Oak Park Township 2021 Assessment Notices Mailed

2021 property assessment notices were mailed by the Cook County Assessor’s office on Tuesday, May 18, 2021, to Oak Park Township property owners. The window to appeal your 2021 assessed value is now open until the deadline of June 16th.

We recommend property owners review their assessments annually and appeal whenever there is a strong evidence based argument that your home may not be assessed fairly. Oak Park Township was reassessed in 2020 but even if you appealed last year you may appeal your assessment again this year. A successful appeal in 2021 may result in two years of savings, until Oak Park is reassessed in 2023. The best way to ensure you never pay more than your fair share in property taxes is to review your assessment every year and appeal whenever you have a strong basis for an appeal argument, no matter where your township is at in the triennial reassessment cycle.
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Evanston Township 2021 Assessment Notices Mailed

2021 property assessment notices were mailed by the Cook County Assessor’s office on Friday, May 07, 2021, to Evanston Township property owners. The window to appeal your 2021 assessed value is now open until the deadline of June 07, 2021.

We suggest property owners review their assessments annually and appeal whenever there is a strong evidence based argument that your home may not be assessed fairly. Evanston Township’s next triennial reassessment is scheduled for 2022. However, if you feel that your assessment is not fair there is no need to wait to appeal, property owners have the right to appeal every year at the Assessor’s office and at the Board of Review. If you’d like a professional opinion on your home’s assessed value as it compares to similar properties in your neighborhood contact us for a free, no obligation, review and analysis of your home.

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Riverside Township 2021 Assessment Notices Mailed

2021 property assessment notices were mailed by the Cook County Assessor’s office on Thursday, April 22nd 2021, to Riverside Township property owners. The window to appeal your 2021 assessed value is now open until the deadline of May 22nd.

We recommend property owners review their assessments annually and appeal whenever there is a strong evidence based argument that your home may not be assessed fairly. Riverside Township was reassessed in 2020 but even if you appealed last year you may appeal your assessment again this year. A successful appeal in 2021 may result in two years of savings, until Riverside is reassessed in 2023. The best way to ensure you never pay more than your fair share in property taxes is to review your assessment every year and appeal whenever you have a strong basis for an appeal argument, no matter where your township is at in the triennial reassessment cycle.
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River Forest Township 2021 Assessment Notices Mailed

The Assessor’s Office has mailed 2021 assessment notices to River Forest property owners. You may appeal your assessment each year during the 30 day window which is now open and will close on May 21st.

Cook County reassesses properties triennially through a mass appraisal system. River Forest was last reassessed in 2020 and if you appealed and were successful on your 2020 tax year appeal you will see those savings this summer on your 2nd installment property tax bill (the 1st installment bill you recently received is always 55% of the previous year’s total tax).
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Property Tax Exemption Deadline Approaching for Some Cook County Homeowners

Eligible Cook County homeowners who did not receive the Homeowner Exemption in 2019 need to file an application for exemption with the Cook County Assessor’s Office by April 9, 2021.

The Homeowner Exemption reduces the Equalized Assessed Value (EAV) of a primary residence by $10,000. Your property tax bill is calculated by multiplying the tax rate in your local district by the EAV. The Homeowner Exemption is available to anyone who owns or leases their principal place of residence in Cook County and is responsible for the property taxes.

The exemption renews automatically so it is not necessary to reapply if you are still living in the same home where you received the exemption last year.
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The Myth About Qualifying for Mortgage Refinancing

Refinance Your Mortgage Without Closing Costs UpfrontIt’s a common misconception that homeowners must have exemplary credit scores to qualify for a new loan or to refinance an existing mortgage, but this is far from the truth. Homeowners who hold an existing mortgage are – in most cases – eligible to refinance their current loan.

Unless you have experienced a significant decrease in your credit score, are recently unemployed, or have had another major life change, you should easily qualify for mortgage refinancing. For homeowners with extenuating circumstances, there are still options available for decreasing or temporarily pausing your mortgage payments.
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No “Silver Bullet” for Property Tax Relief in Illinois

Created by the General Assembly in the summer of 2019 to address an “opaque” and unpopular system that has left Illinois with the second highest tax rate in the country, a property tax relief task force recommended a four-part, decade-long attack.

The group’s recommendations – summarized in a draft report included as part of a study Treasurer Maria Pappas released documenting the 20-year climb of Cook County property taxes – illustrate the difficulty of revamping a tax system built around the funding needs of 6,968 separate taxing districts. That’s more than any other state in the country by a margin of 2,000, according to U.S. Census Bureau data cited in the report. Second-place Pennsylvania has nearly 5,000.

Consolidating such government units is at the heart of the recommendations made by the 88-member legislative task force, which held dozens of hearings around the state over a five-month period in 2019.
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How to Refinance Your Mortgage Without Paying Closing Costs Upfront

smiling black man working on his computer to refinance his mortgage
Many homeowners would like to refinance their mortgages but are turned off by the concept of upfront closing costs and fees. Typically, closing costs represent 2-5% of the loan’s total value, but this nominal fee shouldn’t scare you away from refinancing. In the long run, you could still be saving thousands.

There are many options for homeowners when it comes to paying the closing cost and fees associated with refinancing their mortgage loan. From rolling them into the cost of your loan to finding a lender who can do a zero-cost closing, there are numerous ways to handle these costs.

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Board of Review Opens Group 11 for 2020 Appeals

The Cook County Board of Review has opened 2020 property tax appeals for the eleventh group. The Board’s deadline to appeal your 2020 assessed value is January 29, 2021. Below is the township that are currently open in Group 11:

  • South Chicago

If you missed your appeal opportunity at the Assessor’s office earlier in the year, or if you did appeal and weren’t satisfied with the result, you have a second opportunity to appeal at the Board of Review. Appealing your home’s 2020 assessed value is the only way to achieve property tax relief on your second installment property tax bill in July 2021, other than selling your home or claiming a new exemption. Assessments can be appealed every year, regardless of when a township was reassessed.
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Board of Review Opens Group 10 for 2020 Appeals

The Cook County Board of Review has opened 2020 property tax appeals for the tenth group of townships. The Board’s deadline to appeal your 2020 assessed value is January 21, 2021. Below are the townships that are currently open in Group 10:

  • Lake
  • North Chicago

If you missed your appeal opportunity at the Assessor’s office earlier in the year, or if you did appeal and weren’t satisfied with the result, you have a second opportunity to appeal at the Board of Review. Appealing your home’s 2020 assessed value is the only way to achieve property tax relief on your second installment property tax bill in July 2021, other than selling your home or claiming a new exemption. Assessments can be appealed every year, regardless of when a township was reassessed.
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