Sell Land in Illinois for Cash | Free Parcel Review

Our status in Illinois

Illinois is an active market for us, and it is one of two states where StraightAcre makes direct purchases only, unless a licensed broker is involved. The reason is in the Real Estate License Act. Since the Act was amended, the definition of broker reaches anyone who, whether for another or for themselves, engages in a pattern of business of dealing in contracts, including assignable contracts, for the purchase or sale of real estate, and two such occasions in any twelve months count as a pattern (225 ILCS 454/1-10). That definition is not limited to houses. The Act also exempts an owner of real property who performs broker-type acts only as they relate to the property it owns (225 ILCS 454/5-20). Whether a buyer under an unclosed contract is an owner for that exemption is not answered by the text, so we do not assign in Illinois at all.

If we make an offer on your parcel, TechStack Consulting LLC, the company behind StraightAcre, is the buyer named in the contract and the buyer at closing. If another buyer says it will assign your contract, ask whether a licensed Illinois broker is involved. See how we buy.

Find your PIN and the county offices

Illinois identifies land by a property index number, or PIN, assigned by the county. The township or county assessor sets the assessed value, the county treasurer sends the bill and runs the annual tax sale, the county clerk calculates redemption and keeps the delinquent tax record, and the recorder (in many counties now part of the clerk’s office) holds the deeds. Start with the assessor search, copy the PIN exactly as printed, then check the treasurer for unpaid installments and the recorder for the last deed in your name. An assessed value in Illinois is a fraction of market value and is not an offer figure.

Four northeastern counties produce most of our Illinois inquiries.

Find your PIN and the county offices
County	Assessor	Treasurer	Recorder	Planning	GIS	Flood and stormwater
Cook	Address search	Annual tax sale	Clerk recordings	Building and zoning	Cook Viewer	Watershed management ordinance
Will	Supervisor of assessments	Will treasurer	Recorder of deeds	Land use	Will GIS	Floodplain
Kane	Kane assessments	Kane treasurer	Kane recorder	Development and environmental resources	Kane GIS	FEMA map search
Lake	Chief county assessment office	Lake treasurer	Recording division	Planning, building, and development	Lake maps	Stormwater management commission

Delinquent taxes, the annual tax sale, and redemption

Illinois bills property tax in installments, and an installment is delinquent the day after its due date. Unpaid taxes accrue a penalty of 1.5 percent per month in most counties and 0.75 percent per month in Cook County for tax year 2023 and later (35 ILCS 200/21-15). Each year the county collector publishes the delinquent parcels by PIN, asks the circuit court for judgment, and then holds a tax sale (35 ILCS 200/21-110 and 21-115).

What is sold at that sale is your tax debt, not your land. The buyer receives a certificate of purchase, you keep title, and you redeem through the county clerk by paying the certificate amount plus a penalty that starts at the rate bid at the sale and steps up every six months (35 ILCS 200/21-355). Under the current text of the Property Tax Code, property sold at a tax sale may be redeemed within three years of the sale, except that vacant non-farm property may be redeemed only within one year (35 ILCS 200/21-350). The section carries transition rules for certificates issued before January 1, 2024 and before July 10, 2026, so if your taxes were sold earlier, ask the county clerk for an estimate of cost of redemption and the date your period ends.

A certificate holder who wants your land must serve notice three to six months before the period ends and petition the court, which insists on strict compliance; for certificates issued on or after July 10, 2026 the property goes to a judicial auction, with any surplus available to the former owner (35 ILCS 200/22-10, 22-30, and 22-40). We can buy a parcel with sold taxes and redeem through the clerk at closing, but once a petition for tax deed is on file you need an Illinois attorney before you need a buyer. Start with our back-taxes guide.

Inherited land and who can sign

When an Illinois owner dies without a will, real estate passes half to the surviving spouse and half to descendants if both survive, all to descendants if there is no spouse, and all to the spouse if there are no descendants (755 ILCS 5/2-1). Who can sign a deed depends on how the estate is administered. An independent representative may sell real estate without a court order, except real estate specifically bequeathed, which needs the legatee’s consent (755 ILCS 5/28-8). In supervised administration the representative sells only with leave of court (755 ILCS 5/20-4).

Two shortcuts do not reach land. The small estate affidavit transfers personal property only, up to $150,000 (755 ILCS 5/25-1). A transfer on death instrument does pass real property outside probate, but only if the owner recorded it before death (755 ILCS 27/20 and 27/40). If no estate was ever opened, expect the title company to ask for one, or for an attorney’s plan to clear title, before it will insure a sale. Send us the death certificate, the will if any, and any letters of office. Our guides on inherited land and land held in a trust cover the paperwork.

