the wasserblawg

Not only is Sunday Mothers Day and my sister Judy's birthday, it marks the 25th anniversary of my admission to the Illinois Bar. A heart felt thanks Mom (& Dad) for encouraging me in my studies, and in my pursuit of a life-long dream. Thank you to everyone who has supported my efforts and who helped me reach this goal. Thank you.

The concept of exchanging a deed & keys for money still remains the same, but the steps to the crazy tribal dance we perform while helping buyers buy and sellers sell keep changing. Whereas closings ten years ago could best be thought of as graceful arm in arm waltzes and minuets, todays closings are more akin to post-modern amalgams of sudden thrusts, breaks, pops, and martial arts-flavored acrobatics. The dance just keeps on changing and anyone who's lawyer is not prepared to embrace these changes is going face a heck of a time trying to get their closings done.

This morning, CNNMoney.com reports on an ugly phenomenon - the fact that many mortgage lenders are chasing borrowers for "deficiencies", the difference between what is owed and what is recouped whether by "short sale" or foreclosure or a deed in lieu of foreclosure. You lost your house - but you still have to pay Posted using ShareThis Notes, Mortgages, and Deeds are all legal documents. Short sales and Foreclosures are transactions that significant legal consequences. The cases described in this report all seem to have involved borrowers who entered into these arrangments with their mortgage lenders without legal counsel . Good Lawyering can help distressed homeowners avoid these sorts of deficiency judgments. I have helped clients avoid these and other pitfalls as they try to extract themselves from distress situations. Please let me know if I can help you (or anyone you know) too.

Local property tax bills are computed using a formula that takes four important variable into consideration: Governmental tax rates (set every year based on the budget needs of the various taxing bodies that collect property taxes Assessed Valuations (what the County thinks your property is worth) The State Equalization Factor , a/k/a the multiplier (a formula used to balance the assessment formulas used by various counties state-wide), and Exemptions (special discounts afforded to particular classes of tax payers, such as Homeowners, Seniors, and Veterans). All Cook County properties are all reassessed on a triennial basis (see graphic), that is, once every three years. Properties in our north and northwest Townships  are due  for re-assessments in 2010.

A friendly reminder to readers who own real estate in the City of Chicago - If you call Chicago your home and reported income of less than $200,00o, the City wants to give you back some of your tax money. For real! Up to $200 of it. Details here . The deadline for this program is March 31st. Do not delay. As always, please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or would like additional information about this program.

We all know that the first installment, the "estimated" installment comes out every spring - due and payable on the first business day in March. (March 2 nd for us here in 2010). Two big changes this year - one expected and one a surprise : First installment tax bills are higher than in past years - Previously, the County assessed 1st installment taxes at 1/2 of the previous year's taxes. This time, we will pay 55%. Now the surprise - bills were mailed out this week and hit many mail boxes this weekend - a full week earlier than in past years. What does this say about the state of governmental cash flows?

A significant change in FHA lending guidelines is likely to spur quicker rehabilitation and absorption of foreclosure properties back into the real estate markets. On Friday, the Department of Housing and Urban Development announced that it is suspending the "90-day no flip" rule for one year, beginning on February 1, 2010. Simply put, FHA policy denies mortgage loan guaranties to buyers if the seller had owned the property for less than 90 days. Buyers and Sellers that were agreed on sale terms were being forced to sit on the sidelines and wait until the Seller's title was properly "seasoned." This loan regulation tripped up several would-be buyers and sellers that I worked with last year. No doubt many other buyers and sellers hit the same road block. "Flipping" is the practice of selling a property quickly after acquiring it. The idea of course is to buy low and sell high. The idea here is to enable entrepreneur / rehabbers to purchase bank-owned...