Assessor-Recorder Senior Office Specialist - Office of the Assessor-Recorder (4215) - (151083) - City and County of San Francisco

Specific information regarding this recruitment process are listed below:

• Application Opening: Tuesday, September 17, 2024
• Application Deadline: Tuesday, October 1, 2024
• Compensation Range: $82,212 - $104,884 Annually 
• Recruitment ID: CBT-4215-151083

THIS IS A CITYWIDE EXAM

San Francisco is a vibrant and dynamic city, on the forefront of economic growth & innovation, urban development, arts & entertainment, as well as social issues & change. This rich tapestry of culture and ideas is sustained by our City's commitment to heighten the quality of life for the diverse population of San Franciscans and residents of the greater Bay Area. Our employees play an important role not only in making our City what it is today, but also in shaping the future of San Francisco.

Our Office

The Office of the Assessor-Recorder is responsible for carrying out property tax-related functions governed by the State Constitution and State and local laws. Our core responsibilities include locating all taxable property in the City and County of San Francisco, identifying ownership, establishing a taxable value, and applying all legal exemptions. Property broadly includes both real property and personal property owned by businesses. The Office of the Assessor-Recorder is also responsible for recording documents and maintaining those public records. Over 400 different types of documents are recorded annually, including deeds of trust, reconveyances, liens, and public marriage licenses. The Office is also responsible for collecting any transfer tax due upon a change in property ownership. The Office of the Assessor-Recorder strives to conduct our work with the core principals of professionalism and integrity. 

What We Do

We’re proud of our work to ensure the financial stability of San Francisco. Each year we prepare an assessment roll that reflects the taxable values of land, improvements, and personal property. The assessment roll is the basis for San Francisco’s property tax revenue. We enroll property tax value by discovering new construction or changes in ownership. The work of our Office in enrolling property valued at $344 billion generates $4 billion in property tax revenue for the City and County of San Francisco. Property tax revenue represents over one-third of the City's General Fund which pays for crucial services ranging from public safety, affordable housing, and education to neighborhood improvements and health and family support services. In the years ahead, our Office will work closely with the Assessment Appeals Board to respond to the rising appeals workload and ensure that fair and accurate value is enrolled.

Our success is grounded by our Office's investment in our people, systems, services, and engagement. We prioritize a climate and culture where belonging and inclusion are advanced, staff can be their authentic selves and pursue pathways for career growth, and diverse constituencies are equitably supported with a meaningful and seamless experience through care in customer service and efficient technology systems. In line with these values, we are taking significant steps to modernize our operations, including leading a cross-departmental effort to replace the legacy property assessment system currently used   to manage the City’s hundreds of billions of dollars in assessed property value. Known as SMART (System for Managing Assessment, Recording, and Transactions), this work will provide for increased security and service as well as greater integration with other City systems utilized by the Office of the Treasurer & Tax Collector and the City Controller’s Office. We are committed to developing an organization that can address the pervasive and persistent inequities enabled by biases and systemic functions that impede racial and economic justice and prevent equitable service to the public. Additionally, our Office seeks to increase access to resources across multiple constituencies by hosting presentations, workshops, attending events, tabling at resource fairs, and more to ensure that all San Franciscans know what our office can do for them.

The Office of the Assessor-Recorder currently has full-time vacancies in class 4215 Senior Office Specialists. This is the senior-level class of the Assessor-Recorder support series. Incumbents work under direction to perform the most difficult and specialized clerical and technical duties that require advanced knowledge of technical administrative policies and procedures, most of which are unique to the Assessor-Recorder’s Office. Duties emphasize advanced and technical level activities pertaining to document examining, property ownership and transactions, change in ownership assessment determination recommendations, transfer tax assessment, complex exemptions, and real/personal property appraisal services. Incumbents perform assigned duties with substantial independence, applying advanced knowledge of technical assessment and recording requirements, policies and procedures to make decisions and perform assignments.

Other essential duties may include, but are not limited to:

