Navy San Diego Neighborhoods

City of National City · CA038

National City for a Naval Base San Diego move

When the county assessor certified the 2026 roll, one city sat at the bottom of the growth list: National City, at 3.49%. Its gross assessed value for 2026-27 is $6.54 billion. City hall, 1243 National City Blvd. in ZIP 91950, resolves to CA038.

Source: San Diego County Assessor/Recorder/County Clerk, news release: 2026 tax roll hits record $845 billion (Jul 2, 2026), checked 2026-10-09; San Diego County Assessor, 2026 Summary of Total Assessed Value (Gross) by City, checked 2026-10-09; City of National City official website, checked 2026-10-09; DoD BAH 2026, ZIP-to-housing-area file sorted_zipmha26.txt and mhanames26.txt, checked 2026-10-09.

What slow roll growth does and does not tell you

The roll total is the sum of every taxable parcel, homes and businesses alike, mostly held to Proposition 13's 2% yearly limit and reset only when property changes hands or is built. A low growth figure says the city's tax base grew slowly last year. It does not say what any house costs, and it is not a price trend. The county's own release puts the countywide detached median at $997,250.

Source: San Diego County Assessor/Recorder/County Clerk, news release: 2026 tax roll hits record $845 billion (Jul 2, 2026), checked 2026-10-09; County of San Diego Auditor and Controller, Property Valuations, Tax Rates, Useful Information for Taxpayers, fiscal year ending June 30, 2026 (tax rate book), checked 2026-10-09.

National City at a glance
City hall ZIP and 2026 housing area91950 · CA038
Tax rate in 35 of 55 tax rate areas, FY 2025-261.17402%; full range 1.17378% to 1.24880%
Elementary districtNational School District
High school in the citySweetwater High School, 2900 Highland Avenue (Sweetwater Union High School District)
2026 BAH, E-6 without dependents$3,387

Source: DoD BAH 2026, ZIP-to-housing-area file sorted_zipmha26.txt and mhanames26.txt, checked 2026-10-09; County of San Diego, Table 26 Tax Rate Area Index and Table 27 Tax Rate by Tax Rate Area, FY 2025-26, checked 2026-10-09; National School District, checked 2026-10-09; Sweetwater Union High School District, High Schools, checked 2026-10-09; DoD BAH 2026, rate files bahw26.dat and bahwo26.dat (May 13, 2026 revision), checked 2026-10-09.

The outlier tax areas

Most of National City shares 1.17402%. Two of its 55 tax rate areas carry 1.24880%, the top of the range. On a $997,250 purchase that difference comes to about $62 a month, enough to check the tax rate area on a listing's last bill before comparing two houses.

Source: County of San Diego, Table 26 Tax Rate Area Index and Table 27 Tax Rate by Tax Rate Area, FY 2025-26, checked 2026-10-09.

Schools

The National School District runs the city's elementary schools, and its campus list is entirely National City addresses. Sweetwater High School on Highland Avenue is the Sweetwater Union High School District campus inside the city. Assignment follows the home address.

Source: National School District, checked 2026-10-09; Sweetwater Union High School District, High Schools, checked 2026-10-09.

Allowance against a payment

Estimate, not a loan quote: first-use VA loan, nothing down, 30-year fixed
Price used$997,250, the county's median price for detached homes reported with the 2026 roll (a countywide figure, not a National City figure)
VA funding fee, first use, under 5% down (2.15%)$21,441, financed
Loan amount$1,018,691
Interest rate: Freddie Mac 30-year average, October 8, 20267.40%
Principal and interest, 360 months$7,053.21 a month
Property tax at 1.17402% (35 of its 55 tax rate areas)About $976 a month
Total before insurance, HOA and supplemental billsAbout $8,029 a month
2026 BAH CA038, E-5 with dependents$3,975, which is $4,054 less than the payment
2026 BAH CA038, O-3 with dependents$4,518, which is $3,511 less than the payment

Source: San Diego County Assessor/Recorder/County Clerk, news release: 2026 tax roll hits record $845 billion (Jul 2, 2026), checked 2026-10-09; VA.gov, VA funding fee and loan closing costs, checked 2026-10-09; Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey, checked 2026-10-09; County of San Diego, Table 26 Tax Rate Area Index and Table 27 Tax Rate by Tax Rate Area, FY 2025-26, checked 2026-10-09; DoD BAH 2026, rate files bahw26.dat and bahwo26.dat (May 13, 2026 revision), checked 2026-10-09.

Working the same loan backward at 1.17402%, an E-5 with dependents could carry principal, interest and tax on roughly $494,000; an O-3, roughly $561,000. The tax line is the only piece that differs from the Chula Vista version, by a few dollars.

Shortest measured trip to Gate 6

National City's city hall at 1243 National City Blvd. is 3.6 miles from Gate 6 (Google's pin at 3670 Surface Navy Blvd.), via E Harbor Dr. For a Mon Oct 12 2026, 7:00 AM departure, Google showed one figure rather than a range: typically 14 minutes. That is the shortest of the six city hall trips on this site. ID check not included.

Drive: Google Maps, depart Mon Oct 12 2026, 7:00 AM PT, checked 2026-10-09. NBSD gate hours: official NBSD gate-hours page (not printed here).

Who it suits

Households in CA038 who want a smaller city with its own elementary district and a single Sweetwater campus in town. Less suited to buyers who expect the slow roll growth to mean a cheap house; the roll does not measure that.

Nearby alternatives

Sources and dates