Thursday, February 23, 2012

Property taxes - why no outrage?

I cannot understand why McHenry County property owners have not started a revolution!

Yesterday I drove by an attractive, newer home near Woodstock, but just outside the city limits and in McHenry County. Probably, about anyone driving by would have thought that the property was in Woodstock, but it's not.

I was curious about its value. It looked new and unoccupied (or vacant), although I think I'd seen vehicles around the property. I was able to find its tax bill on the County Treasurer's website, but not at first, because the street is misspelled on the tax bill.

On the 2010 tax bill, the Fair Cash Value is $451, 932, and the taxes are a whopping $11,240! That's $936/month - every month - just for property taxes. That's not the principal, interest or the property insurance; that's just for taxes!

Zillow.com indicates the actual value of the property might only be $299,000, or 2/3 of the market value as appraised by the Assessor's Office.

The house is situated on a fairly busy road and has narrow frontage on the road. The lot appers to  be about seven longer than it is wide, and the entire rear of the property appears to be good for little except scenery. And not even great scenery, at that.

Maybe that's why the house appears to be empty.

2 comments:

M.U.G. said...

The reason very few do anything about the RE taxes is the same reason they don't show up at Main St and RT 14 in C. Lk. with signs or deluge they're elected officials with phone calls and emails. American people have become sheep thus herded around at the politicians whim. Do as your told and pay your taxes dummkopf. Remember when your mad you talk, complain and sit on your butt but when your outraged you do something about the problem. I would say most people are just mad.

Gus said...

From another reader:

"It is no mystery to me concerning the stratospheric level of property taxes in McHenry County. The "in folks" riding the gravy train have to be paid. Consider the wonderful McHenry County Board. There are twenty four of them and every one of them are being paid close to $20,000 per year, plus other benefits.
The county board could be operated wth a total of six or eight members. These members could easily be found that would serve who would fill the job as volunteers. There are many retired executives, I am sure, who would take the job. This is not to mention the high salaries and benefits that the elected officials are raking in now and also what will come to them in retirement. I am aware of one retired school superintendent who was making approximately $175,000 per year while working and is raking in around $100,000 per year in retirement. He has been retired for around ten years and the system has paid him about $1,000,000 to date. Does this explain why the County fathers keep upping the real estate tax?"