This seems to be more like a SHOUTOUT!! for yourself than the Chicago Tribune.

No not at all. The story is well researched. I am merely relating my real life experience with a flawed system.

I learned the Kane County system after the housing crash. I appealed three years in a row and won each time with better results in successive years. At one point, I had my shitty Pulte home valued more than 30% below my neighbors because I had appealed. My tax bill was $3,000 less than comparbale properties in my neighborhood.

Maybe one of the reasons the state is in such a difficult financial situation is because people that can afford it use and abuse the appeal process to save themselves some extra money and then complain about the financial mess that is going to cause them to flee the state?

Next time you should bring Chus to your appeal. I bet you'll hardly have to pay any tax at all.

Maybe one of the reasons the state is in such a difficult financial situation is because people that can afford it use and abuse the appeal process to save themselves some extra money and then complain about the financial mess that is going to cause them to flee the state?

I feel that Denis, despite the 3K break, still pays a significant amount of property taxes. There was nothing illegal nor immoral about what he did. He simply went through the legal process and had his bill reduced after review. And I'm sure if the decision was made that there would have been no reduction, he would have complied and paid that amount.

Furthermore, why should Denis pay more than whatever is required of him? Why do you feel the need to punish those for their own personal success/accomplishments?

You didn't even link the article. Congratulations on saving/evading $3000 worth of taxes, nobody gives a shit.

There's absolutely nothing immoral about finding a legal way to pay less taxes to a state like Illinois that has proven over decades that it has no idea how to properly spend the taxes that the citizens do pay.

There's absolutely nothing immoral about finding a legal way to pay less taxes to a state like Illinois that has proven over decades that it has no idea how to properly spend the taxes that the citizens do pay.

I'm highly suspicious that his house is worth 30% less than his neighbors.

Well, appealing three years in a row is clearly abusing the system.

It's not abusing the system, it's using the system. Blame the dumbshit government workers that aren't smart enough to beat his appeal.

Well, appealing three years in a row is clearly abusing the system.

The big problem though is then complaining about the financial situation in the state while you actively doing anything legally possible to pay less in taxes.

Now, if Denis comes in and says that if he was selling his house today and he would list it for the value he fought for then I'll take it back. I'm highly suspicious that his house is worth 30% less than his neighbors.

He laid it all out. They had already lowered it twice and it was already much lower than the comparable properties of his neighbors and yet he did it again. It also costs the government money to have to take in appeal after appeal and therefore more resources would have to be allocated to defending against him every single year.

The point still remains that it is disingenuous to complain about the financial state of where you live and actively talking about how you can flee it to avoid it and then also "using" the system to lower your burden past the point of what is fair based on his own admission while tying up government resources.

Be greedy. Just don't be shocked when the government struggles.

Here's the deal dman was talking about ... http://apps.chicagotribune.com/news/watchdog/cook-county-property-tax-divide/


Also, they did a bang-up job of getting Pritzker's name wrong on the front of the actual paper today ....

Also to my point above, I'm not sure if more property tax revenue is necessary going to solve the financial problems of the state related to pension obligations. Based on your previous positions on these issues, I'm sure you agree with my take, but you are doing your traditional contrarian angle to stir up trouble(in this case you are doing pretty good in that regard)

Maybe one of the reasons the state is in such a difficult financial situation is because people that can afford it use and abuse the appeal process to save themselves some extra money and then complain about the financial mess that is going to cause them to flee the state?

Afford it?

It is a contingency fee based practice. Everyone can afford it.