Our real estate tax team at Rock Fusco & Connelly, LLC continues to work hard fighting to keep your property tax bills as low as possible. Below are key updates as the 2021 session progresses.
Cook County: The Assessor has officially closed all townships in Cook County for 2021. However, as of this writing, only 11 of the 38 townships have been certified by the Assessor and have subsequently opened at the Board of Review for appeals – none of which are City of Chicago townships, which are the ones that were reassessed last year.
The Board of Review has officially opened for 2021 appeals. Group 1 consisted of Norwood Park, Oak Park, River Forest, and Riverside townships. Group 2 consisted of Barrington, Calumet, and Cicero townships. Group 3 is currently open for appeal and consists of Berwyn, Hanover, New Trier, and Schaumburg townships. The deadline to file is February 1.
With the exception of Palatine township (which was certified and published on January 6), we do not yet know when any other townships will be certified by the Assessor’s Office and will subsequently open at the Board of Review for appeal.
As we’ve been stressing throughout 2021, the City of Chicago was up for reassessment last year, so all property owners within city limits should have received reassessment notices by now. First installment bills for 2021 will be out in the coming weeks and are due March 1. The first installment bill is always 55% of the previous year’s total tax bill (2020).
Anyone who has suffered from vacancy issues over the past year or suffered income losses related to the pandemic should make sure to document attempts to lease the vacant space, tenant concessions, deferred rents, photographs of the vacancy, and projections for a path to stabilization.
Collar Counties: All collar counties – DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, and Will – have closed for 2021 appeals at this point. Scheduled hearings before the respective boards of review will commence in the coming weeks and months, and the first installment bills will likely come out around May, with a due date of June 1. First installment bills in all collar counties are always 50% of the current year’s tax bill (2021).
Rock Fusco & Connelly, LLC is here to serve all your property tax needs from appeals to exemptions to incentives. Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or requests.