The Treasurer’s Office is refunding $19.5 million without any paperwork to about 53,000 homeowners in Cook County because of changes in property tax benefits, called exemptions, that took effect for the bill that was due August 1, 2018, Treasurer Maria Pappas said today.

Here is the refund schedule:

• 36,000 homeowners who earlier this year paid by check or online will receive a credit to their bank or credit card accounts by August 15
• 15,000 homeowners who paid through a bank/mortgage escrow account will be mailed a refund check by October 15
• 2,000 homeowners whose taxes were paid in cash will be mailed a refund application by August 15 to ensure the proper party receives the refund

Letters with details will be mailed by August 9 to all homeowners entitled to refunds.

To see if you are entitled to a refund, visit cookcountytreasurer.com and take these steps:

• Select the purple box “Your Property Overview”
• Enter your address or Property Index Number (PIN)

The refunds are due to legislation passed last year by the Illinois General Assembly that increased existing tax exemptions for homeowners and senior citizens. For thousands of homeowners, the exemptions not only eliminated any balance due August 1, but also created refunds for payments earlier this year.