Factoring Floodplain Data into Property Tax Assessments

Cook County Tax Assessor Fritz Kaegi backed off a plan to provide immediate relief to more than 1,100 homeowners living within a floodplain in the New Trier township after a rocky roll-out left him having to defend a decision that would have reduced the assessed value of some pricey homes by as much as 30%.

But floodplain data, compiled by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), has been added to the county’s assessment models and will be a factor taken into consideration going forward.

Kaegi’s announcement in September that more than 1,100 homes – many priced over $1 million, would be eligible for a “certificate of correction” and reimbursement of some property taxes based on their floodplain status, hit a snag when the Board of Review said it would not process that many corrections and “would prefer that the issue be resolved during their appeals process,” according to a statement released by Kaegi’s office.

Going forward, properties located in floodplains identified on the FEMA maps will have that fact taken into consideration in the assessment process.

Floodplain Status and other Factors that May Reduce Property Taxes

Floodplain data is just one of many factors that can affect a property’s taxable value – and is one of more than 500 other changes the Cook County Assessor’s Office says it has made to the assessment model. Other changes include data that takes proximity to a major road, or location within a noisy flight path into consideration. Other special assessment factors that can reduce a property’s assessed value include:

• Damage
• Construction
• Agricultural Exemptions
• Uninhabitable Homes
• Vacancy
• Fire Damage
• Tax Freeze

But regardless of how these factors apply to your property, we believe the best way to be certain that you are not paying too much is to appeal your assessment twice each year in a process that identifies the comparable properties that make the strongest case for reducing your assessment.

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At Kensington, our team of taxpayer advocates can provide you with a free, no-obligation analysis of your tax bill to estimate the potential savings from an appeal.

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