Charitable, religious and educational exemptions
Owner status is not enough. Illinois tests actual use, parcel by parcel.
Illinois exempts property owned and used for charitable, religious, educational and certain governmental purposes. Both halves are required.
Use, not ownership
A charity owning a parking lot rented commercially does not get an exemption for it. A church's vacant land held for future expansion is frequently challenged. The test is exclusive use for the exempt purpose, applied parcel by parcel and sometimes part-parcel by part-parcel.
The process is different
These are not granted by the township assessor. Applications go to the county and then to the Illinois Department of Revenue, which makes the determination. It takes longer than a homestead exemption and asks for far more documentation.
Annual affidavits
Exempt owners are typically required to file annually confirming that use has not changed. Failing to file can end an exemption held for decades.
Partial exemptions
A building used partly for exempt purposes and partly commercially may be exempt in proportion. Getting that split right is worth attention — it is frequently set once and never revisited as use changes.