JSO provides our clients with expert appraisal reports that give them a leg up during the real estate tax appeal process. We work with local, trusted law firms to save our clients money and combat Assessor estimates that are outdated.

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We appraise properties ranging from a few thousand to a few million square feet, including "Loop" high-rise office buildings, suburban big-box stores, shopping centers, industrial buildings, and a variety of other property types. These buildings have ranged from a few thousand square feet to a million square feet. We work throughout Cook County, the Collar counties, and throughout the lower 48. Potential tax savings vary depending on age, condition, and use of the property.

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This is a strange arena to work in.  It is only getting stranger and there are competing agencies that can over-rule each other.  

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The Cook County Assessor derives his assessments for all properties from a Mass Appraisal technique.  However real estate is not  homogenous, therefore even two seemingly similar and adjoining properties can have very (and this can't stressed enough) different value outcomes.  

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But this is a story for a different day.  In tax appeal there is only one major and beyond important issue... and that it the final property assessment.  This falls with the Assessor's office and finally the Cook County Board of Appeals - the Board.  These guys have been doing a stellar job.  There are other avenues in the appeal process after this, but these outcomes will not influence the "Assessment:"  

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Why is this so important?  In Cook County all the properties are assessed every three-years, a triennial taxation system. The county is therefore divides into three sectors (one per year) and in 2021 it is the turn of the City of Chicago.  After all the appeals at the Assessor's office and the "Board" were completed in 2018 the final certified assessment was issued.  In 2021 the next assessment (the current pending one) is based on these 2018 Certified total.  Therefore if one was not able to bring this assessed amount under control one can expect an even higher property tax assessment this year.  

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There are several news articles on this matter and they need to be a cautionary tail for the Cook County Assessor and all Assessors across the nation for that matter.   One of the issues is that when there is a non-real estate individual, like Fritz Kaegi in Cook County, there is a complete lack of knowledge and understanding.  

 

Read more....  

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