Illinois has second highest property tax rate in country study shows

A study by the Washington D.C. financial analysis company WalletHub shows that Illinois has the 2nd worst effective property tax rate of any state.

By Ray Hanania

Illinois ranks 50th out of 51 in a study of property taxes of all states and Washington D.C. a report issued by WalletHub concluded this week.

WalletHub, owned by Evolution Finance, Inc., based in Washington, D.C., provides analysis of all of the country’s many financial systems and platforms, in government and private sector, and offers free credit scores and full credit reports updated on a daily basis, and provides in-depth analysis to the public on a regular basis.

The Effective Real Estate Tax Rate (ERETR) for Illinois calculated by WalletHub for Illinois is second highest at 2.27 percent behind New Jersey which is 2.49 percent. The ERETR is calculated based on the national Median Home Value of $217,500 as applied to each state.

“Depending on where you live, property taxes can be a small inconvenience or a major burden,” the WalletHub analysis concludes.

Typical Suburban street view. Courtesy of Wikipedia

“The average American household spends $2,471 on property taxes for their homes each year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, and residents of the 27 states with vehicle property taxes shell out another $445. Considering these figures and the massive amount of debt in America, it should come as no surprise that more than $14 billion in property taxes go unpaid each year, according to the National Tax Lien Association.”

Here is a comparison chart of 20 states with the worst ERETR:

Rankings of the 20 worst states and DC of property tax rates released by WalletHub March 2, 2022

Source: WalletHub

“And though property taxes might appear to be a non-issue for the 36% of renter households, that couldn’t be further from the truth. We all pay property taxes, whether directly or indirectly, as they impact the rent we pay as well as the finances of state and local governments,” WalletHub reports.

“But which states have the largest property tax load, and what should residents keep in mind when it comes to meeting and minimizing their tax obligations? In search of answers, we analyzed the 50 states and the District of Columbia in terms of real-estate and vehicle property taxes. We also asked a panel of property-tax experts for practical and political insight.”

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Ray Hanania

Ray Hanania is an award-winning opinion columnist, author & former Chicago City Hall reporter (1977-1992). A veteran who served during the Vietnam War and the recipient of four SPJ Peter Lisagor Awards for column writing, Hanania writes weekly opinion columns on mainstream American & Chicagoland topics for the Southwest News-Herald, Des Plaines Valley News, the Regional News, The Reporter Newspapers, and Suburban Chicagoland.

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Hanania also writes about Middle East issues for the Arab News, and The Arab Daily News criticizing government policies in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Hanania was named "Best Ethnic American Columnist" by the New America Media in November 2007, and is the 2009 recipient of the SPJ National Sigma Delta Chi Award for column writing.

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