Update regarding First-Time Homebuyer Tax CreditBy Emily R. VivianReal Estate Law, April 2009As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the first-time homebuyer credit is extended to principal residences purchased before December 1, 2009.
The Doctrine of Merger: A vanishing ruleAgricultural Law, March 2009The Merger Doctrine still sees use in the state, although like many common law rules its position has changed over the years. As recently as 2008, the Illinois Supreme Court dealt with a case primarily focused on the doctrine, Czarobski v. Lata, 882 NE2d 536 (Ill 2008).
Need for a survey, a war storyBy Thomas DaltonReal Estate Law, February 2009Everyone knows that as practitioners, we are oftentimes faced with a vast array of people in the real estate transactional practice who are not the normal residential homebuyers.
Phase I Environmental Site Assessments: The familiar strangerBy Phillip R. Van NessReal Estate Law, February 2009An attorney charged with guiding his or her Illinois client through a Phase I doesn’t have to understand the science behind it (although that surely won’t hurt). But he or she does have to know whether the Phase I at least prima facie appears to comport with the essential elements of a valid Phase I. At this point, it may be advisable to secure the services of an environmental lawyer, but even a non-technically trained lawyer can put together a checklist that greatly increases the odds that the client will have a Phase I it can rely on.
Evaluating bulk sales liability in real estate transactionsBy Larry N. WoodardReal Estate Law, January 2009This article is intended to provide a real estate attorney with basic information to quantify the risk of bulk sales liability to its purchaser client so both the client and attorney can evaluate the legal and business ramifications in purchasing real estate with potential bulk sale burdens.
Using title insurance to avoid probate or ancillary administrationBy Christopher M. TietzReal Estate Law, January 2009The author provides a sample Affidavit for Title Insurance that he prepared himself, which can be very useful in both accelerating the closing of an estate and reducing the attendant costs.
Legislative reportBy James K. Weston, Sr. & MaryLou Lowder KentReal Estate Law, December 2008The second year of the 95th General Assembly was again one of the most active periods in legislative history.
Essentials for a smooth closing: Part II—Condominium resalesBy Joel L. ChupackReal Estate Law, October 2008The closing of a condominium resale entails additional considerations and a lot more interfacing with other entities than exist with the typical single-family home resale.
Navigating the short saleBy Adam B. WhitemanReal Estate Law, October 2008Your client has fallen behind in his mortgage payments and is served with a foreclosure complaint.
Editor’s noteBy Gary R. GehlbachReal Estate Law, August 2008For several decades I have steadfastly declined to prepare an installment contract for deed, only rarely and begrudgingly relenting.
Essentials for a smooth real estate closingBy Tracie R. PorterReal Estate Law, August 2008In order for a smooth closing to occur, all parties involved must be aware of their responsibilities for the closing, including what documents to bring or to send to the closing, what conditions need to be met prior to and at closing, and what the expectations are of the other parties involved in the transaction.
Final regs concerning funds used during § 1031 Exchanges of Like-Kind PropertyBy Emily R. VivianReal Estate Law, August 2008After issuing several proposed regulations, the IRS has now issued final regulations concerning the treatment of income earned on like-kind exchange funds before the transaction has closed.
From the ChairBy Gary R. GehlbachReal Estate Law, July 2008Perversely relishing the stress and frustration that every day (indeed, every hour or every few minutes) seems to bring, I secretly confess that I love the practice of law.
Public Act 095-0691: A mortgage crises remedy?By Kenneth E. DaviesReal Estate Law, July 2008This article will discuss the highlights of Public Act 095-0691 and will try to pose the basic question: How much of this new law is designed to solve the problems of the present and the past and how much of the new law is nothing more than a knee jerk reaction to a problem brought on by over-exuberate lenders and consumers?
Random thoughts on tenancy by the entiretyBy Richard F. BalesReal Estate Law, July 2008Attorneys who represent home owners in mortgage foreclosure proceedings will routinely parse their clients’ real estate documentation, looking for defects or issues that they can use for their advantage. It seems clear that tenancy by the entirety might be a new (and potentially lethal) weapon in the arsenals of these attorneys.
Editor’s noteBy Gary R. GehlbachReal Estate Law, June 2008Congratulations! With considerable support from highly qualified authors, we have now published 12 issues this fiscal year, a record!
Letter to the editorBy Mary Lin NicholsonReal Estate Law, June 2008My first reaction was how can the ward’s guardian be both her aunt and her niece?
A problem, a solution and a new malpractice standard?By Michael J. RooneyReal Estate Law, June 2008As an ongoing Michigan case illustrates, any attorney who allows a client, whether seller or buyer, to close with a title agent (instead of with the title insurance company) without insisting upon a CPL for the client ought to be held liable for malpractice.
Editor’s noteBy Gary R. GehlbachReal Estate Law, May 2008Most of us remember the remark of the gentleman pointing to the man in the casket and remarking: “Brothers and sisters I have none.
Editor’s noteBy Gary R. GehlbachReal Estate Law, April 2008The March 2008 issue of this newsletter featured an article by Adam Whiteman about the Illinois Home Repair and Remodeling Act and recent appellate decisions addressing the impact of that Act.
Vacation homes and Section 1031By Gary R. GehlbachReal Estate Law, April 2008Section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code and the Regulations promulgated thereunder rather clearly provide that eligible property must be “held for productive use in a trade or business or for investment.”
Does size matter? Homestead and Tenancy by the entiretyBy Richard F. BalesCommercial Banking, Collections, and Bankruptcy, March 2008An update to the author's original article that appeared in the February 2005 issue of Real Property.
Editor’s noteBy Gary R. GehlbachReal Estate Law, March 2008The Bar Association’s fiscal year is July 1 through June 30, and this newsletter, as well as the other ISBA publications, follow this cycle.
