Joseph C.: I have about 10 to 12 years until I retire and then I am out of this state.

Joseph C. owns a 1,323 square foot, Villa Park home that is currently assessed at $291,990.

“I have about 10 to 12 years until I retire and then I am out of this state,” Joseph said.

Joseph took possession of the home in 1995 when it was worth around $128,000, or $211,776 in today’s dollars. He has paid$47, 309 in property taxes since 2011, more than 36 percent of the original value of his home.

“Right now I’m putting my taxes each year on my line of credit so I can pay it off throughout the year and hopefully pay it off before the next year,” Joseph said. “We have to do without other stuff. We can’t do anything to the house.”

“Right now I’m putting my taxes each year on my line of credit so I can pay it off throughout the year and hopefully pay it off before the next year,” Joseph said. “We have to do without other stuff. We can’t do anything to the house.”

Joseph is currently paying $7,540 per year in property taxes on his home, about 2.5 percent of the DuPage County Assessor claimed value of $291,990.

“You can’t continue to doll out pension plans with people living longer with increases more than the common people get and expect to keep up with it,” Joseph said. “This state is a joke.”

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.

“Put a cap on [the taxes] and learn how to spend money,” Joseph said. “If I ran my house the way they run this state I would be broke and live in a cardboard box.”

If Joseph lived in Indiana the most he could be charged in property taxes would be $2,919 per year or $4,621 less than what he currently pays in Illinois.

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