River Forest COVID-19 Adjustments

The Cook County Assessor’s Office (CCAO) is responsible for producing estimates of value of real properties in Cook County, and was scheduled to revalue properties in the South and West Suburbs in 2020. River Forest properties were revalued in early 2020. The CCAO mailed reassessment notices on February 7, 2020, and produced reports on these initial valuations. 

After the completion of this work, however, the COVID-19 pandemic led to substantial economic, social, and market effects. These economic and market effects can have corresponding effects on real property values of some (but not all) commercial sectors.

To account for the pandemic’s impact on real estate values throughout Cook County’s neighborhoods and communities, the Cook County Assessor determined that it is appropriate to apply COVID-19 Adjustments to property values in 2020, where applicable – even for property owners who did not file an appeal.

The CCAO re-calculated estimates of value of River Forest homes, and many River Forest commercial properties. The CCAO implemented adjustments after our analysts had completed processing of appeals. 

 

CCAO certified-final values for 2020 include any applicable COVID adjustment. After certification, these final values were published on the CCAO website, and a letter was mailed to the property’s owner.

To view the property’s Assessor-finalized 2020 value online:

  1. Find property by PIN or address at https://www.cookcountyassessor.com/address-search 
     
  2. The “Assessed Valuation” section contains the CCAO Certified Final 2020 Valuation. It incorporates applicable reductions resulting from any appeal and/or COVID Adjustment.

More information about the calculation of adjustments are below.

 

For Class 2 single-family homes, condos, and small multi-family apartments, the CCAO applied a percent reduction to the estimated Fair Market Value (and therefore the assessed value). For example, a home with a pre-COVID estimated Fair Market Value (FMV) of $100,000 might have received a 12% COVID adjustment. This would result in a COVID-Adjusted FMV of $88,000. The property’s assessed value would also decrease 12%, from $10,000 to $8,800.

 

The CCAO determined ranges of adjustments to the capitalization rates (“cap rates”), which are one part of the equation used to calculate many commercial property values. Sectors deemed not negatively affected by COVID were not adjusted. See the report on COVID-19 Adjustments in the South and West Suburbs.

Commercial properties were re-valued by adjusting cap rates of many sectors. When cap rates increase, estimates of Fair Market Value (FMV) decrease, thus decreasing assessed value. Below, we provide an example in each category of a River Forest property’s estimated market value before and after COVID adjustments.

Please note that the below values are Fair Market Values (FMV), or an estimate of the property's likely sale price. Assessed values are a percentage of FMV. 

Property Type

Initial Cap Rate
(Range)

COVID-Adjusted Cap Rate (Range)

Example of impact on Fair Market Value (FMV)

Commercial/Retail

7.0% - 9.0%

8.0% - 10.0%

One building’s FMV changed from $14,895,992 before COVID to $13,425,050 after COVID adjustments.

Office

8.0% - 9.0%

9.0% - 9.5%

One office building’s FMV changed from $1,648,358 before COVID adjustments to $1,576,059 after COVID adjustments.

Multi-Family

6.0% - 6.5%

6.5% - 7.0%

One apartment building’s FMV changed from $1,420,615 before COVID adjustments to $1,231,200 after COVID adjustments.

Industrial

There are no industrial properties in River Forest.

 

Any COVID adjustments made to residential and non-residential commercial property values were applied during the appeals process.

  1. For properties with an associated appeal, an appeal result letter was mailed.
  2. Then, for properties subject to COVID adjustments outside of an appeal, a COVID-19 adjustment letter was sent to each property owner confirming the property’s adjusted 2020 Assessed Value, as finalized by the Assessor.

Final values for all properties were published to the CCAO’s website at the conclusion of the appeals process for each township. These values were also certified to the Board of Review. 2020 assessed values affect the second installment property tax bills issued by the Cook County Treasurer in summer of 2021.

 

Below, we show how total assessed values have changed from the initial assessed values mailed to property owners, to the CCAO’s final certified values, following adjustments from appeals and COVID.
 

2020 Total Assessed Value changes in River Forest Township

   
 

Initial
Mailed Values

After appeals & COVID Adjustments

Change ($)

Change (%)

Residential

$223,326,410

$197,976,277

-$25,350,133

-11.4%

All other classes

$29,436,886

$27,189,582

-$2,247,304

-7.6%

TOTAL

$252,763,296

$225,165,859

-$27,597,437

-19.0%

 

It’s important to note that the impact of these assessment adjustments on individual tax bills for Tax Year 2020 cannot be determined yet. The following steps occur before 2020 assessed values impact bills for tax year 2020:

  • Taxing districts certify their property tax levies, which affects the amount of property tax dollars billed to owners of properties in that taxing district.
  • The Cook County Board of Review has an opportunity to review and revise any property’s assessed value. 
  • The Illinois Department of Revenue calculates Cook County’s Equalization Factor (also called the Multiplier). The Equalization Factor is applied to assessed values to produce each property’s Equalized Assessed Value (EAV). 
  • Exemptions are applied to EAVs.
  • The Cook County Clerk calculates local 2020 tax rates using each taxing district’s levy and total EAV. 
  • The Cook County Treasurer issues second-installment property tax bills in summer 2021.

 

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