When you ask about borrowing through a reverse mortgage Illinois law says your lender must hand you an independent consumer guide. A Home Equity Conversion Mortgage, or HECM, is what most people pick. With it, you borrow against your home and don't get a monthly mortgage bill. Between October 2025 and August 2026, HUD insured 353 HECMs in Illinois, and the median starting borrowing limit was $153,300.
The 3-day waiting period under the Illinois Reverse Mortgage Act
The loan process is deliberately slowed by the Illinois Reverse Mortgage Act so you aren't rushed. The moment you put your acceptance of the lender's written commitment in writing, a full 3-business-day cooling off period begins. A commitment means the lender formally promises to provide the loan on the terms that were set. During those 3 working days you're free of any obligation and nobody can make you close. This waiting period is not something you can give up either.
A meeting with a HUD-approved counselor is required by federal law nationwide before you submit your finished HECM application. The lender must give you 2 documents when you first ask, or when you request to apply if doing it earlier isn't practical. One document is a notice for the required counseling, naming the 9 Illinois agencies approved by HUD. Another thing you get is a guide covering reverse mortgages, counseling and alternatives, issued by the Office of the Attorney General.
Illinois law also keeps reverse mortgage lenders from bundling other sales together with your loan. They can't make you buy long term care insurance, life insurance, an investment or an annuity. With an annuity, you put money in now and the contract pays you regular income later. Property, title and flood insurance can still be required by lenders to protect the house.
With a reverse mortgage, do Illinois property tax exemptions apply?
You must keep up your property taxes and homeowners insurance under federal reverse mortgage rules. Living in the home as your main residence and keeping it well maintained are also required. Tax breaks are valuable because missing tax payments can push your loan into default, and the lender could foreclose.
Tax deferral and the General Homestead Exemption
No matter your age, if you live in the home you own, you can take the General Homestead Exemption. The reduction to your taxable value can reach $10,000 for Cook County, $8,000 for counties next to it and $6,000 for the rest. But the state consumer guide cautions that a reverse mortgage might reduce your chances of qualifying for the Senior Citizens Real Estate Tax Deferral Act.
Cook County's $8,000 Senior Exemption
Homeowners in Cook County who are 65 or older (born in 1960 or earlier) usually meet the rules for the Senior Exemption on their primary home. The renewal happens every year without you doing anything. Your equalized assessed value drops by $8,000 because of the exemption. After a state multiplier adjusts it, the share of your home's value that gets taxed is called the equalized assessed value. Multiply $8,000 by your local tax rate to figure your savings.
Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation: filing complaints
State‑licensed mortgage companies and loan originators answer to the state's Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR). Its authority covers only firms and individuals with a state license. You can file a complaint online with its Division of Banking and Division of Financial Institutions, or call 217-785-2900.
