Cook County cuts late penalty for property taxes

COOK COUNTY, Ill. - The penalty for paying your property taxes late has been slashed in half in Cook County.

Yearly interest rate penalties have been cut from 18% to 9%, with the monthly rate reduced from 1.5% to 0.75%. The reduced rate applies to the latest set of installment taxes, due March 1, thanks to a state law passed last year.

Those lower rates mean property owners save $90 for every $1,000 owed on taxes, according to the Cook County Treasurer’s office, which helped promote the reform with the Chicago Community Trust.

Total annual savings for property owners will be $25 million to $35 million a year, the office said. The goal is for more homeowners to pay their bills and avoid the annual tax sale.

"These lower interest rates will help those who are unable to pay their property taxes in full by the due date and who make partial payments on late taxes to spread out the burden," Treasurer Maria Pappas said in a statement.

Pappas’ office said it sought the reforms after her office published studies in 2022, showing inequities in the tax system have placed a heavier burden on Black- and Latino-majority neighborhoods.