D: Diederich Properties, Inc.

D ) Property sale / Diederich Properties, Inc. from James E. Zeller

( Given an immediate 70% discount by tax assessor )

In March of 2011, Diederich Properties, Inc. purchased a ½ acre vacant land parcel from James E. Zeller. ( see attached documents referred to as Exhibit D ) This prime commercial property is located on the southwest corner of the intersection of Halfway Road and Morgan Avenue in Marion, Illinois just west of Interstate Highway 57. ( right next to the Country Inn & Suites built by Zeller in “B” of this complaint record. )
Records show that the purchase price was $ 400,000.00 and the deed transaction papers confirm the same.
Diederich Properties, Inc. obtained a $ 600,000.00 building permit for and constructed a liquor store ( aka the Speakeasy ) on the land.
In an inexcusable departure from the normal and expected assessment requirements, the Williamson County Assessor did not assess this property to reflect the purchase price of the land.
This property was assessed for the land fair cash value for the subsequent 2012/2013 tax year for only $ 118,890.00 , roughly a 70% discount from the actual purchase price.
The total tax assessment for the land only portion of this property for the 2012/2013 tax year was roughly $ 2,700.00.
Using the purchase price of $ 400,000.00 as of the sale date of March 2011 would have produced a tax assessment for the land only portion of this property for the 2012/2013 tax year of roughly $ 9,000.00.

The rough estimate of tax monies the county has been defrauded of on this transaction alone, in one year, is roughly $ 6,300.00.