How do you afford the property taxes in Illinois??? (Chicago: rent, buying)

[MSchemist80]

Originally Posted by oak317

It is Chicago after all. A lot of people who move here tell me how it's pricey, and I don't understand them very well since for all of my adult life I've lived here, I can't compare.

I think it's well-known we have the 2nd highest property taxes in the nation, after New Jersey. I'm not sure why this is exactly - is it because they were jacked up when the city started going broke?

I wonder if the property taxes were always this expensive, relative to the nation.

It happens because we've had 10 years of democrat control. Also property taxes can be pretty much increased whenever any of the governing bodies feel like it and it is much simpler and out of the public eye than the income tax which has many of the democrats facing reelection hesitant. What we need is a property tax cap at 1.5% or so of the property's fair market value and not what the county assessor says it is what it really is. The government not only has the option of raising the rates, they can manipluate the complicated formula and assessment values. In the end the property owners are like a bottomless piggy bank and the local governments have no pressure to be thrifty and efficient.

The entire state needs to have the government rebuilt from the bottom up or the downward spiral will continue.

[Vlajos]

Personally, I go to work, get paid twice a month and pay Cook County twice year. My taxes are about 1.3% of my property value.

[MSchemist80]

My mother in Niles [Cook County] pays 2.3% of what her home is really worth yearly in taxes. Based on their assessment it would be about 2 even.

[linicx]

IL property taxes are highest in Chicago and lowest in southern Illinois. It stays local to support schools, hospitals, and county and city services such as fire, police, pension, health care, courthouse, parks and libraries. Cook County is the largest county in the midwest and the second largest in America. It's a 1000+/- sq mi. in size. IL has 76,000 miles of county roads and bridges we all support that need repair and snow removal.

We all pay for it one way or another. There are no free rides. I lived in the other places with low taxes and no services. It is why I live in Illinois and not there.

[MSchemist80]

When it comes to govt I am a less is more person. The government here seems more bent on making our lives miserable with nanny state crap and turning this into a police state with revenue trap cameras everywhere. Besides there are a lot of places out there that provide much better essential services for a whole lot less in taxes.

[Maintainschaos]

It's easy for someone that doesn't necessarily use a service provided by the government to label it as "non-essential."

[MoneyJ]

Our house in Aurora is worth ~$300k. Property taxes are $7,600 a year. That is a monthly Benz payment in just property tax.

[linicx]

$7600 annually is $633.34 per month. It is a chunk of change to be sure.

Money is a funny commodity. No one wants someone else to dictate how we are ablated to spend it, but we accept the bank doing so to live the American Dream.

States should not have corporations, preachers, politicians, hedge fund managers, or political parties seeding our State House, writing our laws, telling us how to vote, or what to demand from our fearless elected leaders. If you live rural you still lose. The grocery store manager is a bigger thief than the mayor.

Originally Posted by MoneyJ

Our house in Aurora is worth ~$300k. Property taxes are $7,600 a year. That is a monthly Benz payment in just property tax.

[ccjarider]

Originally Posted by linicx

$7600 annually is $633.34 per month. It is a chunk of change to be sure.

Money is a funny commodity. No one wants someone else to dictate how we are ablated to spend it, but we accept the bank doing so to live the American Dream.

States should not have corporations, preachers, politicians, hedge fund managers, or political parties seeding our State House, writing our laws, telling us how to vote, or what to demand from our fearless elected leaders. If you live rural you still lose. The grocery store manager is a bigger thief than the mayor.

NO, NO he/she is NOT.

Competition would allow for another grocery store to open.
No one can open another gov't entity to compete with the current one.
You have been brainwashed by someone.

[linicx]

NO, NO? Ho, ho, ho, Santa. If you live in Portland, you do not live in tiny town rural Illinois. I do and I pay $3.00 for a can of generic tomatoes, 9% locate retail tax, $53.00 for a carton of cigarettes, and $3.89 for a gallon of gas.