7% History
In 2003, Cook County Assessor Jim Houlihan developed the 7% Expanded Homeowner Exemption (EHE) in an effort to provide immediate relief to homeowners facing assessment increases and the resulting increases on their property tax bills. The 7% EHE is an expanded homeowner exemption that provides additional savings to homeowners by slowing the impact of a home’s reassessment and providing taxpayers with more stable and predictable tax bills. This property tax relief legislation was signed into law in July of 2004 and first implemented for 2003 City of Chicago tax bills.
In October of 2007, the 7% EHE was renewed for an additional reassessment cycle with new maximum exemption amounts. This legislation will be in effect for the City of Chicago until 2008, for the North suburbs until 2009, and for the South suburbs until 2010.
