CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) – Property taxes are going up again in Chicago as the city is asking for an increase of just over $76 million.
And while that only breaks down to about $38 more on a house valued at $250,000, property owners are encouraged to find ways to save.
Bruce Glazer, a luxury real estate broker, told WBBM Newsradio that once homeowners get over the "sticker shock" of increasing property taxes, they should get to work taking advantage of exemptions and appeals.
"This money is better in your pocket than the city's is what I always say,” Glazer said.
He recommended hiring a tax attorney since “there's no upfront cost, they usually take about one-third of what they end up saving you.”
Glazer said a lot of property owners do not have homeowner's exemption which could save them up to $2,000 annually on their taxes.
He said filing for a homeowner’s exemption is “super simple.”
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"You just go to the Cook County Assessor's website, download the exemption form, fill it out, send it in. Another exemption that you can file for is if you've done some renovations, if you go up to $75,000, you can file for a renovation exemption,” Glazer explained.
And after the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic when downtown Chicago looked like a ghost town, Glazer said things are beginning to look up.
"Downtown, the high-rise market is recovering...areas such as West Town, Wicker Park, Bucktown, Lincoln Park, the surrounding neighborhoods, those areas are absolutely booming right now, we have low supply and a lot of demand and you've got to be ready to go if you're on the home hunt,” he said.
And for people desiring to sell a home, that's another reason to make sure your property taxes are as low as possible, Glazer said.
"Lower taxes are always attractive to homeowners versus ones that appear to be much higher,” he said.
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