Maine Township Property Taxes

While not possessing the wealth of New Trier, Maine Township is a stalwart Chicago suburb that boasts a close community and can be quite affordable. Like many of the townships around Cook County. Maine has both a suburban feel and urban amenities, making it a popular place for families to live and grow. This affordability has been challenged in recent years, as property values have steadily crept up in the past decade, pushing taxes up with them. This can be especially troubling for neighborhoods with working families. Thankfully, there are several options that homeowners and businesses can use to lower this burden.

Maine and Triennial Reassessment

One of the main reasons for the change in affordability was the 2025 reassessment. Every three years, the Cook County Assessor’s Office (CCAO) examines a third of the county. In 2025, Maine was one of the first townships to be put under the microscope. This led to significant increases in the market value of homes and businesses. The total home value surged by 25%, while commercial real estate jumped a staggering 36%. While these numbers were relatively sedate compared to how other townships fared, there were still significant troubles for families and businesses. Increases are not limited to reassessments, however, and tax rates continue to climb while the equalization factor is fluid.

Options to Reduce Taxes and Values

While property taxes cannot be lowered directly through the actions of taxpayers, the taxable property values can. These values are used to calculate tax bills by multiplying the equalized assessed value (EAV) by tax rates. The EAV itself takes the market value of a home or business and multiplies it by the assessment ratio. This makes property values incredibly important, as they are the main factor when it comes to creating a tax bill. There are a few ways to lower these values.

Real-Time Case Tracking

Exemptions:

Most exemptions, including the homeowner’s, lower the EAV before it can be multiplied by the tax rate. The homeowner’s exemption alone reduces the EAV by $10,000, the highest homestead exemption in Illinois. There are many other exemptions, including those for seniors, people with disabilities, and veterans. Every effort to reduce property taxes should start with exemptions.

Manage Your Properties

Property Tax Appeals:

These are challenges to the values placed by the CCAO. They generally dispute the value of a property due to a lack of uniformity in assessment or due to a property being overassessed. While exemptions are simply a matter of applying, property tax appeals require evidence and a significant amount of work to be successful.

Property Tax Appeals Make a Huge Difference

Since the township underwent reassessment in 2025, it saw a record number of appeals filed that year. Thanks to a series of computer errors over the last few years, tax bills and values have become unpredictable, and appeals are becoming a way to return to normalcy. Their use is encouraged by the CCAO, the Treasurer, the Cook County Clerk, and more, as values across the Chicago area have become questionable, especially during reassessment.

Unlike the rest of Illinois, Cook County uses a series of appeal deadlines. Unique to Cook County are assessor appeals. These allow the taxpayer to go directly to the CCAO in an informal process that can often lead to a correction or reduction. The second option is to appeal to the Board of Review (BOR), which is a more formal review with an impartial board that decides between the CCAO and the taxpayer based on evidence. BOR appeals are scheduled months after the assessor appeals. A taxpayer can try the CCAO first, then file with the BOR if the reduction is not satisfactory. The assessor level can also be skipped altogether if the taxpayer just wants to try their luck with the BOR.

scheduleMaine Township Deadlines

July 21, 2026: Deadline for assessor appeals

April 1, 2026: Due date for the first installment of property taxes

November 2026: Second installment due

Pending: BOR appeal deadline

O’Connor Provides the Evidence Appeals Need to Be Successful

The most important aspect of a successful appeal is the evidence. The evidence needed changes depending on what the grounds for the appeal are. If a taxpayer believes their property is overassessed and valued higher than it should be, then they must provide sales records dating back three years. For instances of unequal assessment, the taxpayer will need to provide copies of assessments from locations near their property. In either case, the evidence must be from properties in the same location, with similar sizes, ages, and room counts.

O’Connor is here to help on this difficult journey. We use data-driven techniques to analyze assessments, then consult our patented databases to gather the perfect sales records and assessments. We then package everything together in a portfolio that highlights all of the needed evidence. Once everything is assembled, we coordinate your appeal with a law firm that specializes in property tax cases. There is no charge for this analysis or evidence, and our clients only pay if they can lower their taxes.

Frequently Asked Questions About Maine Property Taxes

No, instead you file a certificate of error. This can also be used to correct missing exemptions.

Yes, as tax rates can still increase, as can the equalization factor.

The largest reasons for high taxes are school district budgets and public pensions. Both of these continue to grow at significant rates. In recent years, falling commercial values in places like the Loop have forced higher taxes on other parts of the county.

Yes, you can still take your case to the BOR if you miss the deadline for assessor appeals.

Property Tax Locations

Chicago Office

Chicago Office

(By appointment only)
75 Executive Drive,
Suite 349 Aurora, IL 60504 708-630-0944

Houston Office

Houston Office

(Corporate)
2200 North Loop West,
Suite 200 Houston, TX 77018
713-686-9955

Dallas Office

Dallas Office

(By appointment only)
4101 McEwen Rd, Suite 200
Dallas, TX 75244 972-243-9966

San Antonio

San Antonio Office

(By appointment only)
8632 Fredericksburg Rd, Suite 105
San Antonio, TX 78240 210-226-0829

New York Office

New York Office

(By appointment only)
70 East Sunrise Hwy, Suite 500
Valley Stream, NY 11581 934-203-9917

Georgia Office
Georgia Office

Atlanta Office

(By appointment only)
4751 Best Road, Suite 316
College Park, GA 30337 770-835-4126

Property Tax Protection Program™ Benefits
  • No flat fees or upfront costs. No cost ever unless your property taxes are reduced.
  • All practical efforts are made every year to reduce your property taxes.
  • Never miss another appeal deadline.
  • Property taxes protested for you annually.
  • You do not have to accept the appraisal district's initial guesstimate of value.
  • We coordinate with you regarding building size / condition to avoid excess taxes.
  • Free support regarding homestead exemptions.
  • Some years are good - typically 6 to 7 out of 10 will result in tax reduction for you.
  • The other 3 to 4 years out of 10 we strike out. Most often due to people issues in the hearing process. Some years we get an easy appraiser at the informal; some years someone who is impossible to settle with.
About O'Connor
Property Tax Help Specialists

O’Connor provides property tax appeal services to over 100,000 clients in over 40 states. Client tax savings totaled over $120 million in 2020. O’Connor has been serving property owners since 1974, almost 50 years. Client tax savings total over $1,000,000,000.

O’Connor measures its success in client property tax savings, not billings. Our goal is to save clients $1 billion annually.

With over 200 property tax experts, many of whom have worked with us for 10+ years, O’Connor has the expertise to help with your property tax questions and appeals. We literally wrote the books on property tax reduction:

  1. Mass Appraisal for Commercial – What Every Commercial Property Owner Should Know!
  2. What You Need to Know about Business Personal Property
  3. Cut Your Texas Property Taxes

The steps to appeal are complicated and may seem like too much work, but when O'Connor represents your property for appeal, we handle the details. We provide a property tax reduction service to residential homeowners in exchange for a contingency fee of 30 percent of all property taxes saved through administrative hearings or judicial appeal, for that tax year.