Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas said today homeowners can go to a LaSalle Bank branch, pay electronically or mail their payment to meet the deadline of Friday (November 1, 2002) for current property-tax bills.

Pappas' office mailed 1.57 million bills for the second installment of tax year 2001 to home- and other property owners at the end or September, giving taxpayers more than 30 days to pay before the due date of November 1. As of today, about 500,000 payments had been received, nearly one-third of the total mailed.

Checks made out to the Cook County Collector should include the taxpayer's name, address, phone number, any e-mail address, and the Property Index Number of the property. The coupon on the bill should be returned with the check, and there should be one check for one parcel of property.

Payment made or postmarked by Friday will avoid a penalty of 1.5 percent per month.

Pappas said payment can be made most conveniently by:

• Mailing in the envelope that came with the bill.
• Going to one of the 120 LaSalle Bank branches that serve Cook County taxpayers.
• Paying electronically from a checking or savings account at www.cookcountytreasurer.com, an internet service run for the Treasurer's Office by Amalgamated Bank.

"Property owners have several options to make it easy to pay on home, land or business," Pappas said. "Please pay immediately to pay on time."