The market sure has been good to Ernie – hope he never has trouble paying the bills:

County Assessor Ernest Dronenburg announced Thursday that the county’s 2019 assessed value of taxable property is almost $575 billion, a nearly 6% increase over last year.

It’s the fifth consecutive year the assessment roll has increased by 5% or more, according to Dronenburg, who also serves as county Clerk and Recorder. The increase is likely due to improvements in the housing market, business property values and the economy in general, he said.

“Increases to the business roll are strong indicators that business owners are optimistic about the local economy and are making capital investments in property, plant and equipment,” Dronenburg said. “This year, 85% of San Diego’s taxpayers are protected by Proposition 13’s provisions, which limits their property increase to only 2%.”

According to Dronenburg, the net assessed value roll is $551.9 billion after deducting various property tax exemptions. About 1% of the net assessment roll, $5.51 billion, will be used to fund public facilities and services like schools, law enforcement departments and parks.

The assessment roll is composed of more than one million parcels of land, more than 50,000 businesses, 13,000-plus boats and nearly 2,000 airplanes and other aircraft.

Residents will be able to view the assessed value of their property assets on July 1 by visiting the Assessor/Recorder/Clerk’s website, sdarcc.com, or by calling Dronenburg’s office at 619-236-3771. In addition to assessed values, residents also have access to applications for property tax exemption.