She didn't seem too confident in her information. I'll have to call Craig if I don't see it soon.

Ack - I've posted this link about five times already and I think - t-h-i-n-k - the "Final Complaint Filing" date is the final date to get your challenge/complaint/protest in for Milton Township.

By the time this kooky crossword puzzle is complete, you will note that every single township has a DIFFERENT "Final Complaint Filing" date.

Ahhh, standardization.

By the way, here is the exact run-around I got when I contacted the DuPage County Clerk this past April asking them for more detail on how they calculate the rates.

quote:

Contact your local township office regarding the taxing bodies on your bill. The number to your local township office is on your bill. If you need help locating it feel free to forward your parcel number or property address and I will provide you with the number to the township office.

After I replied to this nonsense by saying "Why would I contact the township about limiting rates? All they do is assess.", here is the response I got, from the same [snotty] person:

quote:

The township office is responsible for all the calculations on your tax bill. If you have a question regarding the county’s tax rates overall you would contact the Clerk’s Office but any computation associated with your bill the local township office can review those for errors.

We pay these people?

Here is what I wrote to this chair-warmer, with a cc to both Gwen Henry and Craig Dovel:

Look, I'm not going to get into an argument with you but the township is reponsible for one thing and one thing only: Computing an Assessed Valuation for my parcel number that may or may not have a county Supervisor of Assessment Equalization factor applied to it. They have virtually NOTHING to do with "all the calculations on your [my] tax bill".

One of the reasons I am so adamant about this is: It is difficult enough to get the most SIMPLE questions answered about property taxes without being sent on a wild-goose chase from one government agency to another. DuPage County alone has three discrete areas that work on property taxes:

1) County Supervisor of Assessments - Craig Dovel - responsible for the final ["equalized"] 33.33% Benchmark of Value, applied to all parcels on a township-by-township basis.

2) County Clerk - Gary King - responsible for computing a rate for each fund of each taxing district across all of DuPage County, uses PTELL, Illinois School Code and other statutory factors in converting a taxing district's levy into a per-parcel rate.

3) County Treasurer - Gwen Henry - Issues the bills and collects the money.

Where did you get the idea that the township is responsible for all the calculations on a DuPage County property tax bill? I hope you're not sending other taxpayers out chasing their tails at the township.

this bunch bears watching. one year my neighbor's value went up 6%, mine went up 11%. turns out...simple math error ON THEIR PART. years ago discovered i was being assessed for a patio AND the deck over it. a fireplace that no longer existed..etc.
ok, here's the final date per milton twp: the values were published yesterday in GE news, wheaton leader. if you want to protest the appeal deadline is midnight 9/27.
my assessed value did go down by the proscribed 3%...but of course your taxes can still go up when the bodies tell the county "what they need."
fun.

Ack,

Not to defend these six-figure chair warmers but I don't believe the assessor(s) actually go out and inspect the parcels. No, they work off original "specs", building permits and other arcane governmental documents to come up with a vague "benchmark of value", across the entire fiefdom, I mean, township.

In other words, they are NOT appraisers.

The year 2011 is known as a "General Assessment Year". This type of year rolls around every four years and you will hear it referred to as a "quad year" by our SFCW's [six-figure chair-warmers].

Ostensibly, in a quad year, a super rigorous "re-assessment" is done on every single parcel in the barony, I mean, township. In the intervening years? More like spreadsheets, finger in the wind, number-crunching and pinochle playing than anything else......

Anyone have a successful "assessed value" protest? Success, defined as getting the amount LOWERED.

Yes, we cleared the property of all structures.

Now the taxes are more manageable.

I had the same experience ackerman. They don't/won't send you their comps in advance. It's totally a one-way street. In fact, the ***essors office used comps from outside my taxing neighborhood. I'm in Lake Ellyn and they used Back of the Tracks. Thought this was a big no-no.

I still lost.

As far as I'm concerened there's no consistency in their application of assessments. Go ahead and examine some properties on $ per square foot basis. Oh, and better yet, ask them to define what constitutes an irregularly shaped lot.

I have not contested for several years, but on three occasions I was able to get our assessment reduced by informally going into the assessor's office with comps.

It was helpful to go in with a "hat in hand" demeanor. After my success, a neighbor chose a different approach with the same information. He ended up spending time at a hearing and not getting his assessment reduced.

mid '90's: the first time i got a change they made a math mistake (my neighbor's value went up 6%, mine 11%. pretty easy.) the next 2 times i was successful due to a situation specific to my property location. (early 2000's). in 2008 i was refused...same reason, but they decided to use comps from MANY blocks away without the same location issue. THEN i protested to the state...EIGHTEEN MONTHS LATER my appeal of my appeal was not successful. i swear by nov. 2008 they were really cracking down, knowing that the overall assessed values would be decreasing. my situation had not changed at all.
Russia? try China.

Try WI real estate tax if you want to complain. Thank God my second home is in MI. Yeah its a screwed up State but when you want a place to spend your geezer hood it works.