Rock Island's tax bill runs through five townships
Where your house sits inside Rock Island changes your rate. The county's tax year 2025 report puts the city's main tax code at about 10.14 per $100 of equalized assessed value, about half of it for School District 41. City parcels also fall in four other townships, and across the city's tax codes total rates run from about 9.12 to 11.27. Census survey data for 2020 to 2024 put the median homeowner's tax bill here at $2,979 a year. The county's appeal deadline for 2026 assessments was October 26, 2026.
Rock Island's list of city taxes doesn't include a real estate transfer tax. Illinois still charges 50 cents per $500 of value, which the seller usually pays by custom, though it can be negotiated. Counties can add their own transfer tax on top, so ask the Rock Island County Recorder whether one applies to your deed.
A third of the houses here went up before 1940
Of the city's 16,533 housing units, 5,398, about 32.6 percent, date to 1939 or earlier, and roughly 60 percent were built before 1960, according to Census estimates for 2020 to 2024. On a house that old, expect a buyer's inspector to look hard at the wiring, the plumbing and the roof.
Old houses mean old pipes. The city's 2024 service line inventory found 192 known lead lines, but most of the city's lines are still unconfirmed. That matters when you sell: Item 17 of the Illinois disclosure form asks whether you know of lead water pipes, so find out what runs to your house before you fill it out.
Vacant house? The registration clock
The city divides Rock Island into named neighborhoods, from the Broadway and Highland Park historic districts and the College Hill District to KeyStone, Longview, Greenbush, Douglas Park and the West End. Under Chapter 4 of the city code, adopted August 11, 2025, the owner of a vacant property must register it within 10 days after it becomes vacant and pay a non-refundable $300 fee, renewed every six months.
There's a way out. A residential property actively listed for sale or rent with a licensed broker on the MLS doesn't have to register, as long as it's secure and meets the city's codes. If you sell a registered house, the new owner has 10 days to register it or update the registration, and you stay responsible for any fees, fines and penalties that built up while you owned it.
Court dates and the county tax sale
If a lender has sued, the case runs through the 14th Judicial Circuit at the county courthouse in Rock Island. Illinois lets you redeem until the later of 7 months after you're served or 3 months after the judgment, and that right ends before the sale. Unpaid property taxes follow a separate track through the county's annual tax sale, where only the taxes are sold, not the house. The Rock Island County page covers both in more detail.
Running the numbers on a $140,500 Rock Island sale
Redfin put Rock Island's median sale price at $140,500 in May 2026, down about 9.1 percent from a year earlier, on 43 sales with a median of 13 days on market. The monthly figure swings (March was $112,450). Commission at about 4.9 percent (Clever's Illinois average, updated September 2026) is roughly $6,900. Closing costs near 1.2 percent, a rough estimate, add about $1,700. The state transfer tax is about $141. Call it roughly $8,700 before repairs or your mortgage payoff. While you wait for a buyer, the median tax bill runs about $250 a month, plus insurance and utilities.
If the property is a fit, a cash buyer may make an offer, and you pick the closing date. Listing is a fair choice too, with about 2 months of supply in May. Run both numbers before you decide.
Sources: Rock Island County, tax rate report 2025; Census Reporter, Rock Island real estate taxes (B25103); Rock Island County Assessment Office; City of Rock Island, Taxes and Rates; Clever Real Estate, Illinois transfer taxes; Census Reporter, Rock Island year structure built (B25034); City of Rock Island, Service Line Material Inventory; 765 ILCS 77/35, disclosure form; City of Rock Island, Chapter 4 Building Regulations; 735 ILCS 5, Article XV, Mortgage Foreclosure; Redfin Data Center; Clever Real Estate, average commission
