Pat D.: I would be out of Illinois in a heartbeat if I could.

Pat D. owns a 2,034 square foot, 3-bedroom, Colona home that is currently assessed at $104,667.

I’ve been here 32 years,” Pat said. “I’m to the point where I outright own my home, but I’m still struggling to have to come up with [all of this money]. It puts a lot of pressure on me.”

Pat took possession of the home more than 30 years ago. He has paid$38,333 in property taxes since 2001.

“I’ve lived here my whole life,” Pat said. “I would be out of Illinois in a heartbeat if I could. I’m stuck here. I own my house. There is no way I could get what my house is worth."

“I’ve lived here my whole life,” Pat said. “I would be out of Illinois in a heartbeat if I could. I’m stuck here. I own my house. There is no way I could get what my house is worth."

Pat is currently paying $3,447 per year in property taxes on his home, about 3.2 percent of the Henry County Assessor claimed value of $104,667.

“These extra property taxes don’t help,” Pat said. “For Illinois, it has to be a huge change. Everything needs to be changed.”

Indiana has a hard 1 percent cap on property taxes. This means local governments are not allowed under state law to charge homeowner’s more than 1 percent of their home’s assessed value per year. The average property tax rate for the state of Indiana is 0.89 percent. Meanwhile, the average property tax rate in Illinois is 2.3 percent.

If Pat lived in Indiana the most he could be charged in property taxes would be $1,046 per year or $2,401 less than what he currently pays in Illinois.

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