Understanding Illinois Transfer Taxes

Transfer tax amounts and who pays them vary based on location.

Today I’ll talk about closing costs, particularly transfer tax. When you sell a property in Illinois, you will have a state transfer tax of $0.50 per $500 of the sales price. Every county in Illinois also charges you $0.25 for every $500 of the sale price sales price. Some villages will also charge you.

80% of the time, these transfer taxes are paid by the seller. If you’re a buyer, be prepared to face the uncommon situation where you’ll need to pay instead. For example, Harwood Heights charges the buyer $10 per $1,000 of the sales price as a transfer tax while Cicero charges the sellers that same amount. Chicago actually charges both parties.

If you're interested, I have a list of transfer tax charges by location, and I’m happy to send that to you. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to call or email me. I look forward to hearing from you.