Estate Inventory and Appraisement Requirements in Illinois

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Supervised filing and independent delivery are different tracks

For a supervised estate, § 14-1 starts a court-filing clock when letters issue:

“Within 60 days after the issuance of his letters the representative of the estate of a decedent or ward shall file in the court a verified inventory.”

The filing covers the known real and personal estate and any cause of action the representative may sue on. Illinois does not state an inventory-extension rule in Article XIV.

Independent administration changes the destination and timing. Section 28-6 says the independent representative need not file the inventory with the court. Instead, each interested person receives a copy on written request and, in all events, by at least 30 days before the representative files the verified closing report.

An independent administrator with a surety has another clock. Within 90 days after letters issue, the administrator sends the surety a copy by certified mail. That surety sentence is written for an independent administrator; it does not say that an independent executor without that bond has the same 90-day recipient duty.

The statute asks for property descriptions, not a value schedule

Section 14-1 requires the inventory to describe real estate, its improvements, and its encumbrances, state the money on hand, and list all personal property. It also reaches a cause of action on which the representative has a right to sue.

Article XIV does not require a fair-market value beside every item or prescribe a date-of-death valuation method. Section 14-2 instead makes valuation of goods and chattels conditional:

“If the representative believes that it is necessary for the proper administration of the estate to determine the value of any goods and chattels, the representative may appraise them or may employ one or more competent, disinterested appraisers.”

The representative may therefore do the appraisal personally. If outside appraisers are used, the statute calls for competence and disinterest and allows reasonable compensation from the estate, but it states no license, oath, certificate, or appraisal-report form.

Later property and noncompliance follow the administration track

In supervised administration, later-known real or personal property requires a supplemental inventory within 60 days after it comes to the representative's knowledge. Section 14-1 does not state a separate reappraisal or corrected-value procedure.

For an independent administrator, § 28-6 applies the same certified-mail surety procedure to property learned of after the original inventory is completed. It does not repeat a separate number of days for that later-property delivery. Failure to comply may result in termination of independent status.

For a court-filed inventory, removal is tied to disobedience rather than mere passage of the first 60 days. Section 23-2(a)(7) permits removal when the representative fails to file an inventory or accounting after the court orders filing.

What trips people up

The words “inventory and appraisal” in Article XIV's heading do not create a mandatory appraisal or a date-of-death value column. The operative appraisal section applies only when the representative believes valuing goods and chattels is necessary for proper administration.

The 60-day court-filing deadline is not the independent-estate rule. An independent representative ordinarily uses private delivery, and the separate 90-day certified-mail duty is limited by its text to an independent administrator sending the inventory to the surety on the bond.

Common questions

Is an inventory or appraisal value conclusive in a later lawsuit?

No. Section 14-3 allows inventories, appraisals, and authenticated copies into evidence, but says they are not conclusive when other evidence shows that the estate was worth, or property was sold in good faith for, more or less than the appraised value.

If independent administration ends, does the old 60-day deadline apply automatically?

No automatic retroactive deadline is stated. Section 28-4(b) directs the court's termination order to set the time and manner for acts—such as filing an inventory—that would have been required earlier in supervised administration.

Statutes and sources

• 755 ILCS 5/14-1 — supervised verified filing, 60-day initial and supplemental clocks, property scope, and inventory contents. Official Illinois General Assembly Article XIV text: https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ILCS/details?MajorTopic=&Chapter=&ActName=Probate%20Act%20of%201975.&ActID=2104&ChapterID=60&ChapAct=755+ILCS+5%2F&SeqStart=21900000&SeqEnd=22300000&Print=True (accessed 2026-08-10).
• 755 ILCS 5/14-2 to 14-3 — optional appraisal, appraiser standard and compensation, and nonconclusive evidentiary effect. Same official Article XIV source (accessed 2026-08-10).
• 755 ILCS 5/28-6 — independent private delivery, request rights, pre-closing timing, surety copy, later-property procedure, and possible termination. Official Illinois General Assembly section: https://www.ilga.gov/documents/legislation/ilcs/documents/075500050K28-6.htm (accessed 2026-08-10).
• 755 ILCS 5/28-4(b) — court-set inventory timing after termination of independent administration. Official Illinois General Assembly section: https://www.ilga.gov/documents/legislation/ilcs/documents/075500050K28-4.htm (accessed 2026-08-10).
• 755 ILCS 5/23-2(a)(7) — removal after failure to obey an inventory-filing order. Official Illinois General Assembly section: https://www.ilga.gov/documents/legislation/ilcs/documents/075500050K23-2.htm (accessed 2026-08-10).