Illinois

Illinois — Contract for Deed / Installment Land Contract

Legal information, not legal advice. Verify against the cited primary sources before acting. Statutes in this area are frequently amended. Last verified: 2026-06-08.

Illinois is a hybrid remedy state, and one of the most heavily regulated in the country since 2018. Two statutory regimes overlap. First, the Mortgage Foreclosure Law (IMFL) redefines a qualifying residential installment contract as a mortgage — forcing judicial foreclosure (not forfeiture) once the buyer has paid down past a 20% equity line. Second, the Installment Sales Contract Act (765 ILCS 67/), effective January 1, 2018, layers mandatory disclosures, a 3-day cooling-off period, a recording duty, a 90-day pre-suit cure window, a prepayment-penalty ban, and Consumer-Fraud-Act enforcement onto repeat sellers of 1–4 unit homes. Where neither statute reaches, common-law forfeiture survives but is disfavored in equity.

0. Identity & Terminology

• In-state name(s): “installment sales contract,” “contract for deed,” “bond for deed,” “articles of agreement for warranty deed,” “installment land contract.” The statute expressly sweeps in “a contract for deed, bond for deed, or any other sale or legal device” (765 ILCS 67/5).
• Recognition: statutory and common law. Long-recognized at common law via equitable conversion (shay-v-penrose-1962); now overlaid by two statutes.
• Statutory homes:
  • Installment Sales Contract Act, 765 ILCS 67/1 et seq. (P.A. 100-416, eff. Jan. 1, 2018) — 765 ILCS 67/5 Definitions.
  • Illinois Mortgage Foreclosure Law (IMFL), 735 ILCS 5/Art. XV; the “mortgage” definition at 735 ILCS 5/15-1106 and “real estate installment contract” at 735 ILCS 5/15-1214.
  • Eviction Article (forcible entry & detainer), 735 ILCS 5/9-102 et seq.
• Remedy regime: hybrid — IMFL mandates foreclosure for a residential installment contract entered on/after July 1, 1987 once the unpaid balance is less than 80% of the original purchase price (i.e., ≥20% paid) (735 ILCS 5/15-1106(a)(2)); below that equity line, contractual forfeiture via the Eviction Article remains available but is strictly construed and disfavored (hettermann-v-weingart-1983). See forfeiture-vs-foreclosure.

1. Formation & Mandatory Disclosures

• Statute of frauds: Writing required for any interest in land. 740 ILCS 80/2 (Frauds Act); the Installment Sales Contract Act presupposes a written contract and prescribes its contents (765 ILCS 67/10).
• Mandatory disclosures — REQUIRED (and extensive). For a covered residential installment contract, 765 ILCS 67/10 requires the contract to “clearly and conspicuously disclose” a long list of items, including: property address, PIN, and legal description; purchase price and down payment; interest rate expressed only as an annual percentage rate; loan term and number of periodic payments; any balloon payment; the prior-year fair-cash and assessed value from the tax bill; an amortization schedule; allocation of responsibility for real estate taxes and insurance (default falls on the seller where unspecified); allocation of repair responsibility (default on the seller where unspecified, 765 ILCS 67/25); and a statement that the seller provided the Attorney General’s installment-sales-contract disclosure. — 765 ILCS 67/10.
  • AG disclosure + 3-business-day cooling-off. The seller must deliver the Attorney General’s prescribed disclosure, and neither party is bound for 3 full business days after an unexecuted contract is accepted. 765 ILCS 67/70.
  • Form prescribed: Yes for the AG disclosure (the Office of the Attorney General prescribes it; 765 ILCS 67/75); the contract’s own content list is statutory.
  • Penalty for omission: “Any violation of this Act constitutes an unlawful practice under the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act” (765 ILCS 67/85). That opens a private right of action with actual damages, attorney’s fees and costs, and potential punitive damages under 815 ILCS 505/10a. The Act’s protections are non-waivable (765 ILCS 67/50) and cumulative with other law (765 ILCS 67/15).
• Recording requirement — REQUIRED, 10 business days. The seller must record the contract (or a memorandum) with the county recorder within 10 business days of the date of sale; if the seller fails to record, the buyer may rescind until recording occurs (and recover all money paid). 765 ILCS 67/20.
• Annual / periodic accounting statement — REQUIRED. Section 30 requires the seller to provide account statements (principal/interest paid, balance, and tax/insurance amounts). 765 ILCS 67/30.
• Prepayment: Allowed; prepayment penalties are prohibited — “[t]he seller may not charge or collect a prepayment penalty or any similar fee.” 765 ILCS 67/60.
• Usury / interest cap: Illinois’s general usury framework (815 ILCS 205/) and the High Risk Home Loan Act apply (765 ILCS 67/15 incorporates it); the contract must state the rate as an APR (765 ILCS 67/10). Exact applicable cap for a seller-financed CFD — see needs_verification.

