Keough & Moody, P.C.

 

Chicago                                                                                                                          Naperville

312-899-9989                                                                                                                630-369-2700

info@kmlegal.com                                                                                                         www.kmlegal.com

Volume 4 Number 3 March, 2015 
In This Issue
Quick Links
  
This month our feature article discusses electronic notice and voting, which are now an option for both condominium and common interest communities.  There are some stipulations, so read on to learn more, or attend an upcoming seminar on this topic to gain a better understanding. 

Cook County's 2015 Assessment Season has begun. Check out the information below related to tax appeals.

C heck out our event schedule below for information on upcoming events and education opportunities. 

It is our pleasure to provide you with this newsletter and the information therein.  We welcome your suggestions for articles or other content which may benefit you.  Please feel free to respond to this message and we will gladly consider all comments. 

 

Lindsey Daehnke
  Marketing Coordinator
   Keough & Moody,P.C.

 
Electronic Notice & Voting
By Jonathan D. Wassell

More often than not, the legal landscape in Illinois has moved at a snails pace to catch-up with the ever evolving technological advances of the twenty-first century as it relates to condominiums and other common interest communities. The Illinois legislature has attempted to respond to this shortcoming by passing Public Act 98-1042, a new law that went into effect on January 1, 2015. What is Public Act 98-1042? This Act effectively amends both the Illinois Condominium Property Act ("Condo Act"), and the Common Interest Community Association Act ("CICAA").

More specifically, this legislation provides the manner in which an association in Illinois can use technology to conduct certain aspects of its business. The most important features of the legislation is read more

Is Your Association Ready for a Tax Appeal?

Cook County 2015 Assessment Season

 

The 2015 Cook County assessment season has begun.  This year all property located in the City of Chicago will be re-assessed.  There are eight townships in the City of Chicago (Rogers Park, Lake View, Hyde Park, Lake, West, Jefferson, North Chicago, and South Chicago).  Property owners in each of these townships will receive a re-assessment notice in the mail setting forth the proposed 2015 assessment.  Taxpayers will have thirty days to file an appeal with the Assessor's office to seek a reduction in the proposed assessment.

 

Property owners in each of the other 30 townships in Cook County will also have an opportunity to contest their 2015 assessments during the 30-day filing period for their township regardless whether their assessment has increased or not.

 

The Assessor's tentative mailing schedule for each of the 38 townships in Cook County can be found on the Assessor's web site via the link below.  

 

Township Mailing Schedule

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If your association would like to consider appealing or contesting your 2015 assessment, click here to request a proposal. 

Collection Related Write-Offs:

Your Accountant Will Love You


 

Before your association's audit is performed, you might consider a review of the association's delinquency report to determine if there are any balances that should be written off.  As we discussed at the end of the year, board members and managers should be periodically reviewing the association's delinquency report and legal status report.  It benefits the owners, the board, management and legal to know that all unpaid delinquencies are being addressed in a timely manner. Cross-checking the information between the association and legal counsel helps ensure that nothing slips through the cracks.  Finally, associations may not be aware of what additional steps are available to collect past due balances after judgment is entered or an eviction takes place.  


 

Performing these reconciliations on a regular basis further ensures that all necessary action has been taken with the delinquencies in order to clarify which are write-offs and thus bad debt, and which may still be collected.  This periodic exercise is an excellent way to clarify the association's financial health.


 

Your accountant will love to see any uncollectible balances removed from the financial reports.  As a manager or board member, you will love to see the benefits of pursuing all available remedies when it comes to collections.  Though some balances remain uncollectible, it is always a nice surprise to hear from an owner who is looking to purchase a new car or a new home and realizes that they cannot do so until the association is paid for a judgment that was entered several years ago!


 

If you would like our office to address any delinquent accounts, please e-mail us written authorization along with a current statement of account.  If you would like our office to review your delinquency report and provide collection suggestions to the board at no charge, please e-mail the report to svs@kmlegal.com.


  
Upcoming Opportunities 
to meet attorneys and staff from

Keough & Moody P.C. include:

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Keough & Moody events:
KM seminars are free to attend.  
Click on the link to see more 
information or to register. 
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Libertyville Civic Center
Thursday, April 9, 2015

Both the Illinois Condominium Property Act and the Common 

Interest Community Association Act had new provisions for the use of technology, effective January 1, 2015. Learn what actions must be taken in order for your association to adopt electronic communications for the purpose of sending notice and voting.


 

Electronic Notice & Voting

Naperville

Friday April 10, 2015

9:30 AM to 11:30 AM


 

Recent updates in Legislation allow for the use of technology to send electronic notices to owners and also allows for voting by electronic means. Learn what actions must be taken in order for your association to adopt electronic communications for the purpose of sending notice.  We will also talk about the challenges that exist in jumping into electronic voting.


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Oakbrook Terrace
Saturday, April 18, 2015

Dawn Moody will be presenting Big Deal Changes: Insurance/Risk Management or Covering Your (Ass)ets. Boards and owners reduce the exposure by knowing the most frequent pitfalls and common errors of omission, knowing how to assess different types of insurance and its coverage and learning how to compare insurance bids on an apples-to-apples fact check. What about unit owner coverage, loss of use and replacement coverage? Sound familiar? 

Gabriella Comstock will be presenting  Expectations of a Professional Team. What should board members and owners expect from their manager, attorney and CPA? What are considered normal standards of communication, response times and scope of activity? How much of a "team" should there be? Is it advantageous to work with professionals who will recommend pointers for improved operations?

Visit the ACTHA website to learn more about their 
"Partners in Learning" initiative.
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  Thursday, May 7, 2015
University Center - Chicago

A Practical Guide to Dealing with the
5 Most Challenging Owners within your Association:

Presented by 
Gabriella Comstock & Chuck Keough
of Keough & Moody, P.C.

1. The delinquent Owner
2. The Owner who does not perform maintenance
and denies the association access to perform it
3. The compulsive complainer
4. The Owner who wants all of the exceptions
5. The Owner who plays a lawyer on TV

Full Day of Education with your choice of four (4) 
Education Sessions from eight (8) Topics/Presenters, including this presentation by Keough & Moody, P.C.

Visit www.cai-illinois.org for additional details and registration.
Announcements:
 

New Website

Check out our new website at www.kmlegal.com.


DISCLAIMER 

  Keough & Moody, P.C. ("Keough & Moody" or "we" or "us") provides its newsletter for informational purposes only. The information contained in this newsletter is not legal advice.  Your communication with us through this Newsletter, or by other means, does not create an attorney-client relationship between us. Please do not disclose any confidential information to us in response to this newsletter, or otherwise, because we will have no obligation to keep that information confidential unless and until a formal attorney-client relationship is established with you.  ATTORNEY ADVERTISING MATERIAL.