Story posted Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Tax Rates May Be Down, But...
Newly-computed tax rates throughout Cook County were released yesterday (Tuesday) showing across the board reductions.
However, before property owners get their hopes up too high, there are other important factors that go into determining what residents will pay. For the most part in the Northwest suburban area, tax bills due by Dec. 1 will increase 1 to 3% depending on location.
Tax rates are determined after each individual taxing district, such as schools, cities and park districts---establish levies, which are amounts of money set by each jurisdiction to fund their operations. That, coupled with the equalization factor---commonly known as the multiplier---are the two most important items that determine homeowners tax bills. Also entering the mix is an array of tax exemptions residents can take advantage of such as the Homeowners Exemption.
This year, the multiplier jumped 4.74% to 2.9876. A multiplier is used only in Cook County to help equalize property values. The multiplier along with the various levies will result in a 2% tax bill increase for the average homeowner living in Maine Township, according to Maine Township Assessor Tom Rueckert. Roughly 70% of Des Plaines lies in Maine Township, with about 25% in Elk Grove Township west of Mt. Prospect Road and 5% in Wheeling Township, which is located north of Central Road.
According to figures released by the Cook County Clerk's office Tuesday, the total tax rate for Des Plaines property owners living in Des Plaines Elementary School Dist. 62 is 6.275 for 2008 and 6.417 for 2007 or a decrease of 2.21%. There are similar rate decreases for other separate public bodies such as Cook County, Maine Township, City of Des Plaines, Maine Township High School Dist. 207, and Des Plaines and Golf Maine Park districts. The same holds true in Elk Grove Township where rates decreased for the Mt. Prospect Park Dist., Harper College Dist. 512, and Des Plaines Library. Elk Grove Township General Assistance is showing a large rate increase. General Assistance money is used to help people who are in dire need of money to live.
In Wheeling Township, River Trails School Dist. 26 shows a .07 rate reduction and High School Dist. 214 a 2.10% rate decrease.
Even with the likelihood that residents will be paying a slight overall increase in their next tax bill, higher tax bills loom in 2010. Despite the recent 2009 reassessment of property that shows reductions in property value, homeowners may have to pay more when the second installment of bills are due in the fall.
"Depending on what the state of Illinois does with the multiplier (along with individual levies) will determine what people pay in 2010," said Rueckert. He explained that the next multiplier wouldn't be determined until summer. The multiplier coupled with the individual levies will then be used to determine the new rates. Rueckert said if the multiplier increases—as it almost always does---homeowners may have to pay higher tax bills again even though assessments have gone down. He added that people probably wouldn't be informed what those new tax bills will total until after the fall election.
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