It depends on the type of debt you have. There are two types of debt: secured and unsecured.
Secured debt
Secured debt is backed by something you own, such as a house or car. Mortgages and auto loans are common types of secured debt.
If you fall behind on payments for a secured loan, the creditor can take the property backing your loan. This could include:
- Repossessing your car, or
- Foreclosing on your house.
The creditor can also sue you and obtain a money judgment, as described below.
Unsecured debt
Unsecured debt is not backed by any of your property. Credit card debt and medical debt are common types of unsecured debt.
A creditor must sue you and get a judgment before it can take any of your property. Once a creditor has a judgment, it can start collecting on the debt. This may include:
Property protected from collections
Even if a creditor wins a judgment against you, the law does not let them take everything. Some of your property and income is protected.
A few things, like part of your wages, are protected automatically.
For most other property, you have to claim the protection yourself. You do this at the citation hearing by bringing your financial information and telling the judge what you own. So it helps to know ahead of time what you can protect.
Paycheck protections
The law protects most of your paycheck. A creditor can take only a small part of it.
Each pay period, the creditor can take the smaller of these two amounts:
- 15% of your gross pay (your pay before taxes), or
- The part of your take-home pay that is more than $675 a week.
That $675 comes from a rule that protects 45 times the Illinois minimum wage each week. The minimum wage is $15.00 per hour (as of January 1, 2025), and 45 × $15.00 = $675.
Because the creditor only gets the smaller amount, your first $675 of take-home pay each week is always safe.
Examples (these use weekly pay):
- Take-home pay is $675 or less: Nothing can be taken. All of it is protected.
- Take-home pay is $700: Only the $25 above $675 could be taken.
- Take-home pay is $1,000: The amount above $675 is $325, but 15% of gross pay is usually less, so the creditor can take 15% of your gross pay (around $150-$200).
- Take-home pay is $2,000: The creditor can take 15% of your gross wage (around $300-$450) because that amount is smaller than the amount over $675.
Income fully protected from collections
Some kinds of income are completely protected. A creditor cannot take any of this money:
- Social Security and SSI benefits
- Unemployment benefits
- Veterans' benefits and some military pay
- Workers' compensation benefits
- Public assistance or welfare benefits
- Child support and maintenance (alimony) you receive
- Pension and retirement income protected by state law
Property you can protect from collections
Illinois law lets you protect certain property from most debt collection, but you may need to go to file paperwork and go to court to claim these exemptions.
Money and personal property
You can protect up to $4,000 in any property you choose (called the "wildcard"). This can include money in a bank account. For judgments entered in 2020 or later, $1,000 in a checking or savings account is protected automatically until your citation hearing.
Car
You can protect up to $3,600 in equity you've built up in your car.
To find your equity, check your car's current value and subtract the amount you still owe on your car loan. You can find your car's current value by putting its information in Kelley Blue Book.
Home
You can protect up to $50,000 of equity in your home if you live by yourself. You can protect up to $100,000 in equity in your home if you live with another person.
To find the equity you've built up on your home, find your home's current value and subtract the amount you owe on your mortgage. You can find an estimate of your home's value by putting the address in Zillow, Realtor, or Redfin.
If you have more than the protected amount of equity in your home, a debt collector can put a lien on your property. This means that you have to repay the lien before you can sell or refinance your home.
Other protected property
- Everyday items: Furniture, appliances, clothing, phones, computers, pets, and medical items, as long as each item is worth less than $5,000.
- Necessities: Clothing you need, school books, and family pictures.
- Jewelry: One piece worth up to $5,000.
- Work tools: Tools you need for your job, up to $2,250.
- Insurance and injury payments: Many life insurance and annuity benefits for a spouse or dependent, and personal injury payments up to $22,500.
- College and disability savings: Money in Illinois 529 college savings and ABLE accounts. (There are limits on money you added recently.)