10/10/2026
Statement Regarding Amin Karim’s Property-Tax Record
The recent disclosure that Amin Karim repeatedly allowed property taxes on multiple properties to become delinquent—and, on several occasions, allowed those taxes to proceed all the way to tax sale—raises serious questions that deserve straightforward answers.
This was not described as an isolated mistake or an unexpected financial hardship. Mr. Karim publicly stated that he made a conscious decision to allow his property taxes to lapse as part of his “investment strategy” to further enrich himself.
That distinction matters.
Property taxes support our schools, fire protection, libraries, municipalities, townships, parks, county government, and other local services. McHenry County taxpayers who miss their deadlines are charged statutory penalties, and taxes that remain unpaid long enough enter the delinquent-tax-sale process administered by county government.
When taxes reach that stage, county employees must administer notices, the tax sale, tax liens, and ultimately the redemption process. A tax buyer pays the delinquent taxes to the collector, and the property owner must later redeem those taxes through the County Clerk with applicable interest, penalties, and fees.
What makes this particularly relevant is the office Mr. Karim is seeking. The McHenry County Treasurer serves as County Collector and is responsible for preparing property-tax bills, collecting taxes, recording payments, distributing revenues to taxing districts, and administering the collection of delinquent taxes.
Mr. Karim is entitled to explain his financial “strategy”, but we would like to encourage voters to examine that explanation carefully. Saying that the taxes were eventually “redeemed on time” should not be confused with saying that the taxes themselves were paid on time. They were not. Redemption occurs after taxes have already become delinquent and gone through tax sale.
The central issue is therefore not whether his actions were legal. The relevant factual question is why someone seeking responsibility for administering McHenry County’s property-tax collection system repeatedly and intentionally chose not to meet the ordinary payment deadlines of that same system.
McHenry County residents deserve a clear explanation of that record and of the financial philosophy a candidate would bring to the management of public funds.
The Democratic challenger for McHenry County treasurer says he's been delinquent in paying his property taxes as part of "intentional investment strategies."