▸ For Sellers / Operators — Illinois is a compliance-first state, and the trigger is repetition: you become a regulated “seller” once you sign more than 3 installment contracts in any 12-month period on 1–4 unit homes (765 ILCS 67/5). At that point the full Act bites — the AG disclosure + 3-business-day cooling-off (§70), the 765 ILCS 67/10 content list, the 10-business-day recording duty (§20, buyer rescission if you miss it), the prepayment-penalty ban (§60), and a 90-day pre-suit cure window (§40). Omissions are Consumer-Fraud-Act violations carrying fee-shifting and punitives (§85; 815 ILCS 505/10a) and cannot be waived (§50). Independently, IMFL forces you to foreclose, not forfeit, the moment the buyer crosses the 20%-paid line (735 ILCS 5/15-1106(a)(2)). Underwrite both gates before you contract.

▸ For Buyers — Your strongest protections: rescission if the seller never records (§20); a 90-day cure right before any suit (§40); equitable title from day one (shay-v-penrose-1962); and a statutory bar on forfeiture once you’ve paid ≥20% — the seller must then foreclose, giving you redemption rights.

2. Buyer’s Equitable Interest

• Equitable title passes? Yes. Illinois recognizes equitable conversion: on a valid, enforceable contract for sale, the seller holds legal title in trust for the buyer, who becomes the equitable owner; conversion occurs at contract execution. shay-v-penrose-1962 (Shay v. Penrose, 25 Ill. 2d 447, 185 N.E.2d 218 (1962)).
• Limit: Equitable conversion does not apply where the parties intend otherwise or equitable considerations intervene — e.g., a clause stating that no right, title, or interest vests until delivery of the deed or full payment. Ruva v. Mente, 143 Ill. 2d 257 (1991) (ruva-v-mente-1991).
• Buyer’s interest recordable / insurable? Yes. The buyer’s interest is a recordable, mortgageable equitable estate (miles-homes-v-mintjal-1974: a contract purchaser in possession “has an equitable estate which he can mortgage”). The seller’s recording duty (§20) puts the contract on title.
• Risk of loss: Contract-governed; the Act allocates insurance responsibility and directs the disposition of insurance proceeds (765 ILCS 67/10, 67/35).
• Improvements & waste: Repair responsibility defaults to the seller where the contract is silent (765 ILCS 67/25), with 72-hour notice before nonemergency repairs on occupied property.

