The Illinois Appellate Court recently made it clear that if you are trying to claim attorneys’ fees for winning in court on a Condominium Property Act case, you should be careful on how you approach the claim. The facts of Blackstone Condominium Association v. Speights-Carnegie, 2017 IL App (1st) 153516 (February 3, 2017) Cook Co., 6th Div. are as follows: The defendant had stopped paying her assessment. The condominium association filed a forcible entry and detainer action against her. Apparently the defendant had also stopped paying her mortgage, because she was foreclosed in 2012. The condominium association then dropped the forcible suit. However, in 2014, the condominium association sued the defendant again, this time for failure to pay assessments from January of 2010 through February of 2012. The association sued for $6,936, plus attorneys’ fees and costs. On the cover sheet that was filed with the suit, the suit was… read more →
According to a recent foreclosure study completed by ATTOM Data Solutions, nationwide foreclosures are at an 11-year low. Bank repossessions are also down as a result. Between January and February of 2017, bank repossessions dropped 7%. And believe it or not, bank repossessions nationwide actually dropped 18% between February of 2016 and February of 2017. However, those are nationwide numbers. In Illinois, it’s quite a different story. New foreclosures are actually up 11% in Illinois. While that seems like a lot, it’s still better than some of the other states. Florida foreclosures are up 12%. New Jersey is up 24%. Texas is up 26%, and Alabama has a whopping 40% increase in new foreclosures. A total of fifteen states, plus the District of Columbia, have more new foreclosures this year than last. Of the 20 largest cities in the United States, Houston, San Francisco and New York have had significant… read more →
If you work from home, you may qualify for a home office tax deduction. It’s a bit complicated though, so make sure to get advice from your accountant or a qualified tax professional, which I am not. But I do know a little bit about the home office tax deduction, and I don’t mind sharing: The home office tax deduction can only be used for space that is used exclusively for work. I didn’t say “almost exclusively”. I said “exclusively”. So if your kitchen island is your office by day and your dinner table at night, that doesn’t count. If your coffee table is your workspace by day and your kids’ chosen homework spot in the evening, that doesn’t count either. If you use your guest room as an office all week long, but someone sleeps in there once in a while, that doesn’t count either. Exclusively means exclusively —… read more →
When does most New Inventory Hit the Real Estate Market? As it turns out, that question has a simple answer: April. According to the National Association of Realtors®, most people list their homes in April. In fact, in 2016, April 1st was the day on which the most homes were listed. April 15th came in second. If you think about it, April is a pretty good time to list a home, especially in Illinois. The weather has usually turned the corner by then, and people are making plans to move. If a home is listed in April and gets an offer in April or early May, the closing will probably be in May or June. Families are looking to close around that time because they don’t want to take their kids out in the middle of the school year. According to the National Association of Realtors®, the next most popular… read more →