The thing is, when the tax burden is evenly spread out, it will rise more in step with the amount of money needed by the city (as decided by voters), not so much the price of the house. Indeed, in a (largely mythical, I know) well-run city, the property tax (in pct) should go down as prices rise. Right now, many California cities are broke, and their only way of raising revenues is to soak the newcomers.