SAY NO

Your state legislator is considering a 600% Property Transfer Tax on Families in Chicago’s Suburbs.1

What’s worse? The money is earmarked for Mayor Brandon Johnson’s failing Chicago Transit Authority.2 Even more unbelievable? A huge chunk of the money is for CTA pensions, not services!3

No Suburban Property Transfer Tax Bailout for the CTA!

600% Property Transfer Tax Targets ONLY the Suburbs

Property Transfer Taxes make Housing Less Affordable

Chicago’s Suburbs already pay some of the highest property taxes in the nation.5

Home prices have increased almost 40% in just the past five years, and increasing property transfer taxes will add to the cost of housing.6

Property transfer taxes discourage new home inventory while in 2024 Illinois underproduction of new homes exploded to more than 150,000.7

Property transfer taxes are regressive, meaning they hurt low- and middle-income households the most.8

Transfer taxes are much harder on first-time homebuyers. Studies have found that a 2% increase in closing costs results in a 16% decrease in the home a first-time buyer can afford.9

In 2024 the property transfer tax plan would have cost suburban homeowners $143.7 million in increased housing costs.4

  • DuPage County: $25.9 million
  • Will County: $16.8 million
  • McHenry County: $6.5 million
  • Kane County: $10.6 million
  • Lake County: $16.3 million
  • Suburban Cook County: $67.5 million
  •  
SAY NO

Brandon Johnson’s CTA is Failing Despite a 30% Budget Increase

CTA’s service and quality have diminished despite a 30% budget increase post-pandemic.10

The CTA has been the recipient of an extra $2 billion in federal funding from Covid 19 bailout dollars.11

Transit Ridership is down. According to a Federal Transit Authority report, Chicago has seen an almost 50% drop in individual trips over the last decade.12 Compared to January 2020, train ridership on the CTA has declined by 45% and bus ridership by 30%.13

A whopping 89% of transit riders surveyed said they’d experienced a recent service delay.14

CTA’s crime rate was three times higher in 2024 than it was in 2015.15 45% of riders said they feel “somewhat unsafe” or “very unsafe” riding a bus or train.16

The CTA Can’t Be Trusted with Bailout Money from Suburban Families

According to an ABC-7 analysis of overtime pay at the CTA, in a single year over 100 full-time employees doubled their salaries with overtime pay. One supervisor made $328,000 dollars in a single year, with $233,000 of the salary attributed to overtime pay.17

The Illinois Executive Ethics Commission recently released a report that found over $1 million was paid to CTA employees for work that wasn’t performed.18

According to a 2024 Harris Poll only a third of Cook County residents say that public transportation should be expanded or updated in their communities – and only 14% of suburban residents prioritize spending more money on transit.19

Tell Suburban Lawmakers:
No Bailout for Brandon Johnson’s CTA!

Suburban home-seekers and homeowners should not shoulder the burden of the failing CTA.
Legislators should demand improvements in service, safety and ridership before raising taxes – especially only Suburban property transfer taxes – to bailout the CTA.
Lawmakers should not make housing less affordable when Illinois is facing a housing affordability crisis.
SAY NO

Paid for by REALTORS® in Opposition to Real Estate Transfer Tax. 522 S 5th Street, Springfield, IL 62701

Sources

  1. HB3438 SA 3, Sec. 4.03.5. Real estate transfer tax
  2. HB3438 SA 3, Sec. 4.03.5. Real estate transfer tax
  3. HB3438 SA 3, Sec. 4.03.5. Real estate transfer tax
  4. HB3438 SA 3, Sec. 4.03.5. Real estate transfer tax
  5. https://www.illinoispolicy.org/illinois-property-taxes-at-5k-are-higher-than-5-states-combined/
  6. https://www.illinoisrealtors.org/advocacy/housing/
  7. https://www.illinoisrealtors.org/advocacy/housing/
  8. https://realtorparty.realtor/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Transfer-Tax-Study-Sage-Policy-Group-July-2022.pdf
  9. https://realtorparty.realtor/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Transfer-Tax-Study-Sage-Policy-Group-July-2022.pdf
  10. Vallas: Chicago Transit Authority is city’s 3rd budget crisis
  11. https://www.illinoispolicy.org/cta-ridership-just-60-of-pre-covid-levels-while-budget-is-30-higher/
  12. Transit ridership is growing but still down from a decade ago: FTA report | Smart Cities Dive
  13. https://redlineproject.news/2025/03/20/data-cta-sees-major-shift-in-ridership-in-2024/
  14. CTA commuter survey: Always late, everything smells like weed among complaints from nearly 2,000 Chicago Transit Authority riders about riding the L, buses – Chicago Sun-Times
  15. https://www.wbez.org/criminal-justice/2024/09/06/ctas-high-violent-crime-rate-keeps-away-whats-needed-to-ward-off-crime-passengers
  16. CTA commuter survey: Always late, everything smells like weed among complaints from nearly 2,000 Chicago Transit Authority riders about riding the L, buses – Chicago Sun-Times
  17. CTA employee overtime costs under scrutiny
  18. Over $1M was paid to CTA Vault Operations employees over the last 5 years for work they didn’t do, investigation says
  19. https://www.chicagotribune.com/2024/10/17/opinion-cta-chicago-transit-poll/