A small crowd of Stickney Township residents gathered in the Louis S. Viverito Center in Burbank on Oct. 9 to get assistance filing their property tax appeals ahead of the October 21 deadline.
Staff from the Cook County Board of Review, a government office dedicated to providing the taxpayers of Cook County an opportunity to appeal property assessments, gave a presentation to educate residents on the appeals process before taking questions alongside Stickney Township Assessor Amy Dimas March.
Stickney Township is located in the Board of Review 1st District, which is represented by Commissioner George A. Cárdenas, and the township staff emphasized that the office is distinct from the Cook County Assessor’s Office. Many residents aren’t aware that the Board of Review can only lower your property tax assessment if you win your appeal and has no power to increase property taxes–even if you lose your appeal.
Residents were encouraged to file their appeals with the Board of Review at least once every three years (coinciding with the triennial Cook County property tax reassessment) if not once each year, a right all homeowners are entitled to. For supporting evidence that your property has been misvaluated compared to similar properties, residents were encouraged to visit cookcountyproperty.com, which can show the assessments of properties near you. Board of Review staff then helped residents file appeals, explaining that residents would receive a letter in a few weeks confirming the appeal submission and another letter around December determining the success or failure of the appeal.
One resident asked about senior tax benefits, and Assessor March explained that, distinct from the senior exemption, the “senior freeze has to be applied for every year,” because it is based on household income which can fluctuate.
Assessor March, whose office is available to assist Stickney Township residents with their property tax appeals, said that she works with the Board of Review to hold this outreach event annually and wants “our township residents to feel like they are family and that we are here to help in any way we can.”
