Three LA Deeds Show Land Priced Far Above Permit Value

Three Los Angeles County parcels recorded deed values far above the only construction permit on file for each site, according to our own records wire. It is the reverse of the gap we flagged on four other parcels on October 17.

At 13961 Aubrey Rd in Bel Air, a deed recorded November 5, 2025 under document 0770362 implies a value of $20.0 million based on the documentary transfer tax, against LA County Assessor parcel 2272032073. The only construction permit on file for that parcel, already issued, carries a declared value of just $1.0 million. At 15450 Plummer St in Mission Hills, a deed recorded January 28, 2026 under document 0063519 implies $23.5 million on parcel 2656016010, against an issued permit valued at $2.3 million. At 3318 La Cienega Pl, a deed recorded October 28, 2025 under document 0744814 implies $32.0 million on parcel 4205033001, against a permit valued at $2.5 million that has been submitted but not yet issued.

Why it matters

Land priced this far above the only permitted work on file usually does not mean the land is overpriced. It more often means the buyer is land-banking, holding the site for a larger entitlement still to come, or the permit on record covers minor work that has nothing to do with what the site eventually holds. No buyer or seller name appears on any of the three assessor records, so none can be named here.

Each value is implied from the county’s base transfer tax of $1.10 per $1,000, not a stated sale price. All three cross both Measure ULA thresholds that apply to transfers inside Los Angeles city limits: 4 percent above $5 million and 5.5 percent above $10 million. Each figure is a floor, not an exact price.

The numbers

• $20.0 million deed vs. $1.0 million permit: 13961 Aubrey Rd, Bel Air, parcel 2272032073
• $23.5 million deed vs. $2.3 million permit: 15450 Plummer St, Mission Hills, parcel 2656016010
• $32.0 million deed vs. $2.5 million permit: 3318 La Cienega Pl, parcel 4205033001

What’s next

On October 17, our wire flagged the opposite gap on four other LA parcels, with land trading well under permit value. Together the two sets show the same mechanism cutting both ways: deed price and permitted construction value on a single parcel often do not match. We will track whether any of these three sites files a new permit that brings the two figures closer together.

Related: land priced below permit value, Century City’s permit-deed gap, Los Angeles market coverage