While interest rates went over 4% on a 30-year fixed loan at the end of last year, they have dropped back down to below 4%. The 30-year fixed interest rate is about 3.97% right now. A year ago this week, it was 3.79%. The 30-year fixed interest rate for FHA loans is 3.9%, and the 30-year fixed rate for jumbo loans (where the loan amount is over $417,000) is 4.02% right now. It’s still a good time to buy. In fact, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, with the drop in mortgage rates this week, mortgage applications increased about 21%. Nearly 56% percent of the applications are for refinancing, however. Only 44% are for new purchases.
Most buyers looking at foreclosed condominiums in Illinois have been told that they could be liable for up to six months of back assessments and related fees. They are also typically told that the foreclosing bank is liable for the association assessments from the first day of the month following the month in which the condominium is foreclosed, all the way through when the bank sells the unit. But what happens when the bank doesn’t pay those fees? A new ruling from the Illinois Supreme Court answers that question, and it turns out the buyer could be liable for a lot more than just six months worth of assessments and fees. In 1010 Lake Shore Association v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Co., 2015 IL 118372, the bank failed to adhere to the Illinois Condominium Property Act, and did not pay the assessments for a condominium even in the months after they foreclosed it. … read more →
A case decided just this month, Wing Street of Arlington Heights Condominium Association v. Kiss the Chef Holdings, LLC, 2016 IL App (1st) 142563, raises the issue of the condominium association’s right to demand six-months’ past due assessments from the buyer of a foreclosed condominium, but with a twist. In Wing Street, the bank that foreclosed the condominium transferred title to a wholly-owned subsidiary after the subsidiary purchased the condominium at the foreclosure sale. The defendant later purchased the condominium from the subsidiary. The transaction was not “closed” in the typical manner. Rather, the subsidiary issued a quit-claim deed to the defendant. Neither party requested nor obtained a paid assessment letter from the condominium association. Thereafter, the condominium association filed suit, claiming that the defendant owed six months’ past due assessments. The case was tried, and subsequently ended up in appeals. The appeals court determined that a wholly-owned subsidiary of a bank is, in fact, a mortgagee-in-possession under the… read more →
If you are a homeowner who pays a mortgage insurance premium, you’re in luck. Congress has passed a law which may allow you to write off mortgage insurance payments for 2015 and 2016. To qualify, you must have either a conventional loan that is eligible for sale to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, an FHA loan, a VA loan, or a Rural Housing loan backed by the Agriculture Department. Moreover, your adjusted gross income must be $100,000 or less (or $50,000 or less if married and filing separately). If your income is greater than that, you can still write off the mortgage insurance premiums, but they will be phased out until you hit $109,000 (or $54,900), after which point you will no longer qualify. A large number of homeowners are expected to qualify for this incentive, easing the tax burden nationwide.