3. Default & Remedies → see forfeiture-vs-foreclosure

• Primary remedy: Election, gated by an equity threshold. Below 20% paid: contractual forfeiture (Eviction Article). At/above 20% paid (residential installment contract): judicial foreclosure mandatory (IMFL).
• Forfeiture available? Yes, but restricted and disfavored:
  • Statutory bar (substantial-equity). A residential real estate installment contract entered on/after July 1, 1987 must be foreclosed under IMFL once the amount unpaid (principal + due unpaid interest at the pre-default rate) is less than 80% of the original purchase price — i.e., the buyer has paid 20% or more. 735 ILCS 5/15-1106(a)(2); “real estate installment contract” defined broadly at 735 ILCS 5/15-1214 (“any agreement or contract for a deed under which the purchase price is to be paid in installments with title … conveyed to the buyer upon payment”). Note the 2018 amendment: before P.A. 100-416 (eff. Jan. 1, 2018), 15-1106(a)(2) reached only contracts “the performance of which extends for a period of 5 years or more”; for contracts executed on or after Jan. 1, 2018, that 5-year-term limitation was removed, so the foreclosure mandate now applies regardless of term (735 ILCS 5/15-1106(g), applying the amendment prospectively). The Eviction Article cross-references this: a vendee action does not lie where the contract must be foreclosed under 15-1106(a)(2). 735 ILCS 5/9-102.
  • Equitable bar. Even below the threshold, forfeitures are “not favored” and are strictly construed; the party seeking forfeiture bears the burden of showing the right “clearly and unequivocally exists and that no injustice will result.” hettermann-v-weingart-1983 (Hettermann v. Weingart, 120 Ill. App. 3d 683, 458 N.E.2d 616 (2d Dist. 1983)). A court of equity may relieve against forfeiture where the result would be unconscionable relative to the seller’s loss.
  • Substantial-equity leading case / threshold: statutory bright line = 20% paid (15-1106(a)(2)); equitable doctrine supplements below that.
• Statutory cure period (pre-suit): Under the Installment Sales Contract Act, “[a]ny action brought against the buyer under the contract shall be initiated only after the expiration of 90 days from the date of the default,” during which a defaulting buyer may cure by paying all amounts then due. 765 ILCS 67/40. (This is a pre-suit cure window, not a post-judgment redemption period.) Common-law contract forfeiture additionally requires the written demand/notice of the Eviction Article (735 ILCS 5/9-104.1 for contract purchasers).
• Judicial foreclosure required when: residential real estate installment contract entered on/after July 1, 1987, buyer has paid ≥20% (unpaid balance < 80% of original purchase price). 735 ILCS 5/15-1106(a)(2). (For contracts executed before Jan. 1, 2018, the contract also had to extend 5 years or more; the 2018 amendment removed that limitation prospectively — 735 ILCS 5/15-1106(g).) On foreclosure the buyer is “deemed the mortgagor” and the seller the “mortgagee,” importing IMFL redemption and reinstatement rights (735 ILCS 5/15-1602, 5/15-1603).
• Acceleration enforceable? Conditional — enforceable where the contract provides for it and forfeiture/acceleration is clearly and unequivocally invoked; equity may refuse where unjust (hettermann-v-weingart-1983).
• Restitution offset on forfeiture? Section 80 requires the seller, on a buyer’s default, to credit toward any deficiency amounts the buyer spent repairing pre-sale defects. 765 ILCS 67/80. Broader restitution turns on equity.
• Seller’s other remedies: foreclosure (electable even below threshold, 735 ILCS 5/15-1106(c)), specific performance, damages, quiet title, and — below the equity line — forfeiture + eviction.
• Buyer grace / redemption: Statutory 90-day pre-suit cure (765 ILCS 67/40); plus IMFL redemption/reinstatement once a contract is foreclosed as a mortgage (735 ILCS 5/15-1602, 5/15-1603).

3b. Remedies — Advanced

• Election of remedies: The seller may elect IMFL foreclosure for any qualifying installment contract entered on/after July 1, 1987 (735 ILCS 5/15-1106(c)) even where forfeiture would otherwise be available; but once the 20% threshold is crossed, foreclosure is mandatory, not elective.
• Deficiency after forfeiture/foreclosure: On foreclosure-as-mortgage, IMFL deficiency rules apply (735 ILCS 5/15-1508). On contractual forfeiture, forfeited payments are treated as liquidated damages subject to the penalty/unconscionability doctrine; §80 mandates a pre-sale-defect repair credit. Deficiency mechanics on pure forfeiture — see needs_verification.
• Equitable relief from forfeiture: Courts grant it; the standard is the “clearly and unequivocally / no injustice” test, with forfeiture disfavored (hettermann-v-weingart-1983).
• Ejectment vs. eviction path: A defaulting contract purchaser is not a tenant; the seller proceeds via the contract-purchaser provisions of the Eviction Article (735 ILCS 5/9-102, 5/9-104.1) — unless the 20% threshold makes the deal a mortgage, in which case the buyer is the mortgagor and only judicial foreclosure lies (735 ILCS 5/15-1106).
• Quiet title after cancellation: Forfeiture confirmation is commonly pursued by declaratory/quiet-title action in the circuit court to clear the recorded contract; required practice given §20 recording. Specific timeline — see needs_verification.
• Forfeited payments treatment: Liquidated damages enforceable only to the extent not an unconscionable penalty; §80 repair credit is mandatory.
• Intervening seller-lien risk to buyer: Because the seller holds legal title, a seller’s judgment lien or mortgage can cloud the buyer’s equitable interest; recording the contract (§20) and title insurance mitigate.

