Apply for this new property tax incentive by March 31

Back in September we told you about a new incentive that would reduce an apartment building’s assessed value if the owner undertook significant renovations and rented a minimum proportion of units at an affordable rate. The incentive — which we called HB 2621 — now has a name in Cook County: Affordable Housing Special Assessment Program (AHSAP).

In addition to renovated and upgraded apartment buildings, new construction developers can also apply. Buildings must have seven or more units to be eligible.

The value of the incentive depends on how many apartments are rented at the stipulated affordability levels (see the chart) and the level of building renovations and upgrades. There are three tiers (PDF), based on the number of units that meet the affordable rent standards.

Tier 1 and Tier 2 apply countywide. Tier 3, however, offers a greater incentive and applies only in “low affordability communities”, which are currently downtown Chicago and suburban Cook County municipalities where less than 40 percent of the housing is affordable (the Illinois Housing Development Authority, or IHDA, has identified these).

Property owners in Chicago who have ARO units are also able to apply for the incentive.

Important dates

February 15, 2022

here is an informational webinar targeted to property owners who’ve received a Class 9 property tax incentive on Tuesday, February 15, 2022. Register for that webinar now, and email assessor.affordablehousing@cookcountyil.gov to receive reminders about future webinars.

March 31, 2022

To apply for the 2022 assessment year, the soft application deadline is March 31, 2022. Submit an application on the Assessor’s website. The assessor also posted a new FAQ (PDF).

Areas with less affordable housing

Tier 3 applies only in downtown Chicago and 47 Cook County suburbs — places with the least amount of affordable housing as a proportion of all housing — and has the greatest reduction in assessed value. Tier 3 also requires the greatest investment in systems upgrades for existing buildings.

The “downtown expansion area” is a zoning designation that encompasses several areas outside Downtown Chicago — itself another zoning designation — where property owners can apply to have an underlying zoning district changed to a “D” district. See the map below or on our dedicated page.

Use Incentives Checker within Address Snapshot (look up an address now) to see if the Tier 3 incentive might apply (we look up the Downtown Expansion Areas for Chicago-based addresses, and the 47 qualifying suburban Cook County municipalities).

Apply for this new property tax incentive by March 31 was originally published in Chicago Cityscape’s Blog on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.