California · Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area

Buying a home in Westminster, California

In Westminster, the median value of owner-occupied homes is $858,300, Orange County's effective property tax rate is 0.66%, a purchase mortgage carried a median $9,436 in total loan costs in 2025, and median gross rent is $2,168 a month.

Data as of : Census ACS 2020-2024, Census Vintage 2024, HMDA 2025, HUD FY 2027. Sources

Westminster home costs, fact by fact

About Westminster

Westminster, California, has 89,537 residents and is part of the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area. Orange County's effective property tax rate (median tax as a share of home value) is 0.66%, and 53.4% of homes are owner-occupied.

Reading the Westminster figures

Westminster's owner-estimated median of $858,300 is higher than the California median of $770,700, yet lower than Orange County's median of $962,600. Among the other covered California cities, Oakland reads $929,900, Los Angeles shows $921,200, and San Diego comes in at $906,700. Fullerton stands at $902,600, and San Marcos is a little lower, at $868,000. Hawthorne reports $863,400, Hayward reads $854,400, so Westminster sits in a tight cluster. Whittier reads $822,600, and Ventura reads $827,300. These are owners' estimates, not sale prices.

The county tax figures give context. Orange County's effective rate is 0.66%, which puts annual property tax at $6,330 for the median home. Because the county median value is higher than Westminster's own estimate, a buyer should ask for the actual assessment on a specific house rather than assume the county bill applies.

Owners occupy 53.4% of homes, below the shares in San Marcos (63.7%) and Simi Valley (72.9%), and above those in Los Angeles (36%) and Anaheim (46.2%). Hawthorne, at 27.2%, is the lowest among those named, and Fullerton, at 51.8%, sits just under Westminster's share. Typical rent is $2,168 a month, lower than rent in San Diego, which reads $2,313, Hayward, which reads $2,391, and Simi Valley, which reads $2,579, yet above Oakland's $1,979. HUD's Fair Market Rent benchmark for the Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine area is $3,057, a federal reference figure and not a market median, and it runs above the median rent in every city named here.

Financing is the heaviest cost after the price. Lenders filed 12,159 Orange County loans under HMDA for 2025, and the middle loan cost $9,436 to originate. The interquartile range runs from $7,052 to $15,094, so the cost of a particular loan depends on its size and terms more than on the city. Westminster has 89,537 residents, fewer than Fullerton's 140,054 or Hayward's 158,440, yet more than Hawthorne's 83,633 or San Leandro's 86,571. It lies in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim metro area, which ranks 2nd nationally with 12,927,614 people, and is one of the 104 covered California cities.

A last cross-reading ties value to rent for the cities around Westminster. Fullerton pairs a $902,600 estimate with $2,194 in rent, San Marcos pairs $868,000 with $2,348, and Hayward pairs $854,400 with $2,391. Hawthorne reads $863,400 with rent of $1,782, and San Leandro $844,200 with $2,186. Whittier, at $822,600, has rent of $1,906. Against that set Westminster shows a value in the same band and a rent in the middle of the listed figures, with Hawthorne lower and Hayward higher. The pairing does not say which place is the better purchase; it only places Westminster's figures among cities with comparable owner estimates, so a buyer can see how value and rent move together.

Calculate for California

If you buy

California state transfer tax

California has no state transfer tax; counties and cities may charge one.

Price$770,700
State transfer taxnot computed
Who paysSet by the purchase contract

Default price: the California median value of owner-occupied homes, $770,700 (Census ACS 2025). Not computed: No state tax. The tax is set by county and city, so it cannot be computed from the state alone. Who pays: Neither the state statute nor the City of Los Angeles FAQ assigns the tax; the purchase contract and escrow instructions decide. Not included: county and city transfer taxes, recording fees, title insurance and lender charges. California transfer tax guide · all 50 states.

If you sell

Capital gain and the federal tax on it

Same federal rule in every state: Section 121 of the Internal Revenue Code excludes up to $250,000 of gain on a main home ($500,000 for a married couple filing jointly).

Capital gain$350,000
Section 121 exclusion$250,000 (limit $250,000)
Taxable gain$100,000
Type of gainLong-term (owned over 1 year), 15% chosen
Federal tax on the gain$15,000

Section 121 excludes $250,000; the rest is taxable.

Gain = sale price minus your adjusted basis (purchase price, buying costs and improvements); selling expenses reduce it (IRS Publication 523). Long-term rates for sales in 2026, by taxable income including the gain (IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32, section 4.03): 0% up to $49,450 single or $98,900 married filing jointly, 15% up to $545,500 single or $613,700 jointly, 20% above. Not included: California state income tax on the gain (not computed), the net investment income tax, depreciation recapture on a rental or home office, and the reduced exclusion for an early sale. Agent commissions are negotiated and never set by law. Capital gains on a home sale.

Questions about buying a home in Westminster

How much is property tax in Westminster?

Homeowners in Orange County pay a median $6,330 a year in property tax, 0.66% of the county median home value of $962,600 (Census ACS 2020-2024). Your bill depends on your assessed value and local rates.

What are closing costs on a mortgage in Westminster?

Home-purchase mortgages in Orange County carried median total loan costs of $9,436 in 2025; half of the 12,159 loans fell between $7,052 and $15,094 (HMDA). Total loan costs are the lender and settlement-service charges of the Closing Disclosure; transfer taxes and prepaid items come on top.

Is there a transfer tax when you buy a home in Westminster?

California has no state transfer tax. Counties may charge $0.55 per $500 of value under the Documentary Transfer Tax Act, and cities such as Los Angeles add their own, with Measure ULA adding 4% or 5.5% on very high-priced sales.

Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Westminster?

It depends on your mortgage rate, down payment and how long you stay. As a benchmark, the median value of owner-occupied homes in Westminster ($858,300) equals 33 years of the median gross rent ($2,168 a month), both from Census ACS 2020-2024.

What natural hazards affect home insurance in Westminster?

Across California, the main hazards for home insurance are earthquake, wildfire, flood and landslide, and the insurer of last resort is California FAIR Plan. A standard California homeowners policy does not cover earthquake damage; insurers must offer earthquake coverage (Insurance Code 10081), and the FAIR Plan sells limited fire coverage up to $3 million for residential policyholders.

Run your own numbers: rent vs buy calculator · closing costs calculator.

California rules that apply in Westminster

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Sources

California · All states · Federal guides