Cook County Assessor’s Office Mails Maine Township Reassessment Notices and Releases Detailed Methodology Reports

CHICAGO – Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi announced that reassessment notices were mailed to close to 52,000 properties in Maine Township and that detailed narrative reports explaining methodology are available on the Assessor’s website at www.cookcountyassessor.com.

“The reports are part of our office’s commitment to increase transparency and provide greater predictability within our assessment system,” Assessor Kaegi said. “We have released reports for the first five north suburban reassessment townships and will continue to post reports for the remaining eight townships as notices are mailed throughout the year.”    

Each year, the Cook County Assessor’s Office (CCAO) reassesses one-third of the nearly 1.8 million parcels of property located in Cook County.  The Assessor’s Office is reassessing properties located in north suburban Cook County this year and Maine Township is the fifth of thirteen townships to be reassessed. The deadline to file an appeal for Maine Township is June 7^th and all appeal documentation must be submitted by June 17^th.

A detailed narrative regarding the reassessment of residential properties in Maine Township can be found on the Assessor’s website at the following link:  https://prodassets.cookcountyassessor.com/s3fs-public/news/MaineResidential.pdf

Among the findings from the residential Maine Township reassessment:

• The median assessed value of homes increased to 31,741 in 2019, from 29,882 in 2016 -- a median percentage increase of 6.22%.
• The median sale price for single-family homes and other non-condo residential properties increased to $316,125 in 2019, from $285,000 in 2016.
• The CCAO met the standard for compliance: the legal requirement to assess residential properties at a 10% assessment ratio.
• The CCAO was also statistically within the target range for the International of Association of Assessing Officers’ standards for uniformity and vertical equity.

A detailed narrative regarding the reassessment of commercial/industrial properties in Maine Township can be found on the Assessor’s website at the following link: 

https://prodassets.cookcountyassessor.com/s3fs-public/news/MaineCommercial.pdf

Among the findings from the commercial/industrial Maine Township reassessment:

• Assessed values of commercial properties have risen significantly in Maine Township, from a previous total assessed value in 2018 of $466,109,679 to a total 2019 assessed value of $875,652,772 – a percentage increase of 87.86%. 
• The most powerful driver of the increased values is a reduction of cap rates used in the 2019 north triennial reassessment. For example, the capitalization rate used in 2016 was 10.75% for apartments while the rate in 2019 is 6%.  Several industry sources were used to determine 2019 cap rates including CoStar, Trepp, CBRE, Cushman & Wakefield and others.
• Rents are generally higher in 2019 than rents used in the assessment process in 2016, which generates additional increases in market value resulting in comparable increases in assessed value.

“I encourage all taxpayers to take the time to visit our website and review the detailed methodology reports as we continue to post them online,” Assessor Kaegi said. “I remain committed to increasing transparency and making the assessment process easier to understand and navigate.”