In LaSalle Bank N.A. vs. Cypress Creek 1, LP (Edon Construction et al.) the Illinois Supreme Court ruled on the issue of how to apportion proceeds from a foreclosure sale between the mortgagee bank and mechanics lien claimants when there weren't enough proceeds to pay both in full.Read More
The Federal Reserve and Government forecasters agree: the Great Recession is over. But not for millions of Americans whose homes remain underwater thanks to the sub-prime mortgage scandal. Nor is it over for the millions more who lost their jobs and have only been able to secure part-time work with less pay and no benefits.Read More
Freddie Mac and Freddie Mae made guideline changes to the prevailing short-sale guidelines that unified and clarified them. Those changes featured examples of eligible hardships that would permit homeowners to sell their homes even if they were then current on their mortgage. Ultimately that new guidelines enabled lenders and servicers to quickly and easily qualify...Read More
When it comes to Bankruptcy, many Debtors don't know what they don’t know about real estate taxes. Confused? So were the District Courts until the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals addressed the issue in the case of In re LaMont, Opinion 13-1187 (January 7, 2014).Read More
This piece from the Wall Street Journal’s Real Time Economics site answers the question with charts galore! The short answer comes in 3 parts: 1) For working people, 2013 was more of the same slow, jobless recovery; 2) For high net-worth individuals and corporations it was a bonanza; and; 3) The housing sector underwent a...Read More
The hallmark of the Business Opportunity Doctrine is the use of company assets to benefit a fiduciary. For instance the Doctrine would not allow a Director or Officer to profit personally by acquiring property they have reason to know the company will need or intends to acquire. In other words, fiduciaries shouldn't step in to...Read More
Priority disputes can be played out in Bankruptcy court. Take the case of In re Jones, in which Chapter 11 Debtors owned several pieces of property encumbered with mortgages cross-collateralized with other property of the Estate. That's when the trouble started...Read More
What if a Debtor inherited an IRA? Would the inheritance be "exempt" as a retirement fund? In the 8th and 5th Circuit the answer appears to be yes; but in the 7th Circuit the answer is no. Read how In re Clark revealed a Circuit split that only the U.S. Supreme Court can resolve.Read More
Chances are that any equity you had in your home disappeared between 2008 and 2011 and hasn't been seen since. What will happen in 2013? One thing for sure though: if a write-down is not an option many people will find themselves looking to programs like HAMP and HARP to manage their payments, and others...Read More