4. Federal Overlay (as applied in-state) → see dodd-frank-seller-financing, safe-act-mlo, garn-st-germain-due-on-sale

• Dodd-Frank exposure: A seller-financed Illinois CFD on a 1–4 unit dwelling is residential mortgage credit; the seller is a “loan originator” unless a de-minimis exclusion applies — the one-property (natural person/estate/trust, no ability-to-repay/ no-negative-amortization, balloon permitted) or three-property / 12-month (full amortization, no balloon, ATR determination) exclusions under the CFPB Loan Originator Rule. See dodd-frank-seller-financing for the federal thresholds. Note the friction: the Illinois Installment Sales Contract Act’s “seller” trigger is >3 contracts/12 months (765 ILCS 67/5), so a seller can be outside the Illinois Act but inside Dodd-Frank’s 3-property line — and a 4th-or-more seller is squarely inside both.
• SAFE Act / MLO licensing: Illinois implements the SAFE Act through the Residential Mortgage License Act of 1987 (205 ILCS 635/), administered by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR). A private seller financing with their own funds without intent to make, acquire, or resell more than 3 residential mortgage loans in a calendar year is exempt. 205 ILCS 635/1-4(d)(1.8). Above that, originator licensing exposure attaches. See safe-act-mlo.
• State consumer-protection overlay: The Installment Sales Contract Act routes all violations into the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act (815 ILCS 505/), with private enforcement, fee-shifting, and punitive exposure (815 ILCS 505/10a). The Illinois AG was an early actor in the post-2016 predatory-CFD enforcement wave; the 2018 Act was the legislative response.

5. Title, Recording & Wraps → see garn-st-germain-due-on-sale, wrap-around-mortgage

• Memorandum recording: Permitted and mandatory — the seller records the contract or a memorandum within 10 business days (765 ILCS 67/20); failure gives the buyer rescission and a refund of all sums paid. Recording perfects priority of the buyer’s equitable interest against later seller creditors.
• Garn-St. Germain due-on-sale: A wrap/sub-to Illinois CFD over an existing mortgage triggers the lender’s due-on-sale clause, enforceable under 12 U.S.C. § 1701j-3. The residential exemptions (e.g., the owner-occupant transfer-to-relative and certain ≤5-year installment-contract carve-outs) are narrow and rarely cover an arm’s-length CFD to a third-party buyer. See garn-st-germain-due-on-sale.
• Underlying-mortgage / wrap: Permitted but risky; the underlying lender may accelerate. The Illinois Act’s disclosure regime (765 ILCS 67/10) compels disclosure of the encumbrance picture; a wrap without disclosure is a Consumer-Fraud violation.
• Deed delivery: Typically deliver-at-payoff (or escrow); the buyer holds equitable title pending the warranty deed (consistent with equitable conversion, shay-v-penrose-1962).
• Marketable title at payoff: Seller must convey marketable title; intervening seller liens are the chief defect risk.
• Title insurance: Available to a CFD buyer (Illinois title insurers, e.g., Attorneys’ Title Guaranty Fund (ATG), Chicago Title, write contract-purchaser coverage); recording the contract is typically a condition.
• Seller death / bankruptcy effect: On the seller’s death, equitable conversion treats the seller’s interest as personalty (the unpaid purchase money) passing to the seller’s estate, while legal title is held in trust for the buyer (shay-v-penrose-1962). Seller bankruptcy: the contract is generally treated as a secured/financing arrangement protecting the performing buyer; see §7.

6. Tax Treatment

• IRC §453 installment reporting: A CFD generally qualifies as an installment sale, letting the seller report gain as principal is collected, subject to the dealer exception (26 U.S.C. § 453(b), (l)). See irc-453-installment-sale.
• Property-tax responsibility: Contract-governed, but the Act makes the seller responsible by default where the contract does not clearly allocate it (765 ILCS 67/10); in practice buyers in possession often pay. The contract must disclose the allocation and the first-year escrow amount.
• Homestead exemption for equitable owner: The equitable owner in possession is generally eligible for the Illinois general homestead exemption (35 ILCS 200/15-175, requiring an ownership/leasehold interest with liability for taxes and occupancy); the contract purchaser’s equitable estate ordinarily qualifies. Confirm county assessor practice — see needs_verification.
• Transfer / documentary-stamp tax: Illinois Real Estate Transfer Tax (35 ILCS 200/Art. 31) is imposed on the privilege of transferring title or a beneficial interest, at the state rate of $0.50per$500 of value (35 ILCS 200/31-10, as retrieved 2026-06-08), with the outstanding-mortgage balance excludable from the basis; counties may add up to $0.25/$500 and home-rule municipalities may layer their own. The tax is generally collected and stamps affixed at the deed (recording of the conveyance), not necessarily at contract signing; local transfer taxes may add. A statewide rate increase to $0.75per$500 has been reported as scheduled to take effect July 1, 2026; not yet reflected in the retrieved 31-10 primary text — see needs_verification. Exact timing for the installment-contract recording vs. deed — see needs_verification.
• Mortgage registration tax: Illinois imposes no mortgage recording/registration tax.

