 a month for water at typical use (10.33 units, or 7,727 gallons a month) on San Gabriel Valley Water Company.

How much does trash pickup cost in South El Monte?

$18 a month for a house.

When is property tax due in South El Monte?

Dec 10: First property tax installment (due Nov 1) is late after Dec 10: 10% penalty. Apr 10: Second property tax installment (due Feb 1) is late after Apr 10: 10% penalty plus $10.

Can seniors lower their property tax or bills in South El Monte?

Yes. Low-income seniors over 62: Safe, Clean Water parcel tax exemption: Owners over 62 who live in the home and head a low-income household can apply for an exemption from the Safe, Clean Water Program special parcel tax; the FY 2027-28 limit is $106,600 for a 2-person household.

Where can I get help paying utility bills in South El Monte?

Low-income households: San Gabriel Valley Water discount: San Gabriel Valley Water Company's Customer Assistance Program (CAP) gives qualifying low-income households a discount on water bills; households with a CARE discount on electric or gas may also qualify. Submit the CAP application to the water company by hand, mail or email; renew every two years.

How much does a house in South El Monte cost to run each year?

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