Photo by Ralf Kleemann

By Don DeBat

Nov. 26, 2025 – Rental apartment dwellers and landlords both are beginning to realize that the city of Chicago, Cook County, state of Illinois, and the federal government are not their friends.

After months of uncertainty and delay, Cook County officials on November 14 finally mailed the second installment of 2024 property tax bills. Payment of the tax bill, normally due on August 1, has now been pushed back to December 15.

Rental experts say the impact of higher real estate taxes and soaring insurance costs are expected to spark hefty spring apartment rent increases in 2026.

Chicagoland’s rental apartment occupancy rate hit a lofty 95.9 percent in September, and advertised rents rose 3.9 percent in October, compared with the same period in 2024, reported Yardi Matrix.

Illinois property taxes remain among the highest in the nation, with effective rates averaging 2.27 percent of assessed valuation compared with the national average of 1.07 percent, according to analysts at Jaken Finance Group. Cook County’s effective property tax rates now exceed 2.5 percent.

A spot survey by The Home Front found 2024 multifamily building tax increases ranged from 5.5 percent to a crushing 31.7 percent on an assortment of North Side small apartment buildings. Landlords hit with hefty tax bill increases, sharply higher insurance premiums, and operating costs likely will be forced to boost spring rents to double-digit levels.

The tax increase analysis on several small “ma and pa” properties follows:

Old Town. Taxes on a brownstone four-flat rose $5,938 – a shocking 21.5 percent – to $33,566 from the $27,628 paid in 2023. The increase would have been even more if it were not for the owner’s Homestead Exemption and Senior Exemption, which saved $1,191.

The Old Town owner also was hammered with a 59 percent fire insurance rate increase to $6,500 from $4,070 – even with a $10,000 deductible.

Lincoln Park. The owner of a turn-of-the-century six-flat in the Old Town Historic District received a bill of $29,875, up $4,765, a whopping 19 percent, over the $25,110 paid in 2023. The owner’s tax bill was reduced by a Homestead Exemption of $662, which was reflected in the combined bill.

The Lincoln Park six-flat owner also was slapped with a 35 percent insurance increase to $7,220 from $5,336 – even with a $10,000 deductible. (Left) Old Town Historic District

Logan Square. The owner of a greystone four-flat north of Logan Boulevard was billed $17,478, up $4,214, or an incredible 31.7 percent, over the $13,272 paid in 2023. The owner’s Homestead Exemption shaved $664 off the bill.

North Lincoln Square. The investor-owner of a yellow-brick four-flat building was billed $13,260, a hefty increase of 30.3 percent, or $3,078 over the $10,182 paid in 2023.

Old Irving Park. Another investor-owner of a red-brick six-flat south of Irving Park Road was billed $17,581, up $1,409, or 8.7 percent over the $16,172 paid in 2023.

Roscoe Village. An investor-owner of a brown-brick, 1930s 16-flat was billed $37,642, up $1,972, or 5.5 percent over the $35,670 paid in 2023.

(Right) Community bulletin board in Chicago’s Roscoe Village neighborhood. Photo obtained from Choose Chicago.

South Avondale. The owner of a greystone three-flat just north of Diversey Parkway was billed $10,225, up $802, or 8.5 percent over the $9,423 paid in 2023.

Experts say apartment dwellers in the hot West Town neighborhoods of Bucktown and Wicker Park, along with the Near West Side, North and South Lawndale, East and West Garfield Park, Austin, and Humboldt Park, also should expect unusually high rent increases next spring.

Rental costs rising

Squeezed by higher operating costs, many North Side landlords with under-market rental rates are upping base rental charges by passing through fees for off-street parking.

Other fees – ranging from $25 to $150-plus on average per month – are “bundled utility pass-throughs” that include water and sewer, garbage hauling, landscaping, and snow removal. Dog and cat lovers may be billed monthly “pet rent” of $25 to $75 per animal to recoup the landlord’s fees for pet wear-and-tear on the apartment and building premises.

Most landlords are not charging a security deposit, which typically is refundable, less any damages to the unit. Instead, to improve cash flow, more owners are charging up-front, non-refundable move-in and administrative fees.

ICE impact is chilling

Another curveball tossed at landlords over the past several months has been the impact of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents stopping and arresting landscaping and snow-removal workers in neighborhoods across the city.

“Even if they are well-documented immigrants, these terrified blue-collar workers are literally hiding in their basements and not venturing out to work,” said a North Side rental property manager. “The result is that landscaping and snow removal fees have virtually doubled overnight.”

(Left) U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents on the DuSable Bridge along Michigan Avenue on September 28 (Ashlee Rezin/Chicago Sun-Times via AP).

If apartment hunters are willing to shop in less fashionable off-the-lake neighborhood, deals can still be found. Thrifty apartment seekers are advised to shop in zip codes similar to 60608. In this area – encompassing Bridgeport, Little Italy, Lower West Side, and Pilsen neighborhoods on the West and Southwest sides – median rental costs were about $1,000 a month lower than lakefront neighborhoods.