Illinois Real Estate Transfer Tax Calculator

Built from the statute and cross-checked against what the revenue department currently applies.

Verified September 21, 2026 · statute and revenue department cross-checked
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Who pays

Seller for the state and county portions. In Chicago the buyer pays the larger city share.

What to know about Illinois

Chicago is the expensive one. Adding the city’s $5.25 to the state and county brings the total to $6.00 per $500, or 1.2 percent, twelve times the rate in most of Illinois. Home-rule municipalities can set their own rate with no cap, so other suburbs vary. Buyers aged 65 or older who will live in the home can claim a refund of the CTA portion when the price is $250,000 or less.

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Sources

Statute: 35 ILCS 200/31-10; 55 ILCS 5/5-1031
Illinois Department of Revenue, Tax Rate Database
“Real Estate Transfer Tax | $0.50 for each $500 of value or fraction thereof”
City of Chicago, Real Property Transfer Tax
“Tax Rate: $5.25 per $500.00 of the transfer price, or fraction thereof ... In general, The Buyer is responsible for $3.75 and the Seller is responsible for $1.50.”


Last verified: September 21, 2026.
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Estimates only. Your closing agent or the county recorder issues the final figure, and exemptions can change what you owe. This page does not collect or store anything you enter.