Mello-Roos in Mountain House & Tracy Hills: What Buyers Actually Pay

Short answer: Most homes in Mountain House and Tracy Hills carry a Mello-Roos special tax (also called a Community Facilities District, or CFD, tax) on top of the regular property tax. In Mountain House, the school facilities CFDs alone are listed at roughly $1,500 to $2,600 a year per single-family lot for fiscal year 2026/27, and other charges can be added. In Tracy Hills the amount depends on the improvement area, the home and the district, so the only reliable number is the one on the parcel's Notice of Special Tax and county tax bill.

If you are comparing homes in these two Central Valley communities, Mello-Roos is often the biggest difference between a monthly payment that works and one that does not. This guide explains how it works, what official sources actually say, and how to check any specific address before you make an offer.

What is Mello-Roos?

Mello-Roos is the common name for the Mello-Roos Community Facilities Act of 1982, found at Government Code section 53311 and following. It lets cities, counties, school districts and other local agencies form a Community Facilities District to pay for public facilities and, in some cases, services. A district typically sells bonds to build things like schools, roads, water and sewer lines, and repays them with an annual special tax charged to the properties inside the district.

Because it is a special tax tied to a parcel, it is separate from the base property tax that is calculated from assessed value. The district's formula (called a rate and method of apportionment) sets how much each parcel pays, commonly using factors such as home size or lot size rather than price.

How does Mello-Roos show up on a property tax bill?

In San Joaquin County, special taxes appear as line items on the secured property tax bill. The County Treasurer-Tax Collector's page explains that the Auditor's Office adds direct charges and special assessments to the tax bills, which are then mailed and collected by the Treasurer-Tax Collector. Lammersville Unified School District confirms the same for Mountain House: its CFD special tax is included on the secured tax bills issued by San Joaquin County.

Look for line items labeled with a CFD name and number. The county collects the money, but it does not set the amounts. Questions about a specific charge go to the district named on the bill. For payment mechanics, see the County Treasurer-Tax Collector (linked in Sources).

How much is Mello-Roos in Mountain House?

Mountain House became a city on July 1, 2024. Its schools are served by Lammersville Unified School District, which lists five school facilities CFDs. Lammersville states that, generally speaking, all new residential development in Mountain House is within one of them. The table below shows the district's published fiscal year 2026/27 figures for single-family homes. These are examples only: your parcel's CFD, lot size and any additional district charges will determine your actual bill.

Three details matter here. First, the district states that the maximum special tax rates for each CFD increase automatically 2% each fiscal year. Second, the district states that the CFDs do not allow any exemptions or discounts. Third, newer CFDs have higher rates and later end dates, so a newer tract can cost more per year and for longer than an older one. As a rough translation, $2,607.52 a year works out to about $217 a month, before any other special taxes on the parcel.

These figures cover school facilities only. Other district charges, such as municipal or community services levies, can appear on the same bill, so read every line of the parcel's bill rather than stopping at the school CFD.

How much is Mello-Roos in Tracy Hills?

Tracy Hills is a master-planned area within the City of Tracy, and its special taxes come from City of Tracy districts rather than a single school-district program. The City's finance pages list CFD No. 2016-1 (Tracy Hills), which is divided into improvement areas and has issued special tax bonds, and CFD No. 2018-1 (Maintenance and Public Services), whose initial boundaries include a portion of Tracy Hills and which funds ongoing services such as landscape, park and open space, retention basin and road maintenance and police protection.

I am not quoting a Tracy Hills dollar figure because the rate depends on the improvement area, the product type and the year, and I could not confirm a current per-home amount in an official source. What buyers can say with confidence is that a Tracy Hills home may carry more than one CFD charge, that the infrastructure bonds and the services district are separate, and that each has its own terms. The City of Tracy posts its CFD tax administration and bond disclosure reports, and the Notice of Special Tax for the specific parcel is the controlling document.

Mountain House vs. Tracy Hills: how do they compare?

How do Mello-Roos taxes differ by tract and phase?

The same city can have several CFDs. Within Mountain House, the table above shows older and newer districts with different rates and end dates, and the rate can also depend on lot size. In Tracy Hills, bond-financed improvement areas and the services district are separate levies. That means the home next door can be in a different district, and a seller's neighbor is not a reliable guide to your bill. Check the parcel, not the neighborhood.

How long does Mello-Roos last, and does it increase?

Special taxes usually run until the bonds are repaid and are capped at a stated final year. Many have an annual escalator built into the maximum rate. In Mountain House the school CFDs escalate the maximum rate by 2% each fiscal year and have final years between 2050-51 and 2075-76 according to Lammersville Unified. Actual levies can be lower than the maximum in some districts, so ask what the district has levied recently and what it is allowed to levy. If you are buying with a long hold in mind, the end date and escalator matter as much as today's number.

How can I check Mello-Roos on a specific home?

1. Pull the county tax bill. Use the San Joaquin County Treasurer-Tax Collector to get the parcel's secured tax bill and read every CFD or special assessment line.
2. Request the seller's Mello-Roos disclosure and Notice of Special Tax. California law requires the seller to make a good-faith effort to obtain the notice from each local agency and deliver it to the buyer, and state law also requires CFD taxes to be disclosed during the purchase process.
3. Read the preliminary title report. It lists recorded special tax liens.
4. Ask the district. For Mountain House school CFDs, Lammersville Unified lists a consultant for CFD questions on its CFD page. For Tracy, contact the City's Finance Department.
5. Compare maximum vs. actual. Ask for the maximum rate, the escalator, the final year and what is currently being levied.

Is Mello-Roos tax deductible?

Often not, or not fully. Federal rules generally treat charges for specific local improvements differently from value-based property taxes, and Mello-Roos taxes are not based on assessed value. Some portion may be treated differently depending on how the district uses the money, so the answer is not the same for every CFD. This is general information, not tax advice. Ask a tax professional before claiming any deduction, and ask the district whether it can provide a breakdown of what the special tax funds.

How does Mello-Roos affect affordability?

Lenders include special taxes in the monthly housing payment when they qualify you, so a higher CFD charge can reduce how much home you can finance. It also affects resale, because the next buyer will see the same charge. When you compare a Mountain House or Tracy Hills home with one in an older neighborhood that has no CFD, compare total monthly cost rather than list price. Our property tax calculator and affordability calculator can help you model the payment, and the True Cost section explains what else belongs in a monthly budget. For neighborhood context, see the guides for Mountain House and Tracy, plus the Tracy Hills neighborhood guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources

• Lammersville Unified School District, Community Facilities Districts (CFD), fiscal year 2026/27 rates, escalator and terms
• San Joaquin County Treasurer-Tax Collector, Property tax information
• City of Tracy Finance Department, Assessment Districts, CFDs and LMDs and Budget and Financial Documents (CFD tax administration and CDIAC reports)
• California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission, Mello-Roos and local debt information
• California Government Code, Section 53311 (Mello-Roos Community Facilities Act of 1982)
• California Civil Code, Section 1102.6b (special tax and assessment disclosure on transfer)
• Contra Costa News, Mountain House becomes California's newest city on July 1 (incorporation date)
• Internal Revenue Service, Publication 530, Tax Information for Homeowners (general rules on deducting taxes and assessments)