In tax year 2024, homeowners who filed their own residential appeals at the Cook County Board of Review got a cut 54.9% of the time: 37,298 of 67,981 decisions. Censum's two main appeal prices, $99 upfront and $149 only after a verified reduction, break even at about 66%.
Where your own odds sit against that line is most of the decision. Censum shows you a result first, and the result decides which options you see. Here is how each path works.
Quick Answer
After the free check, Censum assigns a path based on your home's modeled odds and evidence. Stronger results can pay $99 upfront or choose the $149 Contingent Plan, charged only after a verified reduction. If your odds are above about 66%, the upfront price is cheaper on average; below that, the contingent price is. Homes below 50% odds are offered a reduced-price screen instead. The $199 bundle adds exemption filing and a year of monitoring. Censum never takes a percentage of savings.
Why the result picks the path
If a home's evidence probably will not support a full appeal, selling that homeowner a full packet is not a favor. So Censum ties the product to the result. The checkout confirms the path matches what the check found, which keeps anyone from buying a packet the evidence does not support.
You still decide whether to act. You can also file on your own, for free, with the county.
The options
Low Upfront Plan: $99 today. A full evidence packet for higher-confidence results, including exemption and prior-year screening. The price is fixed whatever the result. Paid packets include the next-year credit: if you file on time and the Board grants no reduction, the fee is credited toward next year's packet for the same property.
Contingent Plan: $0 today, $149 only after a verified reduction. The same appeal packet, with no upfront fee. At checkout you authorize a deferred charge, and nothing is billed that day. If Censum verifies a qualifying reduction, you are charged a fixed $149. If there is no reduction, there is no charge.
The Contingent Plan is offered only on eligible standard results. It is not available for low-odds results, properties whose score is still pending, or held properties. Because nothing was paid upfront, there is no next-year credit.
Reduced-price screen. It is offered only when your free check shows a historical win rate below 50%, and its price appears only on that result. It reviews your assessment history, screens prior years for red flags, and checks for facts the model may not see, such as condition or the context of a sale. It is not a full appeal packet. There is no contingent version and no next-year credit.
360-Appeal: $199 today. Everything in the $99 packet, plus a done-for-you current-year exemption filing, a prior-year exemption recapture screen, and one year of Tax Shield monitoring.
Bought separately, the packet is $99, the exemption filing is $69, and a year of Tax Shield is $99. After the first year, Tax Shield renews at $99 a year unless you cancel. A contingent version of the bundle costs $0 today and $249 only if Censum verifies a reduction.
Upfront or contingent? Do the math
If you trust the odds on your result, the choice between $99 and $149 comes down to one division. $99 divided by $149 is about 0.66.
- If your odds are above about 66%, the upfront plan is cheaper on average. You are likely to pay $149 under the contingent plan anyway.
- If your odds are below about 66%, the contingent plan is cheaper on average, and it removes the downside entirely.
Here is where self-filed residential appeals have landed against that line:
- 2018: 60,867 self-filed residential decisions, 62.4% cut.
- 2019: 62,025 decisions, 55.2% cut.
- 2020: 49,333 decisions, 47.2% cut.
- 2021: 59,019 decisions, 47.2% cut.
- 2022: 57,097 decisions, 51.3% cut.
- 2023: 63,585 decisions, 58.2% cut.
- 2024: 67,981 decisions, 54.9% cut.
- 2025: 81,783 decisions, 57.6% cut.
As a group, self-filers stayed below 66% in every tax year from 2018 through 2025. Attorney-filed residential appeals ran lower: 37.5% in 2024 and 38.9% in 2025.
What to do with this: do not use the group average as your odds. Censum offers the $99 and $149 choice only on stronger results, so your number may sit well above the county's. Use the odds on your result. If they sit near 66%, two things decide it. If you plan to check again next year, the upfront plan's next-year credit adds value. If cash today is tight, the contingent plan's $0 matters more than the average.
How this compares with a percentage fee
Many Cook County services charge a share of the first year's savings, often 25% to 50%. On a $1,500 first-year saving, a 30% fee is $450. The fee grows as the result grows, even though the work does not.
The size of a typical cut shows why that matters. In tax year 2024, the median self-filed residential cut was 7.4% of assessed value, and a quarter of self-filed cuts (25.3%) were 10% or more. The bigger your cut, the more a percentage fee takes.
Censum's prices are fixed. If your reduction saves $200 or $2,000, the price for the same path is the same. Our fee math report runs more examples.
What none of the paths include
- Censum does not file your Board of Review appeal. You file using the packet, or an attorney files for you. The Board stage is controlled by you or your attorney.
- Censum is not a law firm. If the property is owned by an LLC, corporation, condo association or a similar entity, Board of Review Rule 1 requires an attorney to file at the Board. See do you need an attorney.
- No path guarantees a result. The Board decides every appeal. The rates above are history, not a forecast for your home.
Packet fees are final once the packet is delivered. Billing errors, duplicate charges or wrong-product routing go to support for correction.
The numbers behind this article
Rates and cut sizes are Censum's tabulation of the Cook County Board of Review Appeal Decision History dataset, accessed November 7, 2026. "Self-filed" is the dataset's "Individual/Pro Se" filer type. Figures count PIN-level decisions on residential property, not appeals filed. Cut size is the Assessor's total assessed value minus the Board's, divided by the Assessor's. The 66% break-even is arithmetic on list prices and ignores add-ons. Censum is independent and not affiliated with the Board or any county office.
Sources
- Censum pricing
- Censum FAQ
- Censum no-reduction credit
- Cook County Board of Review, residential appeals
- Cook County Board of Review, Official Rules (Rule 1)
- Censum tabulation of the Cook County Board of Review Appeal Decision History dataset (Cook County open data), accessed November 7, 2026; PIN-level decisions.
FAQ
Why can't I choose the $99 packet if my odds are below 50%?
Because the evidence on record does not look strong enough for a full packet to be a good buy. The reduced-price screen looks for red flags that could change that. If it finds them, your path can change.
Is the Contingent Plan really $0 if I lose?
Yes. The fixed $149 is charged only after Censum verifies a qualifying reduction, plus any optional add-ons you selected.
What is a qualifying reduction?
A reduction in assessed value that Censum verifies from the official decision. Check the pricing page for the current definition before you buy.
Do homeowners who file on their own get cuts?
Yes, regularly. In tax year 2024 the Board cut 54.9% of self-filed residential decisions, and 57.6% in 2025. That does not mean filing yourself beats hiring an attorney: owners who file alone may be the ones with clearer cases.
Can I file without paying anyone?
Yes. The Board says individual taxpayers may represent themselves, and homeowners can file their own Assessor and Board of Review appeals for free. Censum's packet saves the research and assembly.
Next step
Run the free check to see which path your home is assigned, then put your odds next to the 66% line. See my assigned path
Censum LLC is a data and analytics company, not a law firm and not a tax advisor. You file your own appeal. Censum is independent and is not affiliated with Cook County or any government agency.