7. Bankruptcy & Death / Divorce

• Buyer bankruptcy: Treatment splits nationally between executory contract (11 U.S.C. § 365) and secured debt; given Illinois’s equitable-conversion rule and the IMFL “deemed mortgage” treatment, an Illinois CFD with substantial equity is best analogized to a secured debt / mortgage rather than a forfeitable executory contract. See bankruptcy-treatment-of-cfd. Controlling 7th Cir. authority on point — see needs_verification.
• Seller bankruptcy: The performing buyer’s equitable interest and possession are generally protected; the trustee takes subject to the recorded contract (§20).
• Assignability by buyer: Generally permitted unless the contract restricts it; anti-assignment clauses are enforceable as written, subject to the Act’s non-waivability of statutory protections (765 ILCS 67/50). Case authority on enforceability — see needs_verification.
• Survivorship on death: Equitable conversion governs — the seller’s interest is personalty (purchase money) passing to the estate; the buyer’s equitable estate passes by the buyer’s will/intestacy (shay-v-penrose-1962).
• Divorce: The buyer’s equitable estate is divisible marital property under the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (750 ILCS 5/503).

8. Case Law (real, verified)

Case	Year	Topic	Holding (plain English)	Source
shay-v-penrose-1962	1962	equitable_interest	On a valid contract for sale, equitable conversion vests equitable ownership in the buyer at execution; the seller holds legal title in trust and the purchase money as personalty.	https://law.justia.com/cases/illinois/supreme-court/1962/37026-5.html
miles-homes-v-mintjal-1974	1974	equitable_interest / remedies	A contract purchaser in possession has an equitable estate he can mortgage; equitable conversion yields where the parties intend otherwise or equity intervenes; forfeitures disfavored. (17 Ill. App. 3d 642, 307 N.E.2d 724, 4th Dist.)	https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/2060044/miles-homes-inc-v-mintjal/
hettermann-v-weingart-1983	1983	remedies / forfeiture	Forfeiture must be expressly provided and is strictly construed; the party seeking it must show the right clearly and unequivocally exists and that no injustice results. (120 Ill. App. 3d 683, 458 N.E.2d 616, 2d Dist.)	https://www.courtlistener.com/c/ill-app-3d/120/683/
ruva-v-mente-1991	1991	equitable_interest	Equitable conversion does not apply where the contract states no interest passes until deed delivery/full payment, or where equity intervenes. (143 Ill. 2d 257)	https://law.justia.com/cases/illinois/supreme-court/1991/70640-7.html

9. Edge Cases (state-specific notes)

• wrap-around-mortgage — Wraps trigger Garn-St. Germain due-on-sale; nondisclosure of the underlying loan is a Consumer-Fraud violation (765 ILCS 67/10, 67/85).
• garn-st-germain-due-on-sale — Residential exemptions rarely cover an arm’s-length CFD to a third party.
• Manufactured / mobile homes — Coverage turns on whether the unit is a “dwelling structure” affixed as real estate (765 ILCS 67/5). Needs_verification.
• The 20% equity cliff — The single most important Illinois rule: crossing 20% paid converts the deal from a forfeitable contract into a foreclosable mortgage (735 ILCS 5/15-1106(a)(2)).
• The “>3 in 12 months” trigger — One-off and small sellers fall outside the Installment Sales Contract Act entirely (765 ILCS 67/5), though IMFL and common law still apply.

