The Illinois Supreme Court has affirmed the Appellate Court’s 2014 decision in 1010 Lake Shore Drive Condominium Association v Deutsche Bank, which had held that an Illinois Condominium Association’s right to collect pre-foreclosure assessments is not necessarily wiped out by the confirmation of the foreclosure sale. The Supreme Court held that the assessment lien for pre-foreclosure assessments is only extinguished if two things occur, (i) the foreclosing lender names the condominium association as a party to the foreclosure suit and (ii) the purchaser at the foreclosure sale pays the assessments as they accrue beginning the month following the foreclosure sale.

The Supreme Court held that the payment of assessments after the foreclosure sale is essential “to confirm the extinguishment of the lien created by the prior owner’s failure to pay assessments.” The Supreme Court emphasized that the Illinois Condominium Act protects mortgage lenders by allowing the lender “from time to time (to) request in writing a written statement *** setting forth the unpaid common expenses with respect to the unit covered …” by the loan. Associations are cautioned to respond promptly to any such request to avoid giving a lender a possible defense to an action for pre-foreclosure assessments.

Associations with units delinquent in assessments which are being foreclosed are advised to consult legal counsel in order to make sure they recover the maximum amount of delinquent assessments available in this change area of the law. Feel free to contact a Logan Law, LLC condominium attorney, if you have any questions regarding collection of delinquent condominium assessments or if you need assistance or advice regarding other areas of condominium law.

Real Estate taxes in Cook County, Illinois are always a year behind.  Thus, the real estate taxes Cook County property owners pay in 2015 are the 2014 taxes.  Because real estate taxes constitute a lien against the real estate, it is customary for real estate taxes to be pro-rated as part of any real estate sale closing, based upon the most recent ascertainable taxes.

Cook County real estate taxes are billed in two installments.  To make matters even more complicated, the Cook County Treasurer computes the first installment bill based upon 55% of the bill for the prior year.  Thus, the first installment of 2015 taxes is billed based upon the 2014 taxes, with any difference between 2014 and 2015 actual taxes being billed in the second installment.

Because taxes have historically increased over time and Cook County tax billing lagging by a year, it is customary that real estate tax pro rations be based upon an escalation factor.  Thus, purchase contracts frequently provide that the tax pro ration will be based upon 105%, 107% or even 110% of the most recent ascertainable taxes, to provide a cushion when the buyer must pay the actual tax bill for the year.

Feel free to contact an Illinois attorney experienced in handling all aspects of real estate closings for both buyers and sellers at Logan Law, LLC, if you have questions about the sale of your Chicago area real estate or any other area of the laws governing the purchase or sale of real estate.