Aldermen want another property tax transfer hike

As some members of the council push an increase to fight homelessness, others want one to pay for new water pipes

Aldermen Gilbert Villegas (in yellow), Scott Waguespack (in orange), and Chris Taliaferro (in red) (Credit: iStock, 36thward, ward32, and Twitter)
Aldermen Gilbert Villegas (in yellow), Scott Waguespack (in orange), and Chris Taliaferro (in red) (Credit: iStock, 36thward, ward32, and Twitter)

With a group of aldermen pushing an increase in the real estate transfer tax to pay for homeless services, some aldermen are pushing for another increase in the tax to pay to replace lead water pipes in the city.

Three aldermen were expected to introduce a plan at a council committee meeting Monday that would add a 1 percent tax on the sale of any property for $750,000 or more, according to Block Club Chicago. The money would replace lead pipes in homes as the city grapples with the problem of lead in its water.

The measure is backed by Aldermen Gilbert Villegas (36th), Scott Waguespack (32nd) and Chris Taliaferro (29th) and would require voters’ approval in a referendum, possibly as soon as the Feb. 26 city election.

The city’s share of the property transfer tax is $3.75 per $500 of the sale price. In 2008, the city created an additional tax of $1.50 per $500 to fund the CTA.

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Meanwhile, a group of aldermen led by Walter Burnett (27th) is backing a plan by the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless to raise the transfer tax by 160 percent on sales of $1 million or more, to $9.75 per $500. That increase would work out to $12,000 on a $1 million sale and $1.2 million on a $100 million sale.

Lead pipes were used to deliver water to single-family homes and small apartment buildings until 1986, when it was discovered they could cause brain-damaging toxins to leach into the water. The city bears some responsibility for existing contamination because home builders installed lead pipes to comply with city law, Villegas told Block Club.

Luxury home sales have lagged in the Chicago area in recent years, with some brokers blaming rising property taxes as a reason.

And owners of large commercial properties are already facing the prospect of big tax increases under a new Cook County assessor after Joseph Berrios was eliminated from the race in the March primary. [Block Club] — John O’Brien