Be prepared to pay in fight with association
Q. I have a major battle going with my homeowners association. A few times over the past couple years, I got tickets because my friends parked in places they weren't supposed to park. I have also been fined for other things like illegally parking my boat, grilling where I wasn't supposed to and some damage to the common area.
You could barely see the damage and I offered to fix it, but they said they would fix it and bill me. Usually, I just ignored the notices about the fines.
I just got a statement from them saying I owed them $875 and if I did not pay them, they would evict me. I don't have $875 and I don't agree with most of their fines. What can I do?
>A.
I would suggest contacting a board member and ask him if there was some way you could negotiate a settlement. You may be required to bring this before the board at a monthly meeting. As a general rule, people try to help people they like, so be likable. Coming in with guns blazing is probably not the way to go. Be aware, however, that there is almost always an "appeal" period for fines, which has probably past for most if not all your fines.
Make whatever legitimate arguments you can make regarding the fines and try to resolve this peaceably.
Q. I am considering quitclaiming my house to my wife. I have run into some big problems with my company and I don't want any creditors going after my house. Is this a simple thing to do?
A. Quitclaiming property is a very simple thing to do. You fill out a quitclaim deed and record it in the county where the property is located. A quitclaim deed conveys any interest you have in a property to the grantee.
Before taking this action, you need to consider the Fraudulent Conveyance Act. In general, this law states a party cannot convey property for the purpose of avoiding having the property subject to creditors.
If you have "big" problems as you state, any conveyance would be scrutinized and probably attacked as fraudulent. I would suggest consulting with an attorney before taking any action.
Q. I bought my first home in November 2008. My attorney explained to me that I received a real estate tax credit for 2008 real estate taxes because those taxes would not be billed or paid until 2009. He also explained that because we didn't know what the 2008 taxes were, we would estimate them by using the 2007 tax bill and adding 5 percent to come up with an estimated 2008 tax bill. I then got a credit for the seller's share of the bill based on how long they owned the property in 2008.
I questioned the 2007 tax bill at the time because the bill was only about $1,600 on a condo that I bought for $240,000. I was told condos are always taxed cheap. We added 5 percent to $1,600 and I got my credit based upon the seller living there for about 11 months.
I received the second installment 2008 tax bill and it is over $4,000. I called the treasurer, who told me to call the assessor. The assessor told me the biggest reason my tax bill jumped was because the senior freeze was off for 2008.
She explained to me what the senior freeze is and why I now have this huge bill. Obviously, I did not get enough money from the seller for 2008 taxes. What do I do now? My attorney tells me the prorations are final and there is nothing he can do. This sure doesn't seem fair.
A. Take a look at your real estate contract. The current contract most commonly used (Multi Board Residential Real Estate Contract 5.0) provides that the seller will take whatever action necessary to preserve any exemptions, including the senior freeze. If that was done, the freeze should have applied for the 2008 tax year. If that was not done, you or someone on your behalf should contact the seller's attorney and complain. You and the seller may still be able to file the documents necessary to preserve the exemption.
Many other form contracts do not contain such a provision. It is imperative that when this or a similar provision is not included in the form contract, similar language is incorporated in an attorney approval letter. Many attorneys including myself include a provision in the attorney review letter requesting the seller represent that the most recent real estate tax bill does not include any discount or reduction due to seller's status as a senior citizen, that the real estate tax bill has not been reduced for any other reason not disclosed to the buyer and that the property is taxed on a full one year assessed basis.
I suggest you contact a real estate attorney to explore your options.
bull; Send your questions to attorney Tom Resnick, 345 N. Quentin Road, Palatine IL 60067, by e-mail to tdr100@hotmail.com or call (847) 359-8983.