Chicago skyline along Lake Michigan under a blue sky with scattered white clouds

Buying a home in
Chicago

Q: Do I need a lawyer to buy a home in Chicago?

Not by law, but in practice yes. The Illinois State Bar Association advises retaining a real estate attorney at the outset, and Chicago-area closings are normally attended by an attorney for each side. Your attorney reviews the contract during a short attorney review period, examines the title commitment and the survey, and attends the closing. Unlike a continental notary, who serves both parties, each attorney acts for one client. Budget for the fee and ask for it in writing.

Q: Will my property tax bill be the same as the seller's?

Not necessarily. The bill follows the assessed value, which Cook County resets for each area every third year, and the exemptions that apply. The seller's homeowner exemption is for the home they lived in and does not pass to you automatically. The city was last reassessed for tax year 2024 and, on the three-year cycle, comes round again in 2027. Ask your attorney for the most recent bill and the likely effect of the next reassessment.

Q: Does Illinois estate tax affect me if I live in Europe?

It can. The Illinois Attorney General sets the exclusion amount at $4,000,000 and applies the tax to residents and non-residents alike. For a non-resident, the tax is worked out on the whole estate and then multiplied by the share of assets located in Illinois. A modest estate with one Chicago home is unlikely to be caught, a larger one may be. Separately, the United States taxes non-residents on US assets above $60,000. Treaties can change both, so take advice before you buy.

Q: Can I let my Chicago condominium on short stays?

Only if the unit qualifies. Chicago will not register a unit in a building on its prohibited buildings list, in a restricted residential zone, or where the association or lease bans short stays. In a building with five or more units the owner need not live there, and the number of rental units is capped at one quarter of the building or six, whichever is less. In a single-family home or a building of two to four units the unit must be your primary residence.

Q: What happens if the condominium board needs a big repair?

The board can levy a special assessment, and owners must pay it. Owners can reject some of them: if regular and special assessments together pass 115% of the previous year's total, owners holding 20% of the votes can petition for a vote. Emergency or legally required assessments cannot be vetoed. Before you buy, ask for the reserve status, the capital works planned for the next two years, pending lawsuits and the unpaid assessments on the unit.

Chicago is a large, ordinary working city with a lakefront, several European airline routes and homes that cost about half what they do in Boston. The surprises are in the paperwork: a property tax bill that is a major yearly cost, lawyers on both sides of the sale, and a state estate tax that can reach owners who live abroad.

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Everything about buying in Chicago

Short answers on this page. The full guide has the detail, the figures and the sources.

The purchase and the loan

How a purchase runs here and which loans fit.

How a purchase closes
Buying a condominium
Financing at Chicago prices

Prices, taxes and insurance

What homes cost and what you pay on top.

What homes cost
Property tax in Cook County and beyond
Illinois income tax and estate tax

Letting and living

Rental rules, local life and how to get there.

If you plan to let it
Winters, heating and the age of the building
Getting home

Read the full guide

Who moves here from Europe

Chicago has a large financial and professional-services sector, two major research universities and big hospital systems, and all of them recruit across borders. The University of Chicago stands in Hyde Park on the South Side. Northwestern University has campuses in Evanston and in the city. For a European household that usually means arriving on an employer-sponsored or academic visa, with a US salary and no US credit history.

Where you live then depends on the commute. The city itself offers condominiums and older houses. Evanston is the lakeside suburb next to Northwestern, the North Shore towns lie further north, Oak Park is to the west, and Naperville is a large suburb to the south-west, outside Cook County. Each has its own tax authority and its own rules. See how a work visa affects the loan.

Ivy covered red brick house between brick buildings in a Chicago suburban neighborhood

Chicago at a glance

Figures last checked: 4 October 2026

This is not a lending decision: a US specialist confirms what applies to your own situation.

Median sale price	$426,255 in the city of Chicago, up 9.3% on a year earlier, and $383,716 in Cook County, up 5.1% (Redfin, August 2026).
Property tax	Average effective rate on owner-occupied homes: 1.73% in Cook County, 1.89% in DuPage, 2.10% in Will and 2.26% in Lake (Tax Foundation, 2024 five-year estimates, published for 2026).
Reassessment	A third of Cook County is reassessed each year: the city in 2024, the north suburbs including Evanston and the North Shore in 2025, the south and west suburbs including Oak Park in 2026 (Cook County Assessor).
Loan limit 2026	$832,750 for a one-unit home in Cook, DuPage, Lake, Will and Kane counties (FHFA). Above that is a jumbo loan.
Short-term rental	Chicago requires registration. A unit cannot be registered if its building is on the city's prohibited list, it lies in a restricted residential zone, or the association forbids it (City of Chicago).
Flights home	Nonstop from O'Hare to 25 European cities, including Amsterdam, Dublin, Frankfurt, London, Madrid, Paris, Rome and Zurich (O'Hare list, 1 September 2026).

Ornate white dome of the Baha'i House of Worship in Evanston against a pale sky

High rise towers behind trees along the Lake Michigan shore with waves in the foreground

Aerial view of Chicago neighborhoods in autumn colors with the downtown skyline in the distance

Boardwalk along a lagoon in Lincoln Park with the Chicago skyline behind green trees

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Before you make an offer in Chicago

Retain a real estate attorney first, and make sure the offer has an attorney review period.
Ask for the latest property tax bill and find out when the area is next reassessed.
Find out whether you can claim the homeowner exemption, and do not assume a holiday home qualifies.
Check which county the address is in, especially in Naperville.
For a condominium, request the reserve status, planned capital works, pending lawsuits and unpaid assessments.
Ask for twelve months of heating bills and the age of the boiler or furnace.
Do not count on short-term rental income until the building, precinct and association rules have been checked.
Ask a cross-border tax adviser about Illinois estate tax, the federal tax on rent and the position on sale.

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Questions people moving from Europe ask

Do I need a lawyer to buy a home in Chicago?

Will my property tax bill be the same as the seller's?

Does Illinois estate tax affect me if I live in Europe?

Can I let my Chicago condominium on short stays?

What happens if the condominium board needs a big repair?

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Sources (16)

Figures and rules on this page were checked against these sources on 4 October 2026. Rates, prices and local rules change, so confirm anything you rely on before you commit.

Buying a home inChicago