10. Operations

• Where records live: County Recorder of Deeds (102 counties; Cook County Clerk’s Recordings Division). Contract/memorandum recorded under 765 ILCS 67/20.
• Public access: Cook County Clerk recordings portal (cookcountyclerkil.gov); individual county recorder e-search sites; Illinois Dept. of Revenue PTAX-203 transfer declaration (tax.illinois.gov).
• Who may draft (UPL): Illinois treats real-estate document drafting by non-lawyers as potential unauthorized practice of law (705 ILCS 205/1); standardized forms with attorney review are the safe path, especially given the 765 ILCS 67/10 content mandate. The AG-prescribed disclosure (765 ILCS 67/75) must be used as-is.
• Typical costs / timelines: IMFL foreclosure of a contract-as-mortgage runs on the standard Illinois judicial-foreclosure timeline (months to >1 year, with reinstatement and redemption periods, 735 ILCS 5/15-1602/1603). The 765 ILCS 67/40 90-day cure window precedes any contract action.
• Key agencies: Illinois Attorney General (consumer fraud / CFD disclosure forms); IDFPR (RMLA / SAFE Act licensing); Illinois Dept. of Revenue (transfer tax); county recorders.
• Useful forms: AG installment-sales-contract disclosure (765 ILCS 67/75); PTAX-203 Real Estate Transfer Declaration.

