Schaller’s Pump: A Cook County Property Tax Cautionary Tale

Cook County Property Taxes & Schaller's PumpUp until April 29, 2017, Schaller’s Pump had been the oldest continuously run Chicago tavern, having survived Prohibition, the Great Depression, two world wars, and the Great Recession, until Cook County property taxes put it out of business.

What can Schaller’s Pump teach homeowners about property taxes? Simply this: before you buy a home, be sure to understand its history of property taxes, exemptions and property tax appeals.
Continue reading →

Cook County 2017 2nd Installment Property Tax Bills Loom Large

Cook County Property Tax BillAs we all await the dreaded second installment of our 2017 property tax bills, two concerns arise for what we’ll find in our mailbox:

  1. The brunt of Rahm Emanuel’s $588 million property tax hikes have not been fully applied to previous tax bills
  2. The population in Cook County is decreasing at the highest pace of any county in the nation, which means that taxes have to be paid by fewer people

Here’s what’s going on and what you can do about it for relief.
Continue reading →

Maine Township 2017 Assessment Notices Mailed

2017 assessment notices for Maine Township were mailed by the Assessor’s office on May 11th. Appeals are now being accepted by the Assessor’s office for property owners in Maine Township. The deadline to file an appeal of your assessed value is June 12th.Maine

Maine is part of the north suburb group which was reassessed in 2016. It is possible to appeal your assessed value every year, and in our opinion a good idea to at least review your assessment annually since the housing market and valuations are always changing. Contact us and we are happy to offer you a free professional analysis on whether or not an appeal of your assessed value in 2017 makes sense for you.

Get Your Free Property Tax Reduction Estimate

Cook County Board of Review Annual Report
Cook County Board of Review Annual Report 2015

The Cook County Board of Review annual report for 2015 is out and contains some interesting statistics:

  • 61.6% of Board of Review property tax appeals were successful: see graphic below and compare with our 90% success rate
  • 319,500 appeals were filed
  • 86% were filed online (how many of these are leaving money on the table?)
  • 2014 tax year marks the fourth time since tax year 1977 that the second installment tax bills have been mailed out on time
  • There are 1.8 million property parcels in Cook County and 5.2 million residents

Continue reading →

Cook County Board of Review Announces Group 7 Appeal Window Has Opened

The Cook County Board of Review has announced that 5 more townships opened for 2016 property tax appeals. The 30 day appeal window for the townships listed below is December 19th through January 17th.near north

  • Hanover
  • Northfield
  • North Chicago
  • South Chicago
  • West Chicago

Contact Us For A Free Property Tax Appeal Estimate

Why Appeal Your Property Taxes Every Year

Why Appeal Cook County & Chicago Property Taxes Every YearThe conventional wisdom is to appeal your Cook County property taxes once and be done with it.

Even better: some make sure they appeal after the county has re-assessed property taxes every three years based on their triennial schedule (1/3 of all 38 Cook County townships are re-assessed each year).

Even better yet is to appeal every year – or to at least have Kensington run a free, no-obligation property tax appeal estimate to see how much savings may be achieved and if it’s worth the effort. Here’s why this makes sense.
Continue reading →

Clarification on Cook County Board Property Tax Freeze

Cook County Property Tax FreezeIn a recent move described as “historic,” the Cook County Board of Commissioners have approved the “Cook County Taxation Predictability and Long-Term Fiscal Forecasting Amendment.” This has been described as freezing Cook County’s property and sales tax rates until January 1, 2020.

The amendment provides certain impediments to future tax levy increases after January 1, 2020, including that the Cook County Bureau of Finance must provide the Board with a fiscal forecast that analyzes revenues, expenditures and planned debt issuance for three years should the tax change occur.

This sounds good on the surface but is less appealing once you dig into it.
Continue reading →

Two Changes to Your Home that Should Lower Your Property Taxes

Property Tax Appeal for Vacant or Uninhabitable HomesMost property tax reductions are achieved by successfully associating your home with comparable homes (comps) that are assessed less than yours.

However, there are two additional scenarios that could dramatically reduce your property assessment and tax bill: home vacancy and if your home is uninhabitable.
Continue reading →