This has been a year of tight political races. While most have had their eyes on the Presidential Race, California commercial real estate players have closely followed Proposition 15, which would increase taxes for commercial properties. Mirroring the presidential election, Prop 15 was a tight race, and while votes are still being counted, it looks like the no's have it.

While the opposition seems to have prevailed, the race was close with fervent support. This has come at a time when, thanks in part to the pandemic, income disparities are at all-time highs with growing animosity toward business owners. "I cannot pinpoint the various reasons for those votes," Fernando Landa, a partner at Crosbie Gliner Schiffman Southard & Swanson, tells GlobeSt.com. "Undoubtedly, supporters of Proposition 15 have laid the need for Proposition 15 on the pandemic's feet in television ads over the last several months, but the split roll tax that underlies Proposition 15 is years in the making."

The tight race prompted landlords to prepare in advance for the tax increase. Landa had been guiding clients through the process, recommending that they educate themselves on the nuances of the law. [Property owners] should educate themselves regarding Proposition 15′s phase in timetable," he explained about how landlords should prepare. "Tax increases would have begun in the 2022-2023 fiscal year, so landlords and tenants could have used the next fiscal year to prepare for the tax increase by estimating potential tax increases if their properties are reassessed at their current market value." In the meantime, he also said that it could be possible for tenants to revise lease contracts in the interim.