This is a follow up to my post last week about some of the controversies surrounding the real estate website Zillow. To bring yourself up to speed, click here… Welcome back to the post! At the time of publication a lawsuit was pending against Zillow accusing the website of violating Illinois law by conducting appraisals without a license. The Plaintiff in the lawsuit sought an injunction stopping Zillow from publishing its Zestimates in Illinois, as well as unspecified compensatory and punitive damages. In what could be called a big win for Zillow, Judge Amy St. Eve held today that Zillow is not violating Illinois law, because Zestimates fall into an…
-
-
Is Zillow Helpful or Harmful?
Zillow is a real estate listing website with a twist — each listing has an estimate of the value of the real estate, which Zillow calls a “Zestimate.” That twist has been controversial among homeowners, especially when the Zestimate is lower than expected. In April of this year, a homeowner (and lawyer) in Glenview filed suit against Zillow alleging that the Zestimate for her property is unfairly low and prevented her from selling her property for the market value. The case has since been dismissed, but another lawsuit filed shortly after remains pending in Federal Court, and the larger debate about Zestimates continues to swirl. For its part, Zillow takes…
-
Condo Rental Caps – How The Board Can Prevent You From Renting Your Place
Most condo owners prefer that their neighbors are owner-occupants. As a result, many condo boards enact rental restrictions or even outright ban rentals. If validly done, the condo board can levy fines and file lawsuit to stop you from renting your unit. Here is how to determine whether your board’s restrictions are enforceable. Most buildings don’t start off with rental restrictions. Developers want to cast the widest net possible for buyers, which means they want to be able to sell the new units to both owner-occupants and investors. Rental restrictions tend to scare off investors. As a result, rental restrictions tend to be enacted only after the condo board has…
-
In Defense of Real Estate Broker Commissions
I hear it all the time from home sellers. “Why do Realtors make so much money?” I’ve heard a few variants on the sentiment, ranging from the more diplomatic, “Realtors don’t seem to do much work to earn their commission,” to the more direct, “this commission is horse s**t!” I submit to you, however, that Realtors more than earn every penny of their commissions. My first point is quite simple — You don’t realize how much work a Realtor actually does. If your Realtor friend goes for spa treatments every day, they are not closing deals — it’s that simple. Prospecting and networking for clients takes a lot of…
-
Closing Costs Part 4 – Miscellaneous Charges
In the first three installments of my series on closing costs, I addressed real estate tax credits, title charges and lender costs. This fourth, and final, last installment will address the last category of closing costs – everything else. As you review your closing costs with your attorney at the closing table, it may feel like everyone is taking their pound of flesh from the transaction. That is because it is essentially true. Transfer Taxes Whenever you buy or sell real estate, the government sticks its hand in your pocket. The amount of the tax depends largely upon the location of the parcel. The State of Illinois always gets $1 per…
-
New IHDA Program Offers Up To $50,000 In Assistance To Under Water Homeowners
The painful memories of the housing bubble are quickly fading amidst the red-hot real estate market here in the Chicago area. However, the good news is not universal. Some homeowners live in sort of a limbo where they can just afford their mortgage payment, but they cannot possibly sell their home due to the fact that they owe more than the property is worth. There may be hope for some of you. The Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA) has introduced a program for qualifying homeowners to receive up to $50,0o0 toward the balance due on their mortgage and refinance into a more affordable loan based on the market value of…
-
Closing Costs Part 3 – Lender Charges
The third installment of my posts on closing costs focuses on charges you may incur at closing from your lender. The vast majority of buyers do not have the cash to plunk down a few hundred thousand dollars to buy a home. As a result, most real estate transactions involve a loan through a mortgage broker. Not surprisingly, lenders do not work for free, and there are a number of costs you can expect to incur in connection with borrowing their money. Unlike title charges and real estate tax credits, lender charges vary quite a bit depending on the lender and loan product you choose. However, there are some charges and costs…
-
Chicago Property Tax Rebates End Tomorrow
Many of us were caught by surprise when the second installment of the 2015 real estate tax bills arrived in the mail this past July. Steep increases were the norm, especially for homeowners in parts of town that experienced healthy increases in property values over the past few years. That’s the bad news. The good news is that the City is offering many of us rebates of up to $200. The amount can be more if you are eligible for a senior or enhanced grant. From the City’s website: Eligibility: In order to qualify for a City of Chicago property tax rebate, homeowners must meet …
-
Quick Reference Guide For Informed Judicial Voting
Another election day looms in less than one week, and I know you are racking your brain trying to answer one crucial question: What judges should I vote for on Tuesday? The Good news is that once again, I have some cheat sheets for all of you to print and bring to the polls: Illinois State Bar Association ratings for judicial candidates. You can see the ISBA’s ratings by county here. This site will help if you are outside of Cook County. Chicago Bar Association has a handy pocket guide for you Chicagoans headed to the polls on Tuesday. Chicago Council of Lawyers is a non-partisian public interest bar association, and…
-
New Illinois Law Brings Common Sense Approach To DUI And Pot
This is not about real estate. However, some of you (wink, wink, no judgment here) should be aware of an important change in the DUI laws, which provides a more common sense approach to the issue of pot use and driving. Until Governor Rauner signed SB 2228 into law last week, pot smokers were at risk of a DUI conviction unless all traces of THC (the intoxicating compound in pot) had left the system. Although the intoxicating effects of pot last a few hours at most, it can take weeks for all of the THC to flush from the system. This unreasonable standard resulted in many unneccasary arrests and convictions, often…
