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CHICAGO (WLS) — The question of who bears responsibility for the steep rise in property tax bills for Chicago homeowners has sparked a heated debate.
Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi has pointed to the Cook County Board of Review, alleging it granted significant tax reductions to high-profile properties such as Trump Tower. Conversely, the Board of Review has deflected the blame back at Kaegi.
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According to Assessor Kaegi, the Board of Review authorized substantial tax cuts for several commercial properties, including a 39% reduction for Trump Tower, 33% for The Hilton, 32% for a luxury high-rise on South Michigan Avenue, and 22% for a data center. Kaegi argues these cuts are shifting the financial burden onto homeowners.
“If not for these large commercial cuts, two-thirds of Black and Latino neighborhoods on the South and West Sides would have seen their bills decrease or stay the same,” Kaegi said.
One resident, Minnie Terrel from Englewood, experienced this impact firsthand. Her 2024 first installment property tax bill was a modest $87, but her second installment skyrocketed to over $1,900, bringing her total for the year to over $2,000.
“I’m a senior, I don’t work and I don’t have the money to pay for it,” Terrell said.
Terrell and others are likely to get relief through homeowner and senior exemptions that were not included in their bills. Many residents lined up Wednesday at the Cook County assessor’s office to sign up for the exemptions.
Regardless, Kaegi says it does not make up for the reductions given to commercial properties. He says in the 2024 Chicago reassessment, the Board of Review cut values for homes by 1% compared to 17% for commercial properties.
“A rigged system produced reductions that were not deserved for big property owners, and it shifted the burden to the tune of $700 on each and every homeowner in Chicago,” Kaegi said.
SEE ALSO | Cook County Board of Review reopening tax appeals for 24 townships after dramatic bill increases
The Board of Review says commercial properties values were cut because they were over assessed to begin with. In a news conference last week, Commissioner Larry Rogers Jr. says the methodology Kaegi uses to assess all properties has unnecessarily resulted in higher property values for commercial and residential properties. He calls Kaegi the worst assessor he has seen.
“He’s flying the plane while he’s fixing the plane, and that’s the problem,” Rogers Jr. said. “When you do that, you have crashes, you have errors of the type that we’re seeing come out of coming out of his office.”
Time is ticking for the assessors office to help people with their 2024 second installment. Property taxes are due Dec 15. Meanwhile, the Board of Review has reopened the appeals process for 2025 taxes.
