Piedmont voters will decide on Nov. 3 whether to raise the one-time tax charged when a home changes hands. Measure GG would lift the city's real estate transfer tax from 1.3% to 1.75% of the sale price — from $13 to $17.50 per $1,000 — starting July 1, 2027. The city estimates about $1.5 million more a year for general services such as police, fire, parks, roads and storm drains. It needs a simple majority. No argument against the measure was filed by the Aug. 3 deadline.

For other East Bay and statewide contests on the same ballot, see our Nov. 3, 2026 Bay Area election guide.

What a yes vote does

According to the city's election page, Measure GG FAQ and the City Attorney's impartial analysis, a yes vote would:

  • Raise the transfer tax from 1.3% ($13 per $1,000) to 1.75% ($17.50 per $1,000) when property is sold or transferred for value.
  • Put the new rate in force on July 1, 2027.
  • Keep the levy as a general tax that can fund any legitimate city purpose, not a locked project list.
  • Retitle the city code as the "Real Estate Transfer Tax" and leave the tax in place until voters end it.

On a $1 million sale, the city tax would rise from $13,000 to $17,500. On a $3.3 million sale — about the year-to-date average Piedmont price cited by the Budget Advisory and Financial Planning Committee — it would rise from roughly $42,900 to about $57,750. Buyers and sellers in Alameda County typically split the city transfer tax equally, though they can negotiate otherwise.

What a no vote does

If Measure GG fails, the 1.3% rate stays. Voters last set that rate in 1993; Piedmont has had a local transfer tax since 1968. A prior increase, Measure TT in November 2020, failed by a small margin, the Budget Advisory Committee noted when it recommended trying again with updated figures.

Why it is on the ballot

Piedmont has almost no retail tax base, so it leans on the transfer tax more than neighbors with commercial districts. The FAQ says rehabilitating buildings, parks, streets, sidewalks and storm drains is getting costlier while service costs outpace available revenue. The City Council asked the Budget Advisory Committee to study options; the committee recommended a rate in the $15–$17 per $1,000 range, and the council settled on 1.75% after approving Ordinance 792 N.S. in June and July 2026.

The FAQ compares Piedmont with nearby cities: Oakland charges 1.75% on sales between $2 million and $5 million (and 2.5% above that); Berkeley charges 2.5% on sales of $1.6 million or more. Recent transfer-tax receipts have been large but uneven — about $4.5 million in FY 2024-25 — and the impartial analysis estimates the increase itself would add about $1,521,000 a year.

Who is for it — and who is not

An argument in favor was filed; the city says no opposing argument was submitted. The tax is paid only when property transfers for money; gifts, many trust transfers, government acquisitions and transfers in lieu of foreclosure remain among the exemptions.

How to vote

Mail ballots are already out. Piedmont voters will also choose three City Council seats. Compare other local transfer-tax fights in our guides to San Rafael Measure W and Oakland Measure FF, or the broader funding picture in Hercules Measure P.