1. Performs highly-specialized technical work and analysis requiring in-depth knowledge and a high level of independence involving review and processing of real property transactions and/or complex document recording processes within the Assessor-Recorder’s Office; receives, examines, evaluates, and records deeds, reconveyances, releases of liens, judgments, marriage certificates and various legal and other documents; interprets various codes, statutes and ordinance in examining and recording a wide variety of complex documents; performs detailed and complex document examination to ensure sufficiency, completeness, jurisdiction, appropriateness for recording, and/or adherence to legal codes and state and county recording requirements; provides follow up with customers and other parties as appropriate to resolve problems; refers customers to other Office staff and/or outside agencies as required on committees and task forces.
2. Ensures compliance with the Transfer Tax Ordinance by reviewing change of ownership transactions; requests and analyzes documentation of proof of exemption; and collects transfer taxes in real-time, in accordance with the Revenue and Taxation Code and State and local tax laws and ordinances.
3. Searches deeds to determine real property ownership; receives and verifies records supporting property statements.
4. Receives and collects payments for a wide range of complex service fees based on Revenue and Taxation codes as well as state and local tax laws and ordinances; issues receipts and accounts for money received by balancing records. May receive and collect payments of recordable documents; balance cash receipts and receivables; prepare balance sheets and processing forms; and post receivables and credit appropriate accounts.
5. Provides complex technical information in person, on the phone, and via email and regular mail regarding policies and procedures pertaining to recording requirements, assessment and recording laws, regulations, policies and procedures to attorneys, government agencies and the public.
6. Performs technical tax assessment activities by reviewing and evaluating real property transactions such as grant deeds, quitclaim deeds, affidavits of death, court orders, final decrees of distribution, leases, foreclosure sales deeds and other documents; researches property rolls to verify changes in ownership, transfer of property, boundary discrepancies and overlap or breaks in the chain of title for real property; makes recommendations regarding property transfer tax and other assessments, based on State and County laws and codes.
7. Provides technical assistance to professional appraisers pertaining to real property appraisals; collects structural classification data in the field or in the office for residential dwellings, apartment complexes, commercial concerns and industrial firms; notes construction characteristics related to foundation, exterior, interior, plumbing, lighting and heating; determines shape classifications using perimeter and square footage calculations; takes photographs of structures.
8. Gathers property and/or business data to determine welfare tax exemption status; gathers and tabulates data to determine appropriate exemption percentage allowable; inspects property based on application information and other data; and prepares inspection reports; explains exemption programs; eligibility requirements; evaluates program applications and determines eligibility based on well defined, pre-established criteria; responds to and researches complaints regarding determinations; works with other divisions and the Tax Collector’s Office to ensure that exemption accounts are adjusted appropriately.
9. Researches and compiles property value data; identifies comparable sales; searches deeds to determine delivered prices; provides technical support for cost analyses and/or income analyses for both real and business/personal property; receives and verifies records supporting property statements from public accountants for client firms; researches, gathers and tabulates data from financial and operating statements.
10. Explains appraisal procedures and policies to builders, contractors, real estate brokers and the general public; serves as a technical liaison to various agents regarding appraisal processes.
11. Maintains and updates statistical data; prepares and maintains complex statistical reports.
12. May serve as a lead worker by directing and monitoring the work of a small group of subordinate employees and serving as a technical resource regarding the more complex work issues in the unit. May be required to provide training to entry level classifications.
13. Operates personal computers, computer terminals and other equipment to research databases, documents and records and locate requested information; provides and/or sends copies of requested documents according to Office policies and procedures.
14. Types and prepares a wide variety of correspondence, forms and complex documents; independently initiates correspondence pertaining to areas of assignment.
15. Performs other technical administrative duties; attends meetings and trainings; may serve on committees and task forces.
16. Reviews and examines documents to ensure recording standards are met, accurately input appropriate codes, indexing fields and document characteristics to correctly cashier recording fees/transfer taxes or rejections, ensuring proper workflow routing, document retrieval, and the preservation of the public record.
17. May include additional duties as assigned.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
These minimum qualifications establish the education, training, experience, special skills and/or license(s) which are required for employment in the classification. Please note, additional qualifications (i.e., special conditions) may apply to a particular position and will be stated on the exam/job announcement.

Education:

Experience:

Pattern I

Experience: Three (3) years equivalent to or higher than a 4213 Assessor-Recorder Office Assistant in the City/County of San Francisco; OR

Pattern II

Experience: Two (2) years equivalent to or higher than a 4214 Assessor-Recorder Office Specialist in the City/County of San Francisco; OR

Pattern III

Education: Completion of sixty (60) semester (or equivalent quarter) units from an accredited college or university, with major coursework in business administration, accounting or a closely-related field.

Experience: Three (3) years of progressively responsible legal document technical review, researching documents, and processing experience, preferably in a legal environment or county Assessor or Recorder’s office, including two (2) years performing journey-level duties comparable to or higher than those assigned to the class of 4214 Assessor-Recorder Office Specialist in the City/County of San Francisco.

Substitution:

1) Additional specialized assessment/recording-related experience may substitute for the above-required education on a year-for-year basis, where one year of experience is equivalent to thirty (30) semester or forty-five (45) quarter units, OR

2) Possession of Certificate of Recognition certifying that the applicant has successfully completed the Recordable Document Examiner course administered by the County Recorder’s Association of California may substitute for six (6) months of the required experience described in Pattern III of the Minimum Qualifications.

Verification of Education and Experience: Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point during the recruitment and selection process. If education verification is required, information on how to verify education requirements, including verifying foreign education credits or degree equivalency, can be found here.

Note: Falsifying one’s education, training, or work experience or attempted deception on the application may result in disqualification for this and future job opportunities with the City and County of San Francisco.

All work experience, education, training and other information substantiating how you meet the minimum qualifications must be included on your application by the filing deadline. Information submitted after the filing deadline will not be considered in determining whether you meet the minimum qualifications.

Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of a completed City and County of San Francisco application.

Applications completed improperly may be cause for ineligibility or disqualification.

