Will County versus Cook County Taxes

Many clients ask us about the relative property taxes in Will County versus Cook County since we have offices and clients in both counties. It's frankly not a simple answer. An office user in Will County may have taxes of $3 or $4 per sf, while the same office in Cook County may have taxes of $8 to $10 per sf. On first blush this appears like in easy decision.

However, many of our clients have chosen to pay the higher taxes for various reasons: 1. proximity to key employees; 2. proximity to major highways for industrial clients or proximity to high population centers of traffic patterns for retail clients; or 3. Costs of relocating; to name a few.

In addition, their are a number of programs, including Cook County Class 6b, 7, or 8 programs, as well as TIF (tax increment financing) which can many times close the gap entirely.

Finally, and most importantly, we always look at the gross dollars. For example, a 2,000 sf office may pay $4 in one place and $8 in another. This differential, although double, amounts to "only" $8,000 annually. For many, that cost does not justify a move. Moreover, the cost of the property in Cook County may be less expensive to purchase, and therefore the economic savings on the mortgage payment may justify the higher taxes.