Mundelein's property tax haul will increase in 2017
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Mundelein Village Administrator John Lobaito said the village needs to increase property taxes because of decreased revenue and increased costs.
Many Mundelein homeowners could see the village's portion of their property tax bills increase slightly in 2017.
A divided village board on Monday decided to boost the total sum it will collect in property taxes next year to nearly $12.6 million, up from $11.8 million.
The $12.6 million sum was reached after the board approved a $1.4 million tax abatement.
It's the first levy increase in five years.
The town's tax rate actually will hold steady at $1.57 per $100 of equalized assessed value. But because home values are expected to rise about 6 percent next year, the total amount of tax revenue the village will collect will increase, Village Administrator John Lobaito said.
For every 1 percent increase in a home's value, taxes will go up about $13, Lobaito said. So, if a home's value increases 6 percent, the homeowner will pay an extra $78 in taxes to Mundelein.
If a home's value doesn't change, the taxes paid to the village won't change, Trustee Ray Semple said. Likewise, if a home value decreases, the taxes paid to the village will decrease.
The 6-percent increase estimate is an "educated guess" based on the latest real estate values in town, Lobaito said.
"We really won't know until next year when the county releases the levy estimates to the municipalities," he said.
An estimated $436,000 of the additional tax revenue will be directed to street improvements, Lobaito said. Officials now spend about $2 million on roads and plan to bump the figure to $2.5 million.
Officials didn't say where the rest of the money will be spent.
More tax revenue is needed because of increases in some village costs, including employee health insurance and pensions, Lobaito said. Additionally, Medline's decision to move its headquarters from Mundelein to Northfield earlier this year will cost Mundelein about $400,000 in annual sales tax revenue, Lobaito said.
But not all the trustees agreed a tax increase was the way to go. Two -- Dawn Abernathy and Dakotah Norton -- voted against the proposed levy.
Abernathy spoke strongly against the plan, questioning some of the village's vehicle purchases and personnel costs.
Trustee Kerson Russell supported the tax increase but also urged residents and local business owners to shop more in town as a way to generate more sales tax for Mundelein.
"If you want to keep your property taxes as low as possible, shop locally," Russell said.
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