Closing practice and costs

In Illinois, handling escrows, settlements, and closings in connection with title insurance is part of the regulated business of title insurance, overseen by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (215 ILCS 155/3). The party paying for the title insurance has the right to choose the title company. Whether an attorney reviews the contract and attends the closing is local practice rather than statute; it is common in the Chicago area, and we welcome it.

Transfer taxes at recording are 50 cents per $500 of value for the state (35 ILCS 200/31-10) and 25 cents per $500 for the county (55 ILCS 5/5-1031), paid before the recorder will accept the deed. Home rule municipalities can add their own transfer tax, and the ordinance says whether the buyer or the seller pays it (65 ILCS 5/8-3-19). The deed must be accompanied by a transfer declaration, Form PTAX-203 or its MyDec equivalent, signed by at least one seller and one buyer (35 ILCS 200/31-25); deeds for consideration under $100 and several other categories are exempt (35 ILCS 200/31-45). The statutes do not say who pays the state and county tax. Our contract does, and it also states who prepares the deed and what you net. See the closing guide.

Zoning, platting, floodways, and farmland

Outside cities and villages with their own ordinances, the county board zones land in Illinois, with a broad exemption for land used principally for agriculture (55 ILCS 5/5-12001). Dividing a parcel so that any part is under five acres requires a survey and a recorded subdivision plat by an Illinois registered land surveyor, unless an exemption applies, such as parcels of five acres or more with no new streets or sales between adjoining owners (765 ILCS 205/1). If your tract has no road frontage, no Illinois statute we read creates access on its own; a title search has to show an easement, and that is a question for the title company and an attorney.

Check the FEMA Map Service Center for the flood zone. Construction in the floodway of a river, lake, or stream needs a state permit from the Department of Natural Resources under 17 Ill. Adm. Code 3700, except in Cook, Will, DuPage, Kane, Lake, and McHenry counties, where floodway limits are set under Part 3708. Cook County development also falls under the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District’s Watershed Management Ordinance, which covers floodplain management and isolated wetlands. Filling wetlands may need a federal Section 404 permit from the Army Corps of Engineers.

Illinois assesses farmland on soil productivity rather than market value when the land meets the Code’s definition of a farm and has been farmed for the two preceding years, using per-acre values the Department of Revenue certifies by May 1 (35 ILCS 200/10-110 and 10-115). Land over ten acres used for open space for three years can be valued on that use (35 ILCS 200/10-155). See our agricultural assessment guide.

Questions Illinois sellers ask

Why does StraightAcre only buy directly in Illinois?

Because the Illinois Real Estate License Act counts dealing in assignable contracts on two or more occasions in twelve months as broker activity, whether for another or for oneself (225 ILCS 454/1-10). We buy for our own account only, unless a licensed broker is involved.

My taxes were sold at the county tax sale. Do I still own the land?

Yes. The sale transfers your tax debt to a certificate holder, not your title. You can redeem through the county clerk until the period ends, and a title company can redeem from your proceeds at closing.

How long is the redemption period for vacant land in Illinois?

Under the current text of 35 ILCS 200/21-350, vacant non-farm property may be redeemed within one year of the sale, while most other property has three years. Transition rules apply to certificates issued before January 1, 2024 and before July 10, 2026, so confirm your date with the county clerk.

Do I need an Illinois attorney to sell vacant land?

No statute we read requires one, and title companies handle escrow and closing under the Title Insurance Act. Attorney review is common in the Chicago area, and we are glad to work with your lawyer.

Who pays the Illinois transfer tax?

The Property Tax Code sets the state and county rates but does not name the payer, and a home rule municipality’s ordinance says who pays its own tax. Our contract states who pays each one.

Can heirs sell land without opening an estate?

The small estate affidavit covers personal property only, so land in a deceased owner’s name generally needs probate unless a recorded transfer on death instrument or a trust already moved it. The title company decides what it will insure.

Sources

Illinois Compiled Statutes and administrative rules were read on the Illinois General Assembly site on October 21, 2026, with the public act and effective date noted where the page shows one. County links were opened the same day.

Tell us about your land in Illinois

Send what you know about the parcel and your situation. You can start without a parcel number. Submitting this inquiry does not commit you to sell.