Illinois Property Tax Relief: New Law Easing Financial Burden
On Friday, May 20th, Governor Pritzker signed Senate Bill 1975 into law, instituting Illinois property tax relief. Specifically, the new law acts as a form of property tax relief for senior citizens, veterans, and people with disabilities. This helps to ease the burden from one of the highest property taxes in the nation.
“Over the past twenty years, property taxes have skyrocketed at a rate far surpassing the increase in home values. For veterans, disabled Illinoisans, and our seniors, that can mean having to choose between basic needs—like healthcare—and losing their homes. That’s unacceptable and needs to change,” Governor Pritzker said.
Understanding the Illinois Property Tax Relief Law
The Illinois Property Tax Relief law immediately went into effect. In doing so, the law increases the homestead exemption and senior citizens homestead exemption. Furthermore, it reduces interest rates on tax deferrals for seniors. Finally, the law allows for automatic renewal of the homestead exemption for qualified people in Cook County.
In a state that has seen rising property taxes, this hopes to ease the burden of these taxes for the state’s most vulnerable residents. Additionally, tax districts now get to choose the lowest property tax rate without losing potential access to additional funds in the future. Not only does this bill open many doors for vulnerable residents, it also aims to make it easier to access this relief by automatically renewing if the qualified individual is deemed permanently and totally disabled by the US Department of Veteran Affairs.
Examining the Illinois Property Tax Relief Law’s Financial Thresholds
Similar to other tax laws, the new Illinois Property Tax Relief law comes with its own set of financial thresholds. For the homestead exemption, the maximum exemption for counties bordering Cook County will be $8,000. For all other counties the maximum exemption will be $6,000. And for Cook County, the maximum exemption will be $10,000.
For the senior homestead exemption, counties surrounding Cook County have a maximum from $5,000 to $8,000 and all other counties get $5,000. Also, it lowers the Senior Citizen Estate Tax Deferral Program’s interest rate from 6% to 3%.
Summary
With the institution of the new 2022 Illinois Property Tax Relief law, Illinois residents now gain an additional financial easement. With senior citizens, veterans, and disabled residents already facing higher medical costs, this motion seeks to help some of the more vulnerable groups.
For legal guidance regarding residential and commercial real estate transactions, contact the attorney at Lee Scott Perres, P.C.
