(A) Definitions. For the purpose of this section the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a separate meaning.
DEED. Any instrument effectuating or memorializing the transfer of title to real estate located within the Village or the assignment of a beneficial interest in a land trust which holds title to real estate located within the Village. Such instruments include, but are not limited to, quit claim deeds, warranty deeds, assignments of title and assignments of beneficial interests.
PERSON. Any natural person, receiver, administrator, executor, conservator, assignee, trust in perpetuity, trust, estate, firm, copartnership, joint venture, club, company, joint stock company, business trust, domestic or foreign corporation, association, syndicate, society, and any group of individuals acting as a unit, whether mutual, cooperative, fraternal, nonprofit, or otherwise. Whenever the term PERSON is used in any clause prescribing and imposing a penalty, the term as applied to associations shall mean the owners or part owners thereof, and as applied to corporations, the officers thereof.
RECORDATION. The recording of deeds with the office of the Recorder of Deeds of Cook County, or the registration of deeds with the Registrar of Torrens Titles of Cook County, Illinois.
VALUE. The amount of the full actual consideration for any transfer covered hereunder, including the amount of any lien or liens assumed by the grantee, assignee, or purchaser.
(B) Imposition of tax.
(1) A tax at the rate of $4 for every $1,000 of value or fraction thereof is imposed on the transfer of the title to real estate located within the Village and on the assignment of a beneficial interest in a land trust which holds title to real estate located within the Village, as evidenced by the recordation of a deed. The real estate transfer tax imposed by this section shall be levied and paid in addition to any other taxes which may be imposed on the transfer of real estate. The real estate transfer tax imposed by this section shall be paid by the grantor, seller or assignor prior to the recordation of the deed.
(2) Nothing in this section prohibits the purchaser, grantee or assignee in a real estate transaction from agreeing with a seller, grantor, or assignor, either:
(a) That the seller, grantor or assignor shall reimburse the purchaser, grantee or assignee for the amount of the real estate transfer tax that must be paid pursuant to this section; or
(b) That the seller, grantor or assignor shall satisfy the purchaser’s, grantee’s or assignee’s obligation to pay the tax imposed by this section.
(C) Lien for nonpayment. If the real estate transfer tax is not paid in accordance with this section, then the grantee’s, purchaser’s or assignee’s title shall be subject to the lien provided in division (I) of this section.
(D) Declaration of consideration paid. At the time the real estate transfer tax is paid, there shall also be presented to the Director of Finance, on a form prescribed by them, a declaration signed by at least 1 of the sellers, assignors, or grantors and also signed by at least 1 of the purchasers, grantees or assignees involved in the transaction, or by their attorneys or agents, which declaration shall state the full consideration for the properties transferred in the transaction.
(E) General exceptions. The real estate transfer tax imposed by this section shall not apply to the following transactions, provided that there is filed with the Director of Finance on a form prescribed by them a certificate which sets forth sufficient facts to establish that the transaction is not subject to the real estate transfer tax:
(1) Transactions involving property acquired by or from any governmental body;
(2) Transactions which encumber, but do not convey title to real estate or assign the beneficial interest in a land trust;
(3) Transactions in which the deed without additional consideration, confirms, corrects, modifies or supplements a deed previously recorded;
(4) Transactions in which the deed is a tax deed;
(5) Transactions in which the deed constitutes a release of an encumbrance;
(6) Transactions in which the conveyance is made pursuant to a court decree. However, any person named as the grantee in any type of court-ordered deed that is otherwise exempt under this division (E)(6) is required to file the deed with the Cook County Recorder of Deeds Office within 14 days of the date set forth in the deed and failure to file the deed during said 14-day time period will subject the person to a $500 penalty, to be paid to the Village prior to the Village placing an exempt stamp on the deed or, if the stamp has already been given, upon demand by the Village. In the event that a person records a deed in violation of this division (E)(6), and fails to pay to the Village the penalty imposed herein within 21 days of the issuance of a written demand by the Village, the Village may, in its discretion, declare a lien against the real property that is the subject of the deed in the amount of the penalty. The lien may be enforced by a proceeding to foreclose as in the case of a mortgage lien. Nothing herein shall be construed as preventing the Village from bringing a civil action to collect the penalty imposed pursuant to this division (E)(6) from any person who has the ultimate liability for payment of same, including interest and penalties and payment of reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs;
(7) Transactions made pursuant to mergers, consolidations, or transfers or sales of substantially all of the assets of a corporation pursuant to a plan of re-organization;
(8) Transactions between a subsidiary corporation and its parent corporation which do not involve any consideration other than the cancellation or surrender of the subsidiary corporation’s stock.
