Illinois Taxes Bills Go Out May 1st – Due June 4th

O'Connor discusses the Illinois taxes bills that go out on May 1st and are due June 4th.

CHICAGO, IL, UNITED STATES, May 1, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Federal Tax Day may have just been a week ago, but the people of Illinois are about to get a fresh batch of taxes delivered to their door. It is about to be property tax season again, and it is help for taxpayers to be aware of when deadlines hit.

Here is a quick overview of what to expect when tax bills arrive and what can be done in the future to lower property taxes.

Illinois Deadlines

While Cook County makes its own rules, the rest of Illinois has a specific timetable that follows property tax payment schedules. The property tax bill will be mailed out twice this year, with each installment due roughly a month later. The day after the due date, fees and interest will begin to be piled up on. It is imperative to make the installment payments ahead of time.

May 1st: Tax bills are mailed out
June 4th: First installment is due
Three-year delay between assessments that do not show present day value
June 5th: A penalty of 1.5% is added to bills for unpaid installments
July 5th: Penalty raised to 3.0%
September 4th: Second installment is due
September 5th: 1.5% penalty on the second installment, 6% on the first installment

Late property taxes can be expensive and will quickly accumulate more interest and penalties if they are ignored. Property owners could even face liens and eventual foreclosure if the payment is without pay for a long period of time. This is something that requires the upmost attention.

In addition, if owners have not received a tax bill between May 5th and May 30th, they should check their local appraisal district online and confirm the due amount. Owners will also want to check to make sure what their exact due dates are. They are typically done as listed here, but some counties may have things set a little later. A good rule of thumb is to consider the window to be May 1st-June 1st.

How Can Property Owners Lower their Taxes?

Once bills are sent out, there is very little that owners can do to lower their property taxes. It may be too late to change things for this year, but owners can launch a property tax protest to get lower taxes on next year’s bill.

Property Tax Appeals

Property tax appeals in Illinois do not actually dispute your tax bill, but rather the assessment made by the local appraisal district. By presenting evidence, owners are able to lower the assessed value of their property, thus triggering a lower tax number. This is why owners cannot appeal a bill that has already been sent. After the local appraiser gives notice of assessment values for a year, owners have 30 days to file the appeal. Assessments are typically posted in August or September. This can change by county and township, so it is important to check online depending on the area.

Appeal Types

Illinois has a few appeal types that can be utilized by a taxpayer to lower their assessed value. These act sequentially, meaning one leads to the other. This chain can be run to the end or stopped at any link that provides adequate relief.

Informal Appeal

These appeals are very basic and are made to the local assessor. These are often made online. The purpose of informal appeals is to bring the matter of an inaccurate valuation to the local or county assessor. If they agree and still possess the assessment books, then owners can get a rather swift assessment reduction added to their record. These appeals are typically made with a local township assessor or other local official with similar duties.

Board of Review (BOR)

Also known as formal appeals, taxpayers can make written appeals to their local board of review (BOR). This step will usually be at the county level. While informal appeals cover the very basics, such as incorrect size or vacancy, formal appeals deal with issues like overvaluing of property, incorrect assessment when compared to neighbors or previous sales, and other issues. These hearings can be done over the phone, through correspondence, or in-person.

Property Tax Appeal Board (PTAB)

If informal appeals or those taken to BOR are not effective or produce insufficient results, then the final step is to take the owner's case before the Property Tax Appeal Board. This appeal sees the taxpayer and a taxing entity take their arguments before an impartial governing body. All evidence is weighed together, with a final verdict reached for either side. Of all the steps in the appeal chain, this requires the most evidence to be successful.

Judicial Appeal

Outside of the traditional tax protest options lies the judicial appeal. These are lawsuits targeted at taxing entities with the purpose of achieving a reduction in taxable value for a given property. Due to the cost and time that it takes to pull off, these are usually reserved for the biggest and most valuable properties across Illinois. This stage is only reached when BOR and PTAB results are not what the taxpayer desired.

About O'Connor:
O’Connor is one of the largest property tax consulting firms, representing 185,000 clients in 49 states and Canada, handling about 295,000 protests in 2024, with residential property tax reduction services in Illinois, Texas, Georgia, and New York. O’Connor’s possesses the resources and market expertise in the areas of property tax, cost segregation, commercial and residential real estate appraisals. The firm was founded in 1974 and employs a team of 1,000 worldwide. O’Connor’s core focus is enriching the lives of property owners through cost effective tax reduction.

Property owners interested in assistance appealing their assessment can enroll in O’Connor’s Property Tax Protection Program ™. There is no upfront fee, or any fee unless we reduce your property taxes, and easy online enrollment only takes 2 to 3 minutes.

Patrick O'Connor, President
O'Connor
+1 713-375-4128
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