Susan S.: Until we get new politicians that really care about us, it’s not going to change.

Susan S. owns a 1,843 square foot, 4-bedroom, 1.5-bathroom Park Ridge home that is currently assessed at $387,830.

“It’s one thing that the property taxes are high, but it’s another when the value of the homes are [falling],” Susan said. “So, thinking about selling my home and knowing I couldn’t even demand the same price I bought it for in 2004 is really sad. I’ve owned it for 14 years and I’m not certain I could get the value I paid for it now.”

Susan took possession of the home in 2004 when it was worth around $550,000, or $734,999 in today’s dollars. She has paid $126,808 in property taxes since 2004, more than 23 percent of the original value of her home.

“I really don’t want to move but it’s definitely a consideration,” Susan said.

“I really don’t want to move but it’s definitely a consideration,” Susan said.

Susan is currently paying $10,089 per year in property taxes on her home, about 2.6 percent of the Cook County Assessor claimed value of $387,830.

“To see that tax rate of 1.94 percent and compare that to other states that are significantly less, like Indiana is .865, it’s more than 130 percent than what I would be paying in Indiana,” Susan said. “I’m concerned more for the future because I don’t see any stop to the spending. I see the politicians continue to kick the can and tax us more and more without putting some type of tax cap. I don’t see an end in sight, which is more concerning.”

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 cap like in Indiana would significantly lower property taxes,” Susan said. “I don’t know what choice we have than to do something like the 1 percent hard cap. It’s one of the only answers.”

If Susan lived in Indiana the most she could be charged in property taxes would be $3,878 per year or $6,211 less than what she currently pays in Illinois.

“Until we get new politicians that really care about us, it’s not going to change,” Susan said.

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