Get ready to dig a little deeper, Cook County homeowners.
Under a new state law, you’ll be forced to pay slightly more of your property tax bill up front so county agencies, municipalities, school districts and other local governments can improve their bottom lines.
The so-called “accelerated billing” law — which sailed quietly through the General Assembly last year and applies only to Cook County — requires that the first installment of property taxes due March 2 be computed based on 55 percent of the total taxes paid last year, instead of the usual 50 percent.
The change is being spotlighted by county treasurer Maria Pappas, who is including fliers headlined “CALCULATION CHANGE 55%” in this year’s tax bills. Those bills began arriving in mailboxes this weekend, just days before the Feb. 2 primary.
Pappas said Monday she opposes the law. But support from other county leaders and Chicago government officials apparently helped it win approval in the Legislature, where it passed 48-8 in the Senate on April 1 and 67-46 in the House on May 19. Gov. Quinn signed it Aug. 14.
“Right now, people’s income fluctuates month by month, particularly those out of jobs and in between jobs,” said Rep. Jim Durkin (R-Western Springs), who voted against the change. “For people in very difficult situations trying to make their mortgage payments and just getting by, that additional 5 percent is significant.”
A homeowner who paid a $5,000 tax bill last year, for example, would have a first installment of $2,750 this year — $250 more than under the old law. But proponents point out that the change won’t hike the total taxes property owners will pay over the course of the year and could result in lower tax payments on the second installments of their bills.
“When confronted with the fact [local governments] can’t pay their bills, you feel this is one way to get a little more money into their funds,” said Sen. Louis Viverito (D-Burbank), the plan’s lead Senate sponsor.
“Historically, taxpayers are faced with a second property-tax installment that is higher than the first,” said Ashley Cross, a spokeswoman for Quinn. “This slight change aims to provide relief to taxpayers by helping to better balance the two payment cycles.”
There’s a slight chance homeowners who escrow their property taxes could see increases in their monthly mortgage payments based on the new law, said Frank Binetti, president of the Illinois Mortgage Bankers Association. Most lenders, however, should have adequate funds in reserve to cover homeowners’ bills.
“It’s not going to impact the lenders as much as the individual homeowner who pays their own taxes,” Binetti said. “They’re the ones who probably haven’t anticipated this.”
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
Is the mortgagee entitled to collect the same amount of monies for its tax escrow of real estate taxes if the amount of the tax has been substantially reduced by a figure such as 35%?