Board of Review to reexamine property assessments
BY JESSICA PUPOVAC
March 05, 2008 | 4:20 PM
Just four months after endorsing the largest property tax increase in the city's history, Mayor Daley offered strapped Chicago homeowners an extended opportunity to seek reassessment of their property.
The move will allow homeowners additional time to appeal what could be inflated property assessments in advance of their 2007 tax filings.
At a press conference on Wednesday, Daley said he hopes to be able to assist thousands of homeowners and correct what he called a "broken" tax system.
The last triennial property assessments in Chicago took place in 2006, and the 2007 deadlines for appealing those assessments have expired in most Cook County townships.
For the first time, however, the Board of Review intends to extend the deadline, from March 17th to March 31.
The Board will enlist the help of aldermen and other city officials to help them manage what they expect to be an avalanche of appeals.
"I know that in my district many homes have been foreclosed and high property taxes push many other residents into foreclosure," said Board of Review Commissioner Larry R. Rogers.
"We want to make sure that residents have every opportunity to make sure their assessment is fair."
He added that property assessments will be lowered where there is supporting evidence.
According to the National Association of Realtors, the median price of a home sold this past January in the United States dropped to $201,100, down 4.6 percent from one year prior.
But discrepancies between communities are large.
According to the Chicago Association of Realtors, over the past two years, the median sale price for a single-family home in Englewood has decreased by a whopping 13 percent. The values for multi-family units have seen similar shrinkages; 13 percent in West Garfield Park and 6 percent in Portage Park and Brighton Park.
The aim of the new assessments will be to amend such discrepancies in time for 2007 filings.
Daley said the move may also serve to uncover cases of mortgage fraud, which he called "the biggest scam in America."
Board of Review Commissioner Joseph Berrios said that interested parties should initiate the process by filling out a one-page form, available by mail, online or at the Cook County Assessors Office. Property owners can call the Board of Review at 312.603.5542.
Wednesday's announcement marks the first concrete initiative to come out of a panel of experts formed by Daley a month ago to investigate ways to protect Chicago renters and home owners from the "trickle-down effect" of higher assessments.
The move will allow homeowners additional time to appeal what could be inflated property assessments in advance of their 2007 tax filings.
At a press conference on Wednesday, Daley said he hopes to be able to assist thousands of homeowners and correct what he called a "broken" tax system.
The last triennial property assessments in Chicago took place in 2006, and the 2007 deadlines for appealing those assessments have expired in most Cook County townships.
For the first time, however, the Board of Review intends to extend the deadline, from March 17th to March 31.
The Board will enlist the help of aldermen and other city officials to help them manage what they expect to be an avalanche of appeals.
"I know that in my district many homes have been foreclosed and high property taxes push many other residents into foreclosure," said Board of Review Commissioner Larry R. Rogers.
"We want to make sure that residents have every opportunity to make sure their assessment is fair."
He added that property assessments will be lowered where there is supporting evidence.
According to the National Association of Realtors, the median price of a home sold this past January in the United States dropped to $201,100, down 4.6 percent from one year prior.
But discrepancies between communities are large.
According to the Chicago Association of Realtors, over the past two years, the median sale price for a single-family home in Englewood has decreased by a whopping 13 percent. The values for multi-family units have seen similar shrinkages; 13 percent in West Garfield Park and 6 percent in Portage Park and Brighton Park.
The aim of the new assessments will be to amend such discrepancies in time for 2007 filings.
Daley said the move may also serve to uncover cases of mortgage fraud, which he called "the biggest scam in America."
Board of Review Commissioner Joseph Berrios said that interested parties should initiate the process by filling out a one-page form, available by mail, online or at the Cook County Assessors Office. Property owners can call the Board of Review at 312.603.5542.
Wednesday's announcement marks the first concrete initiative to come out of a panel of experts formed by Daley a month ago to investigate ways to protect Chicago renters and home owners from the "trickle-down effect" of higher assessments.
Tagged: taxes, richard m. daley
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