(F) Exception for transfer upon death of owner.The real estate transfer tax imposed by this section shall not be imposed on a transfer of an interest in real estate by an executor or administrator to a legatee, heir, or distributee, where the transfer is being made pursuant to will or by intestacy. The real estate transfer tax imposed by this section shall not be collected where the transaction is affected by operation of law, or where the transaction involves a transfer:
(1) From a decedent to his executor or administrator; or
(2) From a minor to his guardian, or from a guardian to his ward upon obtaining majority;
(3) From an incompetent to his conservator, or similar legal representative, or from a conservator or similar legal representative to a former incompetent upon removal of disabilities; or
(4) From a bank, trust company, financial institution, insurance company, or other similar entity, or nominee, custodian, or trustee therefor to a public officer or commission, or person designated by such officer or commission or by a court in the taking over of its assets, in whole or in part, under state or federal law regulating or supervising such institutions, nor upon redelivery or retransfer by any such transferee or successor thereto;
(5) From a bankrupt or person in receivership due to insolvency to the trustee in bankruptcy or receiver, from such receiver to such trustee, or from such trustee to such receiver, nor upon redelivery or retransfer by any such transferee or successor thereto;
(6) From a transferee under division (F)(1) through (F)(5), inclusive, to his successor acting in the same capacity, or from one such successor to another;
(7) From a foreign country or national thereof to the United States or any agency thereof, or to the government of any foreign country directed pursuant to the authority vested in the President of the United States by the Trading With The Enemy Act, § 5(d), as amended by the First War Powers Act;
(8) From trustees to surviving, substitute, succeeding or additional trustees of the same trust, or upon the death of a joint tenant to the survivor or survivors.
(G) Procedure for collection of tax, certificate of compliance required. The real estate transfer tax imposed by this section shall be collected by the Director of Finance. Upon payment of the real estate transfer tax, any outstanding water bill, and any other debt due and owing to the Village, the deed involved in the transaction shall be stamped with a stamp which states that the Village real estate transfer tax has been paid, the amount of tax paid and the date of payment. The absence of such a stamp on a deed shall be prima facie evidence that the real estate transfer tax imposed by this section has not been paid. The Director of Finance shall not accept payment of the real estate transfer tax and shall not issue the transfer stamp until he or she is presented with a statement from the Director of Community Development which states that an occupancy affidavit has been received from the purchaser, grantee or assignee pursuant to § 150.098(N) of this Code, and either that a conditional certificate of compliance or certificate of compliance has been issued with respect to the real estate being transferred in accordance with § 150.098, that the property is uninspected property pursuant to § 150.098, or that a certificate of compliance is not required by § 150.098. A copy of the completed, fully executed, occupancy affidavit shall accompany the statement from the Director of Community Development. If the Director of Community Development states that a certificate of compliance is not required, then the Director of Finance shall not accept payment of the real estate transfer tax and shall not issue the transfer stamp until he or she is presented with a statement from the Water Department that there are no delinquent unpaid bills for water the Village provided to the real estate being transferred and a statement from the Director of Community Development that there are no outstanding Village liens or judgments against the property.
(H) A signed copy of the real estate transfer declaration filed pursuant to the Real Estate Transfer Tax Law, 35 ILCS 200/31-25, shall be filed with the Director of Finance by the purchaser, grantee, or assignee within 10 days after delivery of a deed, or at the time of payment of the real estate transfer tax imposed by this section, whichever occurs first.
