Appealing a property tax assessment

If you think your property taxes are too high, you can challenge your property tax assessment.

How are property taxes figured out?

The amount of property tax you have to pay for your house is based on the value of your house. Your local assessor's office is in charge of deciding how much your house is worth. This is called an assessment.

How do I change my property taxes?

You can get your property taxes lowered by proving that your house is worth less than the assessor says it is. To do this, you have to appeal to your local board of review.

You can find contact information for your local board of review on the Illinois Property Tax Appeal Board website.

What is the deadline?

Check with your local board of review about their deadline.

It may be too late to appeal your property tax assessment for this year, which is what you pay next year. So you might not be able to do anything about the property tax you’re paying this year.

But, you can still appeal your assessment for next year, which will decide the following year’s tax.

Your board of review can also give you the form you need to file an appeal. It’s short (about one page). There’s no filing fee.

How do I prove that my property is worth less than my assessment says it is?

Try to find records of appraisals, and records of similar sales, to show to the board of review. Since the assessor’s records are open to the public, you can compare your assessment to other similar properties.

You can find more information on how to win your case on the Illinois Department of Revenue website.

How does the process work?

The board of review will meet with you, but there’s no formal hearing. The board then makes a written decision, by majority vote, based on what you present. You have to pay your taxes while you appeal, but will get a refund if you win.

What if I lose the appeal?

If you’re not happy with the board of review's decision, you can appeal again to the Property Tax Appeal Board (PTAB). The process with the PTAB is pretty much the same, except now the board of review has to defend their decision against your evidence and arguments.

Visit the Property Tax Appeal Board website for more information on appealing a board of review's decision.