11. Meta

• sources:
  • {type: statute, url: “https://www.ilga.gov/Documents/legislation/ilcs/documents/076500670K5.htm”, retrieved: 2026-06-08} — 765 ILCS 67/5 definitions (seller >3/12mo; dwelling structure 1–4 units; installment contract)
  • {type: statute, url: “https://codes.findlaw.com/il/chapter-765-property/il-st-sect-765-67-10/”, retrieved: 2026-06-08} — 765 ILCS 67/10 disclosures (via section index also at ilga.gov ActID=3813)
  • {type: statute, url: “https://www.ilga.gov/Legislation/ILCS/Articles?ActID=3813&ChapterID=62&Print=True”, retrieved: 2026-06-08} — 765 ILCS 67 full section index (Secs. 10,15,20,25,30,40,45,50,60,70,75,80,85,90)
  • {type: statute, url: “https://ilga.gov/documents/legislation/ilcs/documents/076500670K20.htm”, retrieved: 2026-06-08} — 765 ILCS 67/20 recording (10 business days; buyer rescission)
  • {type: statute, url: “https://www.ilga.gov/Documents/legislation/ilcs/documents/073500050K9-102.htm”, retrieved: 2026-06-08} — 735 ILCS 5/9-102 (vendee eviction; 15-1106 cross-reference)
  • {type: statute, url: “https://www.ilga.gov/ftp/ILCS/Ch%200735/Act%200005/073500050K15-1106.html”, retrieved: 2026-06-08} — 735 ILCS 5/15-1106 “mortgage” (80% threshold / on-or-after July 1, 1987; subsec. (g): P.A. 100-416 changes apply to contracts executed on/after Jan. 1, 2018, removing the prior 5-year-term limitation)
  • {type: statute, url: “https://www.ilga.gov/ftp/ILCS/Ch%200735/Act%200005/073500050K15-1214.html”, retrieved: 2026-06-08} — 735 ILCS 5/15-1214 defines “real estate installment contract” (any agreement/contract for a deed paid in installments; NO 5-year-term or residential limiter in the definition itself)
  • {type: statute, url: “https://codes.findlaw.com/il/chapter-205-financial-regulation/il-st-sect-205-635-1-4/”, retrieved: 2026-06-08} — 205 ILCS 635/1-4 RMLA (SAFE Act); de-minimis exemption at 635/1-4(d)(1.8) for a person making/acquiring residential mortgage loans with own funds without intent to make/acquire/resell more than 3 in a calendar year
  • {type: statute, url: “https://tax.illinois.gov/research/taxinformation/property/rett.html”, retrieved: 2026-06-08} — 35 ILCS 200/Art. 31 Real Estate Transfer Tax ($0.50/$500)
  • {type: case, url: “https://law.justia.com/cases/illinois/supreme-court/1962/37026-5.html”, retrieved: 2026-06-08} — Shay v. Penrose, 25 Ill. 2d 447 (1962)
  • {type: case, url: “https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/2060044/miles-homes-inc-v-mintjal/”, retrieved: 2026-06-08} — Miles Homes v. Mintjal, 17 Ill. App. 3d 642, 307 N.E.2d 724 (1974)
  • {type: case, url: “https://law.justia.com/cases/illinois/supreme-court/1991/70640-7.html”, retrieved: 2026-06-08} — Ruva v. Mente, 143 Ill. 2d 257 (1991)
  • {type: case, url: “https://www.courtlistener.com/c/ill-app-3d/120/683/”, retrieved: 2026-06-08} — Hettermann v. Weingart, 120 Ill. App. 3d 683, 458 N.E.2d 616 (2d Dist. 1983) (citation + holding confirmed via ATGF installment-contract treatise and Loyola/DCBA secondary sources; free full-text retrieval pending — see needs_verification)
  • {type: secondary, url: “https://www.isba.org/ibj/2017/10/lawpulse/newlawprotectsrealestatepurchaserswhobuy”, retrieved: 2026-06-08} — ISBA orientation on 2018 Installment Sales Contract Act (not cited for any legal claim)
• needs_verification:
  • Exact usury cap applicable to a seller-financed CFD (general 815 ILCS 205 cap vs. High Risk Home Loan Act overlay).
  • Deficiency mechanics on pure (sub-20%) contractual forfeiture as distinct from IMFL foreclosure-deficiency.
  • Quiet-title / forfeiture-confirmation timeline and required court procedure post-cancellation.
  • Homestead-exemption eligibility for the equitable owner — county assessor practice (35 ILCS 200/15-175 application to CFD purchasers).
  • Transfer-tax timing for the recorded installment contract/memorandum vs. the later deed.
  • Controlling 7th Cir. / IL bankruptcy authority on §365 executory-contract vs. secured-debt characterization of an Illinois CFD.
  • Enforceability of anti-assignment clauses against the Act’s non-waivability (765 ILCS 67/50).
  • Scheduled statewide transfer-tax rate increase to $0.75/$500 (reported eff. July 1, 2026) — not yet reflected in retrieved 35 ILCS 200/31-10 primary text (still reads “50¢ for each $500” as of 2026-06-08); confirm against the amending Public Act before quoting the higher rate.
  • Hettermann v. Weingart, 120 Ill. App. 3d 683, 458 N.E.2d 616 (2d Dist. 1983): citation and holding confirmed via multiple secondary legal sources; a free full-text primary opinion URL (Google Scholar/CourtListener/Justia) was not retrievable this run (databases 403/404’d).
• open_questions:
  • Whether §40’s 90-day pre-suit window applies to an IMFL foreclosure or only to contract-based (forfeiture/eviction) actions.
  • Interaction of the §70 3-day cooling-off with electronic execution.
• changelog:
  • 2026-06-08 — Initial authoring; remedy_regime=hybrid; populated all modules from retrieved primary sources (765 ILCS 67; 735 ILCS 5/15-1106, 5/9-102; 205 ILCS 635; 35 ILCS 200/Art.31; Shay, Miles Homes, Hettermann, Ruva).
  • 2026-06-08 — Adversarial citation verification pass. CORRECTED: (1) Act effective date July 1, 2018 → Jan. 1, 2018 (P.A. 100-416, §999) in 3 places; (2) removed the stated “5-year-term” requirement for the IMFL 20%/80% foreclosure mandate — confirmed against ILGA fulltext of 15-1106 that P.A. 100-416 (eff. 1-1-18) removed the 5-year limitation prospectively for contracts executed on/after 1-1-18 (15-1106(g)); (3) corrected the mischaracterization that 15-1214 carries a “five years”/residential limiter — its definition has neither; (4) replaced Hettermann source_url (had wrongly pointed to a 765 ILCS 67 statute index) with a case URL; (5) corrected SAFE Act meta source_url to the 1-4(d)(1.8) section; (6) flagged the reported July 1, 2026 transfer-tax increase ($0.50\to$0.75/$500) as not-yet-in-primary-text. Re-verified §§5,10,20,25,30,40,50,60,70,75,80,85 of 765 ILCS 67 and 735 ILCS 5/9-102, 15-1106, 15-1214 against ILGA; all four cases confirmed real and correctly cited.
• cross_links: forfeiture-vs-foreclosure, dodd-frank-seller-financing, garn-st-germain-due-on-sale, safe-act-mlo, irc-453-installment-sale, bankruptcy-treatment-of-cfd, wrap-around-mortgage, shay-v-penrose-1962, miles-homes-v-mintjal-1974, hettermann-v-weingart-1983, ruva-v-mente-1991

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Disclaimer. This page is legal information, not legal advice, and may be out of date. Contract-for-deed statutes are frequently amended and remedies turn on facts. Consult a licensed attorney in this jurisdiction before drafting, enforcing, or signing an installment land contract.