Politics & Government

Cook County Setting Up One-Stop Tax Info Website

Property owners will soon have a new tool to get extensive tax information.

Cook County government officials have announced the creation of a consolidated website that will offer one-stop shopping for property tax information.

Cook County’s new Property Tax Portal, which goes live April 1, is a collaborative effort that combines information from various county offices into one unified site, saving time and promoting efficiency. The new portal compiles information from the county's Treasurer’s Office, Assessor’s Office, the Recorder of Deeds, the County Clerk’s Office and the Board of Review, among others.

The site will give residents online access to information they may never have been aware of before—such as appeal or exemption opportunities or liens on their properties.

Find out what's happening in La Grangewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Currently, property owners who want to see the tax history of a home, business or land must visit the websites of up to six county offices to “piece together” the record of ownership, payments, exemptions, appeals, refunds and delinquencies—much of which goes back only one year. When the Property Tax Portal goes live, an owner will get five years of history, in linear form and on a single screen, without having to surf from website to website, determining what is owed, paid, and what refunds might be available.

For example, an owner could enter a Property Index Number or address to see if he or she had paid a previous installment, was receiving a tax-lowering exemption, or had a refund coming.

Find out what's happening in La Grangewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“Taxpayers will no longer have to struggle through the many layers of tax data,” Clerk David Orr said. “Let’s finally take taxpayers out of the property tax pinball machine.”

The Offices of the Assessor, Clerk, Recorder of Deeds and Board of Review are providing the in-depth data needed for the site services. Owners need only enter their Property Index Number to see a screen shot that includes:

  • Ownership and liens from the Recorder of Deeds
  • Payments and refunds from the Treasurer
  • Valuation, exemptions and appeals from the Assessor
  • Prior bill statuses, delinquencies and TIF information from the Clerk and
  • Appeals from the Board of Review

The portal will also include features such as a calendar of events and key dates provided by the president’s and the other offices.

The property and taxation offices have been working together closely to implement the Property Tax Portal, as part of President Preckwinkle’s Set Targets, Achieve Results (STAR) performance management initiative, where offices work together to develop concepts that provide better services to constituents through cooperation.

The treasurer’s office spearheaded the design and content of the portal, working with other offices to implement an aggressive 90-day target to complete the first stage of the site by April 1. The portal was financed in its entirety from the budget of the Office of the Treasurer, at no additional cost to Cook County taxpayers.

The link will be www.CookCountyPropertyInfo.com


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here