Chicago Real Estate Attorneys

The definitive source on whether home buyers need flood insurance!

June 24, 2009

If you’re thinking about buying a home and want to know if you’ll need to purchase flood insurance, the definitive source is: a. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) b. The county the home is located in c. The seller d. Your mortgage company FEMA – FEMA has lots of great information on flooding, flood Click to continue...

A Good Example of Why Bringing a Home Purchase to Closing is a Team Effort

May 28, 2009

Yesterday I had a closing for a Lakeview condo that wouldn’t have happened for a few more days, if it weren’t for the extraordinary efforts of the buyer’s mortgage consultant, Michael Polera, and real estate attorney, Rachell Horbenko. Condo financing is challenging in this market and even more so when a jumbo loan is involved. Click to continue...

You May Need Your Closing Papers Long After Your Closing

February 4, 2009

A gentleman I helped buy a house in Evanston a few years ago called me recently. He was refinancing and meeting with the appraiser who had asked to see his plat of survey. A plat of survey shows the boundaries of a property and where improvements (e.g. buildings) are located on the property. Richard couldn’t Click to continue...

What can Happen when Your Attorney Doesn’t Specialize in Real Estate Law

October 31, 2008

Today I had a closing for one of my listings in Evanston. I was curious to meet the buyer’s attorney since he had done such a poor job representing his client. The buyer had my listing inspected during his 5 days of attorney and inspection (A&I) review. After the 5 days had passed I asked Click to continue...

I’ll Be More Careful When Recommending Real Estate Attorneys!

May 18, 2007

This has not been one of my more pleasant days. I let a real estate attorney that I had recommended to a couple of clients know that I wouldn’t be recommending her anymore. I had used the attorney for some personal business. She mentioned that she did real estate law, so I recommended her. The Click to continue...

Consult with your Realtor When Negotiating Inspection Issues

August 24, 2006

Yesterday a home seller killed the sale of his house. If he had consulted with his Realtor® before responding to inspection issues, this might have been avoided. My buyer’s inspections revealed several major problems with the house including radon at unacceptable levels and 2 natural gas leaks. Through her real estate attorney, my buyer requested Click to continue...

Make Sure your Real Estate Attorney Knows how to Communicate with You

August 21, 2006

My closings that were delayed from last Tuesday (see previous post) took place on Thursday. The delay was caused by a mortgage company that sent the wrong questionnaire to my seller’s condo association and didn’t catch the mistake until it was too late. Unfortunately, the mortgage company wasn’t the only one who messed up. I Click to continue...

The Multi-Board Residential Real Estate Contract is Changing

May 9, 2006

Today I attended a day long forum on residential real estate legal issues. Half of the forum focused on the new version (4.0) of the Multi-Board Residential Real Estate Contract. “Multi-Board” means that the new version has been approved by several real estate boards including the Chicago Association of REALTORS®, REALTOR® Association of Northwest Chicagoland, Click to continue...

An Unfortunate Situation That Could Have Been Avoided

May 4, 2006

Today I had coffee with another businesswoman, Jennifer, who shared her story of buying a new home. The woman used a REALTOR® to buy the home from a builder in Algonquin. After the contract was signed the agent disappeared not to emerge until the end of the closing when she picked up her commission check. Click to continue...

Don’t Use Your Family Attorney for a Real Estate Transaction

May 3, 2006

I received a phone call today from one of my sellers telling me I had made a mistake because I had him sign his sale contract before sending it to his attorney. I explained that this is how residential real estate transactions are typically done. The buyer and seller sign a contract and it goes Click to continue...

Pick Your Real Estate Professionals Carefully

February 3, 2006

Last Friday after a disconcerting phone conversation with a buyer’s mortgage broker, I wrote “A Mortgage Pre-qualification is Worthless as Part of an Offer“. The mortgage broker tried to get me to accept a mortgage pre-qualification for inclusion with my buyer’s offer. I insisted on a mortgage pre-approval. Any good listing agent receiving an offer Click to continue...

Your Real Estate Attorney Can Make or Break Your Home Purchase or Sale

January 25, 2006

Most home buyers and sellers don’t give a lot of thought to the selection of a real estate attorney, but they should. A good real estate attorney can help clients navigate the rough waters that can arise between contract acceptance and the closing of the sale. A poor real estate attorney can hinder negotiations causing Click to continue...