The Chicago Residential Landlord Tenant Ordinance (CRLTO), which governs residential leases and the interactions between Chicago landlords and tenants, includes an attorneys’ fees provision in favor of the tenant. Specifically, it states that if a Chicago tenant sues a Chicago landlord under the CRLTO and wins, the Tenant gets to collect attorneys’ fees and costs from the landlord. Fortunately for tenants and unfortunately for landlords, this happens all the time. But what happens when the landlord appeals the judgment? If the tenant wins again, does the landlord have to pay their attorneys’ fees again? This question arose in a recent case, Trutin v. Adam, 2016 IL App (1st) 142853 (May 12, 2016) Cook Co., 4th Div. In Trutin, after the tenant vacated her unit per the lease, the landlord did not return the full security deposit. Instead, the landlord deducted $400 for various repairs, and itemized them. The tenant sued… read more →
A Texas-based insurance company, ValueInsured, is now offering a brand new product for home buyers. We’ve all heard of property insurance, title insurance and mortgage insurance. ValueInsured is offering something different: down payment insurance. According to ValueInsured, you (the buyer) pay them a one-time premium based on the value of your downpayment. You can insure up to 20% of your home’s value, but ValueInsured’s limit is $200,000. The insurance is good for seven years. If within those seven years, you have to sell your home but the value has declined and you’re losing your down payment equity as a result, ValueInsured will pay you back your equity. Sounds like a no-brainer, right? Well, the catch is that if you do actually have to sell your house at a loss, ValueInsured will not look at your specific house to see how much value was lost. Rather, they will review a state-by-state… read more →
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has announced a plan that will help some homeowners who are severely underwater reduce the principal on their mortgages. You could qualify if: The balance of the principal on your mortgage is $250,000 or less. You are at least 90 days delinquent as of March 1, 2016. Your home is valued at least 15% less than the balance of your mortgage. Your loan is backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. If you qualify, your principal balance could be reduced by up to 30% of what you owe. However, the principal can’t be reduced below 15% of the market value of your home. At the end of the day, you would still be underwater, just less deep. Only about 33,000 people will qualify for this program across the US. How do you find out if you’re one of the lucky few? Your lender should… read more →
If you live in a condominium association and are aware of a dangerous condition on-site, hopefully it is fixed before your association becomes the subject of a lawsuit. Recently, the Illinois Appellate Court held that if a condominium association has constructive knowledge of a dangerous condition, it can be held liable if anyone is injured as a result. In the case of Scepley v. The Condominiums of Logan Square, which is not published, the plaintiff was delivering a parcel to the association when he was injured due to a hole in the ground. The court determined that the condominium association should have kept the common elements in a safe condition, and as long as the association had constructive knowledge of the dangerous condition, that was sufficient for the association to be held liable. Note that constructive knowledge is not the same thing as actual knowledge. Undoubtedly the association would also… read more →