Selection Procedures:

After application submission, candidates deemed qualified must complete all subsequent steps to advance in this selection process, which includes the following:

• Minimum Qualifications Supplemental Questionnaire [MQSQ] - (Weight: Qualifying)

Candidates will be required to complete a MQSQ, which will be emailed within two weeks of receiving applications, as part of the employment application. This MQSQ is designed to obtain specific information regarding an applicant's experience in relation to the Minimum Qualifications (MQ) for this position. The MQSQ will be used to evaluate if the applicant possesses the required minimum qualifications.

• Written Multiple-Choice Examination - (Weight: 100%)

Candidates who meet minimum qualifications will be invited to participate in a written, multiple-choice examination, designed to measure their relative knowledge, skills and abilities in job-related areas.

The multiple-choice examination content may include but not be limited to:

Knowledge of: advanced policies, procedures, terminology, & practices pertaining to technical county assessment & recording practices; laws, regulations and requirements that apply to county assessment and recording administrative procedures; advanced office practices & procedures, including methods of researching, gathering, tabulating, and reporting technical data; principles, practices & methods of customer service; business data processing principles & practices, including the uses of computer equipment, correct English usage including grammar, spelling & punctuation. Skill of: basic arithmetic. Ability to: establish & maintain effective working relationships, including the relationship between the Assessor-Recorder, Controller & Tax Collector's offices; perform a wide range of technical duties pertaining to county assessment & recording and services activities; review, evaluate, record & interpret complex information including customer eligibility for welfare exemption programs, processing property transactions, and/or examining documents to ensure recording standards are met; research a variety of sources to gather data pertaining to historic, reproduction & replacement costs for property whose value could be impacted by the results of such research; organize & maintain data, files & records; prioritize work & perform multiple activities; communicate effectively in-person, on the phone, or in writing with correct grammar, punctuation & spelling.

The multiple-choice exam will be administered in a paper format. This is a standardized multiple-choice examination. In accordance with Civil Service Rule 111.11.4, inspection privileges do not apply to the questions and answers in this examination. A passing score must be achieved in order to be placed/ranked on the Eligible List. The hiring department may administer additional position-specific selection procedures to make final hiring decisions.

Candidate scores on this exam may also be applied to other announcements involving other job titles, when directed by the Human Resources Director.

Date(s) of Examination: Those applicants meeting the minimum qualifications will be notified of the exact date, time, and location to report to the examination.

Note: A passing score on the Written Multiple-Choice Examination must be achieved in order to be placed on the Eligible List.

Eligible List/Score Report:

A confidential eligible list of applicant names that have passed the civil service examination process will be created, and used for certification purposes only. An examination score report will be established, so applicants can view the ranks, final scores and number of eligible candidates. Applicant information, including names of applicants on the eligible list, shall not be made public unless required by law. However, an eligible list shall be made available for public inspection, upon request, once the eligible list is exhausted or expired and referrals resolved. The eligible list/score report resulting from this civil service examination process is subject to change after adoption (e.g., as a result of appeals), as directed by the Human Resources Director or the Civil Service Commission.

The duration of the eligible list resulting from this examination process will be of six (6) months, and may be extended with the approval of the Human Resources Director.

To find Departments which use this classification, please see https://sfdhr.org/sites/default/files/documents/Forms-Documents/Position-Counts-by-Job-Codes-and-Department-FY-2023-24.pdf.

Certification: The certification rule for the eligible list resulting from this examination will be Rule of Three (3). The hiring department may administer additional position-specific selection procedures prior to making final hiring decisions.

Additional Information Regarding Employment with the City and County of San Francisco:

• Information About The Hiring Process
• Conviction History
• Employee Benefits Overview  
• Equal Employment Opportunity 
• Disaster Service Worker
• ADA Accommodation
• Veterans Preference
• Seniority Credit in Promotional Exams
• Right to Work
• Copies of Application Documents
• Diversity Statement

HOW TO APPLY

Applications for City and County of San Francisco jobs are only accepted through an online process. Visit https://careers.sf.gov/ and begin the application process.

• Select the “I’m Interested,” or “Apply Now” button and follow instructions on the screen

Applicants may be contacted by email about this recruitment and, therefore, it is their responsibility to ensure that their registered email address is accurate and kept up-to-date. Also, applicants must ensure that email from CCSF is not blocked on their computer by a spam filter. To prevent blocking, applicants should set up their email to accept CCSF mail from the following addresses (@sfgov.org, @sfdpw.org, @sfport.com, @flysfo.com, @sfwater.org, @sfdph.org, @asianart.org, @sfmta.com, @sfpl.org, @dcyf.org, @first5sf.org, @famsf.org, @ccsf.edu, @smartalerts.info, and @smartrecruiters.com).

Applicants will receive a confirmation email that their online application has been received in response to every announcement for which they file. Applicants should retain this confirmation email for their records. Failure to receive this email means that the online application was not submitted or received.

If you have any questions regarding this recruitment or application process, please contact the recruitment analyst, Stella Choi at stella.choi@sfgov.org.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

The City and County of San Francisco encourages women, minorities and persons with disabilities to apply. Applicants will be considered regardless of their sex, race, age, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition (associated with cancer, a history of cancer, or genetic characteristics), HIV/AIDS status, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, military and veteran status, or other protected category under the law.