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 →
If you are buying a home or other real estate, your attorney will have asked you how you want to take title. If she didn’t, or if she did and you didn’t know how to answer her, don’t worry. In that case, she will have asked you other questions to determine how you should take title. Example of some of these questions would be: Are you married? Is your spouse going to be on the deed with you? Will you be living in this property? How is your co-buyer related to you? What do you want to happen to your ownership in the property when you die? This information will help your attorney determine what the best type of tenancy is for you. Assuming you are not taking title in the name of a company, there are essentially four ways to take title in real estate in Illinois. The information… read more →
If you are reading this post, you’re probably thinking about what will happen to your assets when you die. Really, you should stop wondering and pick up the phone. Call your attorney. Set up a proper estate plan — whatever that may be for you. It could be as easy as a simple will or as complicated as a complex trust. There is no substitute for good advice and well-drafted documentation. But if you are not ready to commit to estate planning yet, at least you should be aware of what will happen to your estate if you don’t do anything. The bottom line is, anything that is not transferred through beneficiary or co-ownership designations will be transferred to your heirs-at-law. So who are your heirs-at-law in Illinois? If you’re married and you have no children, your heir-at-law is your spouse. If you’re married and you have children, your heirs-at-law… read more →
Every summer in Cook County, we get our second installment property tax bill for the prior year. This June, for example, we’re expecting the bill for the second half of last year. The bills tend to go up a bit each year, but every three years, you open that envelope and recoil. How could your taxes go up so much? After all, the last two years they hardly increased at all! Did they find a platinum mine under your house? Unfortunately, no. There’s no platinum mine, nor have you struck gold or oil. You’ve just been struck by the triennial reassessment. The Cook County Assessor’s office has divided Cook County into thirds, and each year, one-third of the county is reassessed. One year, the Cook County Assessor’s office reassesses all properties in the City of Chicago. The next year they reassess the north and northwest suburbs. And the year after… read more →
Will the woes of landlords never cease? It has been a difficult year for everyone, and residential landlords are in no better shape than anyone else, particularly when their tenants are not paying rent. Since March of 2020, the governor has issued a number of orders staying evictions. The latest of these orders, issued early this month, extends the eviction moratorium through May 1, 2021. To determine if a tenant can be evicted, there is a four-part test. If the tenant cannot answer yes to each part, he can be evicted: Part One: a. Did the tenant earn no more than $99,000 in annual income in 2020 (or no more than $198,000 if filing jointly)? OR b. Was the tenant not required to report any income in 2019 to the U.S. Internal Revenue Service? OR c. Did the tenant receive an Economic Impact Payment pursuant to Section 2001 of the… read more →
We all know Illinois is bleeding residents. With our high taxes and high cost of living, residents are fleeing. So it’s not unusual that Illinois is trying to be creative to bring people back in. The Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA) has developed the SmartBuy program, which not only provides a loan of $5,000 for closing costs, but also helps pay off student loans. And the state isn’t just paying off small amounts of student loan debt, either. They are paying off up to $40,000 of debt, or 15% of the purchase price of the home, whichever is less. If the student buys a home for $266,700 or more, they would get the full $40,000 in student debt relief. What do you need to know? Here’s a simple list: There are income and purchase price limits, which you can find here. For example, if you live in the Chicago area,… read more →
Many first-time homebuyers, especially in competitive markets, end up in starter homes as a part of their first foray into the real estate market. The idea of a “starter home” goes back to World War II. After veterans completed their service, they returned home and took advantage of a provision in the G.I. Bill that guaranteed them affordable mortgages. The increased demand caused a housing boom, specifically for smaller, low-cost homes where the veterans could start their families. Historically, these properties tend to be smaller in size than one might expect from a single-family unit, but the idea behind them is two-fold: these smaller properties help introduce individuals to the responsibilities of homeownership, while also serving as a launching pad– something to help a homeowner build equity before eventually moving on to a bigger and better property. What to look for in a starter home If you think you might… read more →
Foreclosure is a bad thing right? Families being uprooted from their homes – bad. People losing their life savings when the value of their home tanks – bad. Empty homes attracting mischief – bad. Unkempt properties creating an eyesore – bad. Credit scores plummeting — bad. Sure, all of those things are bad. No one wants to be in that situation. Heck, most people don’t even want to be living on the block where all that is happening. It may not seem like it, but there is an upside to foreclosure. Sometimes foreclosure can be the kick in the pants you need to get your finances back on track. Let me explain how: Foreclosures typically take a long time to process. Cook County is particularly slow. It’s not unusual for a foreclosure to take 6-12 months, sometimes even more. So how is this a good thing? Well, if you were… read more →