Buying a home in Illinois: the help you may qualify for.

Down payment and closing cost help

From the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA).

• Access Forgivable

  4% of the price, up to $6,000

  Forgiven monthly over 10 years.

• Access Deferred

  5% of the price, up to $7,500

  No payments until you sell, refinance or pay off the first mortgage. Credit score 640+.

• Access Home

  6% of the price, up to $15,000

  IHDA's newer down payment program; ask a lender for current terms.

Who qualifies: Income and price limits, a contribution of $1,000 or 1%, through an IHDA-approved lender. All counties eligible.

Property tax exemptions and credits

Exemptions lower your home’s taxable value or your bill. Most aren’t automatic: you apply with your county assessor. Illinois’s official exemptions information.

For homeowners who live in the home

• General homestead exemption

  Up to $6,000 of assessed value ($8,000 near Cook County, $10,000 in Cook)

  For an owner-occupied home, based on the increase in its value over the base year.

  How to apply: With your county assessor. (35 ILCS 200/15-175)

For homeowners 65 and older

• Senior homestead and assessment freeze

  A senior exemption, plus a value freeze with income up to $75,000 (2026)

  Homeowners 65 or older get a senior homestead exemption, and the low-income senior freeze holds your home's value steady if household income is $75,000 or less for 2026 ($77,000 for 2027).

  How to apply: With your county assessor; you may need to reapply each year. (35 ILCS 200/15-170, 15-172)

For veterans

• Homestead exemption for veterans with disabilities

  $2,500 to a full exemption, by disability rating

  Larger reductions for higher service-connected disability ratings, up to a full exemption for veterans rated 70% or more.

  How to apply: With your county assessor each year. (35 ILCS 200/15-169)

For homeowners with disabilities

• Homestead exemption for persons with disabilities

  $2,000 off assessed value

  For a homeowner with a disability living in the home.

  How to apply: With your county assessor each year. (35 ILCS 200/15-168)

Want to see which ones fit you? Answer a few questions in the property tax exemptions checker.

Your next steps

1. Work out a monthly cost you’re comfortable with in the home cost calculator. It also lists Illinois’s programs with the loans you may qualify for.
2. Talk with a free or low-cost HUD-approved housing counselor. Find one near you.
3. Ask each lender which of these programs they work with, and compare Loan Estimates from at least three.
4. Follow the step-by-step home buyer’s guide from budget to keys.

Common questions