Buying a Home in Yolo County, CA: Transfer Tax, Yolo Bypass & Davis CFDs

The Yolo Bypass floods by design in wet years — a working flood-control feature, not a hazard footnote — while the county's western hills carry real, separate wildfire risk.

Yolo County, home to UC Davis and the cities of Davis, Woodland, West Sacramento, and Winters, sits directly across the Sacramento River from the state capital. Its real estate quirks split into two very different geographies: a flood-engineered valley floor around Davis and West Sacramento, and a genuinely fire-prone western hill country toward the Capay Valley.

What’s the transfer tax in Yolo County?

Yolo County's rate is flat across the entire county at $1.10 per $1,000 of consideration, with no city — including Davis, West Sacramento, Winters, or Woodland — imposing an additional surcharge on top.

Every incorporated Yolo city sits at the same combined $1.10/$1,000 total — the standard $0.55 county + $0.55 city split, not an add-on. On a $500,000 sale, that's $550 in transfer tax anywhere in the county.

What is the Yolo Bypass and does it affect property flood risk?

The Yolo Bypass is a leveed, roughly 59,000-acre engineered floodplain — about 40 miles long and up to 3 miles wide — that forms a core piece of the Sacramento River Flood Control Project and can carry about four times more flow than the Sacramento River channel itself.

It floods by design in wet years — this is intentional flood-control engineering (and working farmland/wetland habitat in the off-season), not a failure of the system. Property near the bypass margins should be checked against current FEMA flood zone maps, since the bypass's operational flooding is a known, mapped, and expected event rather than a rare hazard.

Which jurisdiction controls land-use near Davis's city edge?

It may not default to the county — the 1987 Davis-Yolo Pass-Through Agreement is the one agreement among Yolo County's cities that gives Davis land-use control (effectively a veto) over certain adjacent unincorporated areas, in exchange for the city sharing redevelopment-related tax revenue with the county.

If you're buying near Davis's edge, confirm which jurisdiction actually controls land-use decisions for that specific parcel. Separately, Davis and Woodland jointly operate the Woodland-Davis Clean Water Agency, a joint powers authority drawing treated Sacramento River surface water (about 45,000 acre-feet/year) that serves more than two-thirds of the county's urban population, including UC Davis.

Does Davis have Mello-Roos CFDs?

Yes — the City of Davis currently has seven active Community Facilities Districts, per the city's own Finance Department disclosures, meaning Mello-Roos special taxes are a live consideration for a meaningful share of Davis-area housing stock.

California Civil Code §1102.6b requires the seller to make a good-faith effort to obtain and deliver a Notice of Special Tax before close. Confirm CFD status directly for any specific Davis-area parcel, particularly newer subdivisions.

Is western Yolo County at wildfire risk?

Yes — unlike the flat, agricultural valley floor around Davis and Woodland, the western edge of the county (Esparto, Winters, and the Capay Valley communities of Rumsey, Guinda, Brooks, and Capay) sits in CAL FIRE-designated high fire-risk terrain.

This isn't hypothetical: the 2018 County Fire burned 90,288 acres starting in Rumsey Canyon near Guinda, and the 2019 Sand Fire burned roughly 1,800 acres in the same area. Check a specific Capay Valley-area parcel against current Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps rather than assuming Yolo County's flat-valley reputation applies county-wide.

Disclosure landscape

Check current FEMA flood zone maps for any property near the Yolo Bypass margins — its flooding is expected, engineered flood-control behavior, not a rare event.
Confirm which jurisdiction (city or county) controls land-use decisions for parcels near Davis's edge, given the 1987 Davis-Yolo Pass-Through Agreement.
Mello-Roos Notice of Special Tax disclosures are required under Civil Code §1102.6b for any property in one of Davis's seven CFDs.
Check current CAL FIRE Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps for property in the Capay Valley corridor (Esparto, Winters, Rumsey, Guinda, Brooks, Capay).

Frequently asked

Does the Yolo Bypass flooding mean a property is unsafe to buy?

Not necessarily — the bypass is designed to flood in wet years as intentional flood-control engineering. Check current FEMA flood zone maps for the specific parcel near the bypass margins rather than assuming risk from the bypass's existence alone.

Is there a city transfer tax add-on in Davis, Woodland, or West Sacramento?

No. Every incorporated Yolo County city sits at the same flat $1.10 per $1,000 combined rate — no city-level surcharge anywhere in the county.

How many Mello-Roos CFDs does Davis have?

Seven, according to the City of Davis's own Finance Department. Confirm CFD status for any specific parcel — a Notice of Special Tax disclosure is required under Civil Code §1102.6b.

Is the Capay Valley at real wildfire risk?

Yes — western Yolo County (Esparto, Winters, and the Capay Valley towns) has burned in significant wildfires as recently as 2018 (the 90,288-acre County Fire) and 2019 (the Sand Fire), and carries CAL FIRE high fire-risk designations distinct from the flat valley floor around Davis and Woodland.

Sources

This is educational guidance, not legal advice. Consult a California real estate attorney for legal questions specific to your transaction.