WOODSTOCK, Ill. – The McHenry County Treasurer’s Office, the County Clerk and Recorder’s Office, and the Heartland Realtor Organization are teaming up to hold a property tax workshop to educate the public about tax breaks and protections available to them.

The workshop will take place at 9 a.m. Tuesday, Aug, 6 at the Realtor organization’s offices at 405 E. Congress Pkwy., Crystal Lake. The event is free, but attendees must RSVP.

 Treasurer Donna Kurtz and County Clerk and Recorder Joe Tirio will discuss the many property tax exemptions available, the many convenient and safe ways to pay McHenry County property taxes, ways to protect property deeds, and new programs designed to give new property owners tax relief. The workshop is geared not just toward homeowners, but real estate, legal and financial service providers as well.

 “So much has changed for the better in recent years, from expanded and easier ways to pay tax bills to the state lowering the interest rate for the popular senior citizen tax deferral program,” Kurtz said. “A forum like this gives taxpayers, and their service providers, tools to know about both payment and the status of their tax bill, and to ensure that they are getting all the exemptions they’re entitled to receive.”

 Changes include the elimination of processing fees for paying by electronic check and the creation of the VIP taxpayer Program, which allows property owners to schedule electronic payments, get reminders of due dates, and sign up to receive next year’s bill electronically. The Treasurer’s Office also has been working to raise awareness of the state’s lowering of the interest rate for the Senior Tax Deferral Program from 6% to 3%. Tirio and Kurtz have recently partnered their offices to create the Welcome Home Program, which provides new property owners with their tax bills when they otherwise might not have received it due to their closing date.

 This is not the first time that Tirio has worked together with the Heartland Realtor Organization – they worked together to educate the public about a new law that created a mechanism by which homeowners can remove illegal restrictive covenants on their property documents.

“There’s a lot to take in when it comes to property taxes, and it can be hard for people to keep up, and to make sure they can take full advantage of exemptions and other ways to lighten the burden,” Tirio said. “We thank the Heartland Realtor Organization for once again helping us to spread the word.”

Reservations for the free workshop can be made by calling 815-459-0600 or emailing info@Heartlandro.com; a Zoom link will be made available upon request for people wishing to attend remotely.