Submitted by the Lake County administration
Property tax time is here and that means Lake County property owners will be receiving a bill in the mail by early May. The bills are for 2010 property taxes, which are payable in 2011, in two installments. The first due date is June 6, and the second installment due date is September 6.
Property owners who do not receive a bill by May 10, or those looking for payment options, can obtain this information online at www.lakecountyil.gov/treasurer, or by calling the Treasurer’s Office at 847.377.2323.
Lake County Treasurer Bob Skidmore said, “Once homeowners receive their tax bills, they frequently ask whether it is too late to appeal their taxes. The answer to that question is: basically, yes. Appeals should have been filed 30 days from the date the assessment rolls were published.”
It is extremely important for property owners to pay close attention to their total property tax exemptions listed on the bill. These exemptions could lower the current tax bill. For a complete list of exemptions, go to www.lakecountyil.gov/TREASURER/PROPERTYTAXRELIEF.
County residents receive a single tax bill for the full year’s taxes. That bill is payable in two equal installments. Taxpayers will not receive a second bill when the second installment is due.
Per Illinois law, the County is required to add 1.5% penalty for taxes paid or post-marked after the due dates. Those homeowners that are unable to pay their property taxes on time should be aware that Lake County will accept partial payments with the understanding that a penalty will be charged on any outstanding balance.
Payment options include by mail, in person at the Lake County Treasurer’s Office, 18 N. County Street, Waukegan, or at most Lake County banks. Taxpayers may also make payments online by credit card or e-check at www.lakecountyil.gov/treasurer. A fee is charged by the processing company for these payments.
Keep in mind, tax bills are based on the assessment of your property that took place last year, and the appeal process has already passed. An assessment is the process of appraising real property and giving it a value, which is the basis for determining what portion of the total tax burden each property owner will bear. Learn more at www.lakecountyil.gov/Assessor or watch this video “Understanding Your Property Taxes”.
If you think there is an error on your tax bill, you can talk to your local township assessor to be sure that a factual error has not occurred. By law, only factual errors can be corrected once the bills go out.
