Each township (Go to List of Township Officials) has an elected assessor that appraises property. The assessed value of the property becomes the tax base upon which local agencies levy taxes. In Illinois, a legal assessment is 33 1/3% of market value. The assessor does not determine how much your taxes are; rather, by placing value on property, he/she is distributing the overall tax burden among all the property owners. The actual dollar amount of your tax bill is determined by how much money each local agency needs to operate.

The County Assessment office instructs and assists the elected township assessors in order to promote uniformity of assessments throughout the different districts. This office also handles a variety of administration items, such as Homestead Exemption Applications, transferring ownership when property sells, and maintaining the county mapping system, to name a few.