Assessor’s Office helped record number of homeowners with property tax savings in 2025, hit affordable housing milestone


Assessor’s Office helped record number of homeowners with property tax savings in 2025, hit affordable housing milestone


The Cook County Assessor’s Office processed more than 1.5 million property tax-saving exemptions for homeowners last year, while returning millions of dollars in revenue to taxing districts and reaching a new milestone in its affordable housing incentive, with 1,500 properties joining the program.

“Thanks to the tireless work of our staff in promoting and processing exemptions, homeowners who previously had no idea they could claim these property tax benefits are now saving hundreds of dollars each year,” said Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi.

In addition to its regular work of valuing property, the Assessor’s Office also processes exemptions. These are savings that homeowners are entitled to receive, with the most common being the Homeowner and Senior exemptions.

Exemptions are also available for low-income seniors, people with disabilities, veterans, and others. The regular exemption period for the coming year will open in Spring 2026.

For 2025, the Assessor’s Office processed a total of more than 1.5 million exemptions. This number included more than 1 million Homeowner Exemptions, 372,000 Senior Exemptions, and 123,000 Senior Freeze Exemptions.

In recent years, the Assessor’s Office has successfully advocated for the state legislature to allow automatic renewal of more exemptions, including those for seniors, persons with disabilities and veterans with disabilities. Because homeowners no longer have to re-apply every year, these exemptions have seen record-high numbers of recipients.

“By taking away this annual chore, we’ve helped some of our most vulnerable homeowners receive and keep savings that help them stay in their homes,” said Assessor Kaegi.

The Assessor’s Office has also advocated for the state legislature to allow automatic renewal of the Senior Freeze exemption, and will continue to do so this coming year.

The office’s Erroneous Exemptions department, which investigates cases in which homeowners may have wrongfully claimed exemptions, processed more than 1,400 cases between December 2024 and November 2025. In total, the department collected $6.7 million in revenue. Of this, $4.4 million will be returned to taxing districts across Cook County.

Affordable Housing program continues growth

The Affordable Housing Special Assessment Program (AHSAP), which is administered by the Assessor’s Office, also continued to grow in 2025.

About 1,500 properties are enrolled in or approved for the program, which gives an incentive to multi-family building owners who keep rents affordable for tenants. The program has helped preserve affordable housing across Cook County.

The AHSAP incentive also promotes the construction of new affordable housing in parts of the county that may be unaffordable for working-class families. Four new properties, including three in Chicago’s Fulton Market and West Loop areas, joined the program in 2025.

“The success of this program lies in its ability to keep thousands of units of affordable housing in reach for tenants living there, while helping bring about the construction of 

much-needed new housing,” said Assessor Kaegi.

Office again participates in record number of events 

The Assessor’s Office also participated in a record-breaking 240 events for homeowners in 2025, helping property owners file appeals and apply for exemptions. Seventy-five events were in Spanish, also a new milestone for the office.

“Our Outreach team works incredibly hard to help homeowners get fair access to all the resources they need,” said Assessor Kaegi. “It’s through community engagement like this that we make the property tax system more equitable for everyone.”

For a calendar of events, visit https://www.cookcountyassessoril.gov/event-list.

For more information about exemptions, visit https://www.cookcountyassessoril.gov/exemptions.

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