Real Property

The newsletter of the ISBA’s Section on Real Estate Law

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2005 Articles

Circular 230 – the final rules governing practice before the Internal Revenue Service and how practitioners are responding* By Elizabeth M. Perry October 2005 Final regulations published under Treasury Circular 230 on December 20, 2004, and generally applicable after June 20, 2005, provide attorneys, certified public accountants, enrolled agents, enrolled actuaries, and appraisers with guidance as to the best practices to be used when rendering advice to taxpayers relating to Federal tax issues or submissions to the Internal Revenue Service (the “Service”), and set forth the standards to be adhered to for written advice.
The doctrine of merger: Real estate contracts and tax prorations By Steven B. Bashaw November 2005 The law in Illinois is well settled that the doctrine of merger provides that in the absence of an express provision otherwise in a contract, all agreements between a buyer and seller of real estate that are not “collateral and independent” of the deed merge into the deed when it is delivered to the buyer at closing and cannot thereafter be a basis for a cause of action.
An early autumn miscellany By Gary R. Gehlbach October 2005 As fall begins, we look forward to reports from the Internal Revenue Service about changes in the standard mileage rate, the annual gift tax exclusion, the special use valuation rate (which, incidentally, plays a role in farmland assessed valuations), and other minutiae. In this issue we have some early answers and projections.
Editor’s note November 2005 As of about a month ago, the Governor had signed 677 new laws! Tracking the numerous bills, submitting them to the appropriate ISBA section councils and committees for positions, presenting the organized bar’s positions on these bills, and then providing the members with the status of new laws, consitute a major task of the ISBA.
Editor’s note By Gary R. Gehlbach October 2005 With apologies for the tardiness of this issue (which, if timely submitted, would have featured a late summer miscellany rather than an early autumn miscellany), this issue presents a wide range of topics, with the hope that readers will find several of interest.
Editor’s note June 2005 One of the unintended benefits of editing this publication (and, indeed, most publications with any pretense toward erudition) is expanding my vocabulary.
Editor’s note March 2005 Jack Murray, one of the most prolific real estate authors in Illinois and perhaps the nation and a frequent contributor to this publication, has teamed with Greg Thorpe in presenting an article that clarifies the subtle distinction between an equitable mortgage and a sale-leaseback.
Editor’s note February 2005 This issue features the annual report of IRELA, the Illinois Real Estate Lawyers Association, and two timely articles, one on the recent amendments to the Illinois Real Estate Transfer Tax Law and amendments to the Department of Revenue's rules, and the other on many of the unresolved issues with tenancies by the entirety.
Excerpts from the minutes of the March 11, 2005, meeting of the Real Estate Law Section Council By Ted M. Niemann June 2005 Larry Johnson called the meeting to order. 
Excerpts of Minutes of meeting of the Real Estate Law Section Council, February 11, 2005 March 2005 Larry Johnson called the meeting to order at approximately 9:30 a.m. on February 11, 2005 in Burr Ridge, Illinois.
Food for thought: land law and public policy By Howard Samson June 2005 Long ago, the social philosopher and economist Henry George proposed a "Single Tax" that shifted the incidence of taxation entirely onto ground rent.
Legislative update By James K. Weston, Sr. November 2005 The General Assembly adjourned its Spring Session at the last minute of May, only a few days after its original scheduled end.
The new statutory Residential Tenants’ Right to Repair Act By Jack H. Tibbetts June 2005 The ISBA Real Estate Law Section Council this year worked with legislative leaders and their staff to draft a new statute to create a limited right for residential tenants to deduct from rent the cost of repairs required by the lease or law.
Quiet title (not the library, silly) By Hal R. Morris March 2005 Title to real property is typically not loud, but nonetheless even a quiet dispute over title can be resolved by an action to quiet title.
The Series LLC: new Illinois law provides avenue for asset protection By Ted M. Niemann, Sr. & Melinda S. Madison November 2005 Asset protection is a concern to many real estate clients. In various situations, asset protection is not only beneficial but often necessary for businesses to thrive and survive or for investments to truly pay off.
Significant changes in real estate transfer taxes explained By Todd M Turner & Stephen J. Bochenek February 2005 Public Act 93-657 (SB 1883), effective June 1, 2004, amended the Real Estate Transfer Tax Law (35 ILCS 200/31-1 et seq.).
The state of the Illinois Real Estate Lawyers Association-2004 in review February 2005 I welcome this opportunity to address the membership in writing to summarize the activities of the Illinois Real Estate Lawyers Association during 2004.
Unresolved issues concerning tenancy by the entirety By Richard F. Bales February 2005 Since 1990 married couples have had the option of owning their marital home as tenants by the entirety (735 ILCS 5/12-112; 750 ILCS 65/22; 765 ILCS 1005/1c).
What you should know about the Service Members Civil Relief Act By William W. Austin October 2005 This article is intended to provide a general background and offer a synopsis of selected provisions of the Act that the author believes may be of interest to the real estate practitioner in particular.
When is a sale-leaseback an equitable mortgage? By Gregory A. Thorpe & John C. Murray March 2005 When two sets of sophisticated real estate investors represented by experienced counsel say something is a duck-and it quacks and swims with its webbed feet-is it a duck?