Politics & Government

To Trim Property Taxes, File Appeal By Wednesday. Here's How

That's the deadline for Maine Township properties.

If you live in Maine Township, Wednesday is the last day you can take action to possibly lower your Fall 2012 property taxes. If you miss it, you can file a property tax appeal next spring, but that would affect your Fall 2013 property taxes.

To file a property tax appeal in time for this week's deadline, you can go in person to the Cook County Board of Review offices in Skokie or Rolling Meadows, file online or send a form postmarked by Wednesday, Nov. 16.

Earlier:

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You can also visit the Maine Township Assessor's office at 1700 Ballard Road, Park Ridge, and they will assist you in filling out forms. However, it is now too late to file your appeal with them.

"We had lines out the door today," Liz Coy of the Maine Township Assessor's office said late Monday.

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While you may have to wait in line, Andrea Raila, a property tax reduction expert who recently spoke on the topic at the , said it's worth it.

"Wednesday's a big deadline," she said. "People are really upset with their second installment tax bills because they're receiving such a lower exemption.

"Tax rates went up and exemptions went down."

She gave the example of a home which lost 20 percent in market value, yet had a 10 percent tax rate increase and a 25 percent increase in the exemption. The tax bill went up 10 percent.

"The decisive factor is that exemption dropping," she said.

To combat that, Coy said property owners can file an appeal.

There are three ways to win an appeal:

1) Lack of uniformity. If your neighbor with similar square footage home and the same number of bedrooms is paying less than you, document that with your square footage and your neighborhood code (found on your tax bill).

2) Your home is appraised at too high a market value. To prove it, bring an appraisal or a roundup of recently-sold comparable homes in your area and their  selling prices. If you've purchased a home recently, bring your settlement statement (if it wasn't a short sale or foreclosure).

3) Errors on your tax bill, such as if the assessor said you have greater square footage, or more bedrooms, than you actually do. Unoccupied properties, such as a vacant home for sale, may also qualify to have their taxes lowered.



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