Joe B.: I will leave as soon as I can if it doesn’t get any better and if property taxes don’t stop going up.

Joe B. owns a 1,918 square foot Grayslake home that is currently assessed at $231,732.

“It’s a lot of money to pay every month,” Joe said. “We don’t go out as often as we used to. It’s just more difficult for me to save money for my daughter’s college education.”

Joe took possession of the home in 1996 when it was worth around $195,536, or $314,601 in today’s dollars. He has paid $113,819 in property taxes since 2000, more than 58 percent of the original value of his home.

“I would leave now if I could, but my mother is 90 years old and I have to be around to help her out,” Joe said. “Otherwise, I would leave. I will leave as soon as I can if it doesn’t get any better and if property taxes don’t stop going up.”

“I would leave now if I could, but my mother is 90 years old and I have to be around to help her out,” Joe said. “Otherwise, I would leave. I will leave as soon as I can if it doesn’t get any better and if property taxes don’t stop going up.”

Joe is currently paying $8,563 per year in property taxes on his home, about 3.6 percent of the Lake County Assessor claimed value of $231,732.

“I don’t think they’re doing a very good job [with our taxes] considering the state of Illinois,” Joe said.

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.

“The one percent tax cap would certainly help,” Joe said.

If Joe lived in Indiana the most he could be charged in property taxes would be $2,317 per year or $6,246 less than what he currently pays in Illinois.

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