Illinois property tax exemptions: how to lower your bill

How exemptions work

Most Illinois exemptions reduce your home’s equalized assessed value, or EAV, before your tax rate is applied (Illinois Department of Revenue). The savings depend on your local tax rate. In Cook County, apply with the Cook County Assessor. Elsewhere, apply with your county’s Chief County Assessment Office (Illinois DOR).

The main homeowner exemptions

• General Homestead (Homeowner) Exemption. For owner-occupied homes. It reduces EAV by up to $10,000 in Cook County, $8,000 in the counties next to Cook and $6,000 elsewhere (Illinois DOR). In Cook County it renews automatically once it’s applied (Cook County Assessor).
• Senior Citizens Homestead Exemption. For homeowners 65 or older. It reduces EAV by up to $8,000 in Cook and the counties next to it, and $5,000 elsewhere (Illinois DOR). The Cook County Assessor says it renews automatically there (Cook County Assessor). Filing rules vary in other counties.
• Persons with Disabilities. A $2,000 EAV reduction for a homeowner with a disability (Illinois DOR).
• Veterans with Disabilities. $2,500 off EAV for a service-connected disability of 30% to 49%, $5,000 for 50% to 69%, and the first $250,000 of EAV exempt at 70% or more (Illinois DOR).
• Returning Veterans. $5,000 off EAV for the tax year a veteran returns from active duty in an armed conflict and the following year (Illinois DOR).

The senior freeze

The Low-Income Senior Citizens Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemption can keep your home’s assessed value from rising. You must be 65 or older and meet an income limit: $75,000 or less in household income for tax year 2026, $77,000 for 2027 and $79,000 for 2028 and later (Illinois DOR). You have to apply every year (Illinois DOR, Cook County Assessor). A freeze locks the assessed value, not the bill, so your taxes can still go up if tax rates rise.

Remodeling or rebuilding?

The Homestead Improvement Exemption can shield up to $75,000 of added market value from a new improvement, such as a remodel or rebuilding after a catastrophe, for four years (Illinois DOR). In Cook County, you apply with the Assessor along with a valuation complaint (Illinois DOR). Planning a project? See our home repair hub.

Missed an exemption?

Check your property’s record on the Cook County Assessor’s website to see which exemptions you received. If one is missing, a Certificate of Error application can recover savings for recent past tax years. The Assessor’s page lists tax years 2021 through 2025 (Cook County Assessor). Outside Cook County, ask your Chief County Assessment Office about missed years.

Should you appeal your assessment?

• The Cook County Assessor says to consider an appeal if the property details on your assessment notice are wrong, or if the estimated market value is well above what your home would sell for. If the details are right and the value is within 10% of what you think it’s worth, an appeal is unlikely to change your bill much (Cook County Assessor).
• An appeal is free, can be filed online and you don’t need to hire anyone. Mailers from property tax firms don’t come from the Assessor, and those firms charge a fee (Cook County Assessor).
• The deadline to appeal is printed on your assessment notice (Cook County Assessor).

More help for seniors and homeowners

• Senior tax deferral. Homeowners 65 and older with household income of $77,000 or less for the 2026 tax year can defer up to $7,500 a year. It works like a loan from the state, with 3% simple interest and a lien on the home, and you file with the County Collector between January 1 and March 1 (Illinois DOR).
• Income tax credit. You can claim 5% of the property tax you paid on your principal residence on Schedule ICR of your IL-1040. It isn’t allowed if your adjusted gross income is over $250,000, or $500,000 for joint filers (Illinois DOR).

Looking for other ways to cut household bills? See our bills guide and our heating bill help guide.