Where have all the taxes gone?

There is a plot of land in Des Plaines that once held a few old houses. I would estimate these properties, combined, probably paid maybe $10,000 or so in real estate taxes.

Along comes a developer, tears down the old houses, and builds a condo with 144 units. The average list price for one of the units is $362,000.

I was told the anticipated tax rate for these units would be 1.75 percent of the actual sales price.

So, do the math. The average tax bill on each unit would be $6,335. Multiplied by 144 units brings the total tax revenue to $912,240. A 91,000 percent increase in revenue for the taxing bodies to share!

Ah, but keep in mind this is only ONE of the mega-structures, and not the largest, going up all over Des Plaines, Mount Prospect, Arlington Heights and other municipalities. So you can imagine the windfall of new money coming in.

Think of it this way: "Property" is the town's "product," it's how they gain revenue. The product that once sold for $10,000 is now selling for $912,240. Wouldn't us small business people love to be able to raise our prices like that?

OK. Now think of the town expenses as a pie to be split among the residents. So, why are my taxes going up? Aren't there a lot more people here in the pie to share the burden? And what about all the taxes generated by the new retail establishments that surround the mega-structures?

Just one other note about real estate taxes. They claim the taxes are based on the value of the house. As we all know, the value of houses has gone down but taxes still go up. Once again, our government officials defying the rules of basic mathematics. and getting away with it.

How do they do that?

Bill Holtane, President

Sound Video Impressions, Inc.

Des Plaines