the wasserblawg

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...

In all likelihood, someone you know is facing (or has already had to address) some sort of mortgage delinquency. One in every 31 households in the Chicago area received a foreclosure filing last year. That is up 33% from 2008 and nearly five times the number in 2007 . No doubt many news outlets and real estate bloggers will be reporting this data as well, but for more of the gory details, check out FRANCINE KNOWLES ' summary in the Sun Times. There are many ways that homeowners confronted with delinquency notices or foreclosure lawsuits can minimize - or avoid - financial loss. This can only happen if the homeowner is willing to confront the problem and acts quickly to mitigate potential losses. Homeowners facing mortgage delinquencies or foreclosures should consult an experienced real estate lawyer to evaluate their situation and to help deal with their lenders. There are often several options available including - loan forbearances loan modifications deeds in lieu of foreclosu...

Anyone out there interested in a Visa Check Card loaded with money? Did I mention that it is free? A gift, from the City of Chicago? Our fair City is offering checks of up to $200 to help offset the costs of higher property tax bills to qualifying homeowners. Here are the details: To be eligible, homeowners must have a principal residence in the City of Chicago, make $200,000 a year or less, and an increase in their 2008 property tax bill, when measured against the 2007 tax. The amount of "tax relief" is based on a combination of income level and the size of the your property tax increase. This chart breaks it down: Anyone who wants to apply for a taxpayer relief grant must Complete the application Attach a copy of his or her 2008 tax bill Attach a photocopy of a government-issued photo I.D. that shows the same home address. Relief checks will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis, and applications will be taken until March 31, 2010. The City anticipa...

If you use Adobe Acrobat programs, take a quick moment to fiddle with the settings and turn javascripts off. there seems to be a new virus going around..... ok, maybe its not a virus; it is being called an "exploit" and a "vulnerability," and i am not in a good position to know the differences or distinctions of any of them. What I do know is that pdf formated documents play a hugh role in the residential real estate process, and none of us really want (or can afford) to have to deal with this sort of thing. details here: ComputerWorld ZD Net Shadowserver Adobe's own "Product Security Incident Response Team " Seems easy enough to protect yourself from this one - at least until someone gets around to fixing the problem.

A new IRS bulletin , released just before Thanksgiving is offering new details that should clarify many of recurring questions about the First Time Homebuyers Tax Credit. The most important takeaway in that bulletin however is that anyone who closed on their purchase after November 6, intending to claim the tax credit better wait a couple-three weeks until the IRS releases a newly revised Form 5405. Critical details released last month: CO-OWNERSHIP SITUATIONS an otherwise qualifying unmarried individual who purchases a home together with someone who does not, can claim the full $8,000 credit. an otherwise qualifying son or daughter who purchases a home with parents who do not qualify can also claim the entire $8,000 credit. PURCHASE PRICE,INCOME, & AGE LIMITATIONS Single taxpayers earning up to $125,000 in "modified adjusted gross income" and joint filers earning up to $225,000 qualify for full tax credit benefits (up from $75,000/150,000). Singles filers with incomes...

WHY EVERY CHICAGO PROPERTY OWNER OUGHT TO CHECK IT OUT Those property tax bills every Cook County owner received over the last week or two? Did you notice how they have that very detailed table that shows you "who gets what" from your tax dollars? Pretty detailed, right? Well maybe not so much, if your property is in one of the City's Tax Increment Financing districts (TIFs). TIFs cover nearly one third of the City now. TIF districts divert money from the regular property tax stream to help "combat blight" in those areas. For years, there has been no public accountability or accounting of its use. Property tax bills do not show any amount of directed being directed to the TIFs (nothing) . In reality, TIFs fund a budget nearly 1/6 as big as the "official" city budget. Some quirk in the law or other allows them to hide the numbers from us. A stunning Chicago Reader expose on TIF financing here . Among the many revelations - City funds will be used t...