If you are thinking about setting up a land trust, you should educate yourself. Does a land trust even make sense for you? What are the benefits of putting your real estate in a land trust? What’s the downside? And of course, what types of land trust options do you have in the state of Illinois? In its essence, a land trust is simply a trust created to hold real estate. In most cases, one land trust holds one parcel of real estate. The elements of a land trust are fairly straightforward: (a) You need to create a trust agreement; (b) to the extent you are using a title company or a bank to manage the land trust, you need to make sure that the trust is open and paid for; and (c) you need to actually fund the trust by transferring in the real estate in question. One of… read more →
If you are buying or selling real estate, you may have heard the term “appraisal contingency“ thrown about by your real estate agent. But do you really understand what it means? Do you know how it affects you? Whether you are buying or selling real estate, if the transaction is being financed, the appraisal contingency is very important. Let’s back up a second. What is an appraisal? Well, when you engage a lender to finance your transaction, they will typically order an appraisal to determine the value of the property you are purchasing. The actual appraisal is handled by a third-party company. Neither your loan officer nor your bank is personally handling the appraisal. What does the appraisal entail? Well, once the appraisal is ordered, an appraiser will be sent out to look at your property. Usually the appraiser will not only go inside and look around, but also… read more →
If you are selling your home, you want everything to be smooth. You could be selling for any number of reasons — upsizing, downsizing, moving out of state, moving to senior living, or even because you are just ready for a change. After all, you went to all the trouble of putting your house on the market, procuring a buyer, dealing with the buyer’s inspection items, waiting for the buyer‘s mortgage to be finalized, and meeting with your attorney to sign a stack of papers. And now finally, finally, finally, you have a closing date on your calendar. Just a few more days, and you will be on to the next chapter of your life. Or so you thought. . .Everything was fine. . . And then your survey came in. In a typical residential real estate transaction, the survey is usually one of the last things the parties actually… read more →
Much has been made in the news recently about the proposed “Mansion Tax” referendum that will be on the primary ballot for Chicago voters in March of 2024. But for the average person to understand what this proposed tax actually is, it is important to understand how Chicago properties are currently taxed. First of all, the proposed “Mansion Tax” does not refer to real estate taxes or income taxes. The “Mansion Tax” is all about transfer taxes. Unlike income tax, which is due every year, or real estate taxes, which are due twice a year, we don’t hear a lot about transfer taxes in the news. Why is that? It’s because transfer taxes are only due when real estate is bought or sold. If you bought your house 10 years ago, you paid the tax then. You won’t be paying anything again until you sell. Unless the property is exempt… read more →
At least once a week, quite literally every week, I talk to a client who says to me, “I need to put my house in a living trust.” I had this conversation with someone just yesterday, and it was not even the first time this week. Over the years, I have learned that there is a one-word follow-up to this statement: “Why?” And really, whether or not the house needs to go into the living trust is dependent on the answer to that question. Many people have heard from their friends, their family members, and, of course, the internet, that they should have a living trust. A living trust is a wonderful estate planning tool. It can simplify the process of transferring assets to family and other heirs after a death. That is why I ask people why they want to put their house into a living trust. If they… read more →
Dual agency is when one real estate agent represents both the buyer and the seller in a real estate transaction. While it is not an uncommon practice, it can sometimes create conflicts and leave the parties feeling like their own interests are not being protected. The parties may feel as though one side is being favored over the other despite (1) any written disclosure or agreement between the parties and the dual agent, and (2) any rules of conduct prescribed for dual agents. Despite that, there are quite a few advantages of having a dual agent. For example, communication between the parties could be faster. The dual agent will have more knowledge of the property and the situation, which can help streamline the process. Having less people involved in the transaction makes it smoother when it comes to obtaining responses from the other party. The agent may already know the… read more →
The rise of e-commerce precipitated the decline of storefront small businesses, particularly retail businesses. Add the Covid-19 pandemic to the mix in 2020, and many other small businesses and restaurants closed as well. These closures affected the entire city, from the humblest streets all the way to the Magnificent Mile. As a result, the City of Chicago has a large number of vacant storefronts. Earlier this month, however, the city’s Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection announced a plan to combat this. As part of this Small Business Storefront Activation Program, the city is giving 15 community groups approximately $3 million in funds to support small businesses. Each community organization may identify vacant storefronts in their respective communities and then attempt to bring in small businesses. The idea is to fund retail areas and help bring in pop-up shops, indoor farmer’s markets, art galleries, and other new retail sites.… read more →
Popular culture has thrown the phrase “power of attorney” around to comedic effect in the past few decades and, in its pursuit of humor, has given some of those among the general public who hear this phrase the impression that someone who is granted this legalese-styled authority can routinely perform tasks anywhere from representing another person in a court of law all the way to selling away another person’s organs, both at their own discretion and with legal impunity. But, of course, even acknowledging the gulf between the joke and the actuality, misconceptions still abound. When it comes to Powers of Attorney in Illinois, what parts are fact and what parts are fiction? The average person is only likely to encounter a power of attorney in property law, specifically real estate transfers or estate planning, rather than in an everyday or random capacity. And, even then, the abilities and responsibilities… read more →
Illinois law makers passed over a whopping 300 new laws that have recently taken effect or will take effect in 2024. Are you a residential landlord or a residential tenant? Are you looking to get into the residential leasing business? Here are a few of the changes that may interest you. 1. The Illinois Human Rights Act already protects individuals in various situations from discrimination based on religion, race, ancestry, sex, color, disability and a host of other reasons. Effective January 1, 2024, immigration status has been added to the list of protected classes. If you are a landlord, you cannot deny a tenant solely because of their immigration status, whether it is their actual immigration status or what you perceive their immigration status to be. There has been a flood of refugees and undocumented immigrants coming into the Chicago area in recent years. This change will make it a… read more →
Illinois law makers passed over a whopping 300 new laws that have recently taken effect or will take effect in 2024. Are you in the construction business? Here are some of the changes that may interest you. The real estate market has been on the up and up the last few years with unprecedented home sales and a spike in prices fueled by a shortage in inventory. This situation has been a boon to the construction industry and spurred all kinds of construction-related work. Many people who wanted to move decided not to because of the hike in sales prices, leading to a rise in remodeling work. Contractors also realized that the current climate created a great market for new construction of residential properties. Various new laws recently passed in Illinois affect residential and commercial construction. If you are in the business of building, you should know the following:… read more →