Assessment Terms

Level of Assessment    
In the State of Illinois in all counties except Cook County, Real Property is assessed at 1/3 of Market Value. (Market Value multiplied by .3333) Conversely than the estimated Market Value the assessor has placed on a property except farmland can be calculated by multiplying the total assessed value by 3 or dividing it by .3333. Farmland is an exception because it is assessed according to the income producing capabilities of various soil types.

Market Value
The State of Illinois Department of Revenue definition of "Market Value" is paraphrased as follows: The most probable price in terms of money the property would bring exposed for sale for a reasonable length of time in the open market in an arms length transaction between a 
willing and knowledgeable buyer and a willing and knowledgeable seller. (some examples of non market value sales: sale between related parties, forced sales due to foreclosure.

Tax Rate
The Tax Rate is determined by dividing the Levy (the Level of Assessment amount of money the various taxing bodies budget against the  property tax) by the Total Equalized Assessed Value of the Township. Equalized Assessed Value (EAV) is the Total Assessed Value minus all exemptions. 

Example: Levy = $8,000,000 EAV = 100,000,000 8,000,000 divided by 100,000,000 = Tax Rate of .08 or 8% or $8 per $100 of assessed value

Example: EAV = 30,000 x .08 = $2,400 Tax Bill