The calculator below is pre-filled with Cook County's own property tax rate and insurance average (expand "More options" to see or edit them) — not just Illinois's statewide figures.

Cook County at a glance

Effective property tax rate: 1.9% of home value / year
Median home price: $364,200
Homeowners insurance (avg/year): $3,311
Conforming loan limit (1-unit, 2026): $832,750

County data last updated 2026-08-20. FIPS 17031. Full source list on /methodology.

Cook County, IL mortgage payment calculator

All-in cost first, always — pre-filled with Cook County tax and insurance figures. Estimate only, not a loan quote or pre-approval.

Not your state? Find your calculator here.

Not sure what you can afford?

Tell us your income and savings instead, and we'll work out the max home price and a qualification signal for Illinois.

How much house can I afford in Illinois? →

Not sure where to start?

Continue calculating

Affordability calculator

Income, savings, and debts in — max home price and qualification signal out.

PMI removal calculator

When your PMI is scheduled to end, by law and by request.

Mortgage points calculator

Should you buy down your rate? Break-even and lifetime cost comparison.

Related reading

Closing Costs in Illinois: What You'll Actually Pay

Illinois's state transfer tax is only 0.1%, but Chicago stacks city and county tax to about 0.9% — nine times as much. What a $315,000 close really costs.

What Is PMI, and How Do You Get Rid of It?

Private mortgage insurance explained in plain English — what it costs, why it exists, the exact federal rules for cancelling it, and how to work out the month your PMI is scheduled to end.

Guides & templates

Buying a Home With Someone Else

The operational guide to buying property with a partner, friend, sibling, or parent — credit and DTI mechanics, title vesting, a clause-by-clause co-ownership agreement, and how the exit actually works.

The First-Time Buyer's Playbook: 12 Months to Closing Day

A month-by-month plan for the year before you buy: what to do in each phase, what never to touch, how to document every dollar, and how to survive closing day.

Illinois at a glance

Median home price: $315,000
Typical closing costs: 2%–5% of price
Transfer tax: 0.1% of sale price, customarily paid by seller
Closing custom: attorney
Homestead exemption: Illinois's General Homestead Exemption (GHE, 35 ILCS 200/15-175) reduces a primary residence's equalized assessed value (EAV) by up to $10,000 in Cook County, $8,000 in counties contiguous to Cook (DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, Will), and $6,000 in all other counties. It is not automatic in every county — homeowners typically must apply once with their county assessor/supervisor of assessments (Cook County re-verifies periodically); Cook County has since moved to an auto-renewal system for many existing recipients. Illinois also offers several other exemptions not modeled here that can stack with GHE for eligible households: the Senior Citizens Homestead Exemption, the Senior Citizens Assessment Freeze, the Home Improvement Exemption, and the Homestead Exemption for Persons with Disabilities.

First-time buyer / down payment assistance programs

IHDAccess Home
Illinois Housing Development Authority's flagship first-time (and veteran/targeted-area) homebuyer product: a 30-year fixed-rate first mortgage (FHA, VA, USDA-RD, or conventional) paired with down payment/closing-cost assistance of 6% of the purchase price, up to $15,000, as a 0%-interest second mortgage. Repayment is deferred up to 30 years and due only when the home is sold, refinanced, or no longer owner-occupied.
IHDAccess Forgivable
IHDA down payment/closing-cost assistance alternative to Access Home: a forgivable second mortgage equal to 4% of the purchase price, up to $6,000, with no monthly payment and no repayment owed if the borrower remains in the home through a 10-year forgiveness period. Paired with the same 30-year fixed-rate first mortgage options (FHA/VA/USDA-RD/conventional); open to first-time and repeat buyers statewide.