(I) Lien created; enforcement. In the event a deed is filed for recordation without payment of the real estate transfer tax imposed by this section, a lien is declared against the real estate involved in the transfer in the amount of the tax. The fact that the deed does not contain the stamp described in division (K) of this section shall constitute constructive notice of the lien. The lien may be enforced by proceedings to foreclose as in the case of mortgages or mechanics liens. Suit to foreclose the lien must be commenced within 3 years after the date of recording the deed. Nothing herein shall be construed as preventing the Village from bringing a civil action to collect the tax imposed in this section from any person who has the ultimate liability for payment of the same, including interest and penalties as herein provided.
(J) Enforcement; suit for collection. Whenever any person shall fail to pay the real estate transfer tax imposed by this section in accordance with this section, the Village Attorney shall, upon request of the Village Manager, bring or cause to be brought an action to enforce the payment of said tax, including interest and penalties as specified in division (K) of this section, on behalf of the Village and any court of competent jurisdiction.
(K) Interest and penalties. In the event of the failure by any person to the Director of Finance the tax required hereunder when the same shall be due, interest shall accumulate and be due upon said tax at the rate of 1.5% per month commencing as of the first day following the day when the tax became due. In addition, a penalty of 10% of the tax and interest due shall be assessed and collected against any person who shall fail to pay the tax imposed by this section when due.
(L) Proceeds of tax. All proceeds resulting from the imposition of the real estate transfer tax under this section, including interests and penalties, shall be deposited into the Treasury of the Village and shall be credited to and deposited in the General Fund of the Village.
(M) (1) The applicable real estate transfer tax rate for transfers involving charitable organizations whose primary mission focuses on providing or building affordable housing within the Village shall be reduced by 50% in accordance with the provisions of this division. To be eligible for a reduction under this division, either the buyer or seller must:
(a) Be an organization that has been found by the Internal Revenue Service to be an "exempt organization" within the meaning of Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code;
(b) Provide proof (e.g., corporate documents) to the Village's Finance Department that its primary mission focuses on the provision of affordable housing; and
(c) Provide proof (e.g., building plans) that the real estate being conveyed shall be improved
with affordable housing by the purchaser for resale to the public or the real estate has been improved with affordable housing by the seller.
(2) The definition of AFFORDABLE HOUSING as contained in this division shall be the same as used in the Illinois Affordable Housing Act (310 ILCS 65/1 et seq.). In the event that a person acquires real estate for purposes of building or providing affordable housing and the seller or purchaser receives a 50% reduction in the applicable real estate transfer tax for the transaction under this division, the person who then seeks to sell or convey the real estate shall be responsible at the time of sale or conveyance for paying to the Village the dollar amount equal to the 50% reduction in the real estate transfer tax applied to the prior real estate transaction plus the applicable real estate transfer tax on the sale or conveyance of the real estate if the person does not build or offer affordable housing on the real estate.
(N) Penalty. In addition to any other penalties imposed by this section, any person found guilty in a court of competent jurisdiction of violating any provision of this section shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not less than $200 nor more than $1,000 for each violation.
(O) Release of lien. The Village may authorize the preparation and filing of liens against title to real estate as well as the preparation and filing of releases of any lien imposed under this section and this Code. Any person liable under this section shall be obligated to pay to the Village the amount of the real estate transfer tax plus any incurred interest or penalties or any lien amounts filed against the real estate imposed under this chapter and all expenses and costs incurred by the Village with respect to collection of the debt, subject to adjustment by the Village Manager, or his or her designee. In order to obtain a release of a Village lien, the following payment to the Village is required: (a) $50 for the preparation, handling and filing costs of the Village lien or the actual costs, if greater: and (b) $50 for the preparation, handling and filing costs of the release of Village lien or the actual costs, if greater.
(1997 Code, § 32.39) (Ord. 80-9, passed 6-12- 1980; Am. Ord. 81-2, passed 3-12-1981; Am. Ord. 91-2, passed 5-9-1991; Am. Ord. C0-07-49, passed 12-6-2007; Am. Ord. C0-08-01, passed 1- 15-2008; Am. Ord. C0-09-03, passed 2-3-2009; Am. Ord. CO-09-27, passed 10-6-2009; Am. Ord. CO-2012-30, passed 8-21-2012)