How to find pre-foreclosures in Will County, Illinois

Illinois forecloses through the courts. That gives every foreclosure a paper trail, and the earlier you find a property on it, the more room there is to talk with the owner before the sale.

The path a foreclosure takes

1. Missed payments. Nothing public yet.
2. The lender files suit in the Will County Circuit Court, and a notice of the foreclosure (often called a lis pendens) is recorded against the property with the county Recorder. This is the true "pre-foreclosure" moment.
3. Judgment. The court enters a judgment of foreclosure and sets the amount owed.
4. Sheriff's sale. The Will County Sheriff lists the property for auction, then publishes the result.
5. After the sale, any money above what was owed (surplus) can be claimed by the former owner.

Where the records are

Court filings sit with the Circuit Clerk, and recorded notices with the Recorder. Both offices limit automated access, so we're preparing public records requests for those records rather than copying their websites. The Sheriff publishes upcoming sales and results.

What we hold today

Today our Will County foreclosure records come from the Sheriff's sale lists: 132 properties currently carry a foreclosure sign we can share. We don't yet hold the court filings or recorded notices; we're preparing records requests for them and will add them as the offices answer. Many owners in trouble also fall behind on property taxes: 6,848 Will County properties are on the county's tax-sale list.

How buyers use it

Stack the signs. A property with a foreclosure sale scheduled and unpaid taxes, owned by someone who lives elsewhere, is a stronger lead than any one sign alone. That is how Deal Finder ranks properties: two or more live signs put a property in the top tier.

See the numbers town by town on the Will County page, starting with Joliet's distressed properties.