Collect Your Assessments NOW
The process of filing a condominium eviction lawsuit begins with serving the delinquent owner a Thirty Day Notice And Demand For Possession for the amount of unpaid assessments. Our office would prepare the 30-day notice in behalf of the Association. The Thirty Day Notice and Demand for Possession must be sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the last known address of the homeowner. If the owner fails to pay the full amount owed within the 30 days, the Association can proceed with filing the lawsuit in court. Once the lawsuit is filed, a court date will be set approximately two weeks from the filing date. During this period, the sheriff will attempt to serve the complaint and summons upon the delinquent owner. If the sheriff is successful with service, the case will be heard on the original court date. If the sheriff is unsuccessful, a new court date will be set for a couple weeks later, and a special process server is typically hired to complete service. If the Association prevails in court, a judge will award an order for possession and a money judgment that includes attorney fees and costs. Any attorney’s fees incurred by the association arising out of a default by any unit owner can be added to and deemed part of his/her respective share of the common expenses. However, pursuant to Illinois law, the court must stay the order for possession for at least 60 days (could be as much as 180 days depending on the court’s discretion). This means that the order for possession will technically not become effective until the time period has elapsed. If the defendant satisfies the money judgment during the allotted stay time and becomes current in his/her account, the order for possession will be vacated. If the delinquent owner does not satisfy the judgment during the time given, the order for possession will be given to the Sheriff to proceed with an eviction.
Once the owner is evicted from their unit, the Association now has “possession” of the premises under Illinois law. The owner maintains title to the unit and the association has the right to possession until the judgment is vacated after the amount owed is paid. The board of directors for the association is allowed to rent the condominium unit of which it has gained possession under Illinois statute and can collect the rental funds from the tenant to put towards the amount owed by the unit owner until the judgment debt is satisfied. When the debt is settled, possession goes back to the unit owner of record.
In the circumstance of foreclosure, there are several potential outcomes. If a short sale were to occur prior to any eviction, the new buyer would be guaranteed assured he/she is receiving clear title to the property. This would entail making sure that all monetary obligations attached to the unit (unpaid assessments, attorney fees, special assessments, etc) have been satisfied by closing. The condominium association would prepare a disclosure statement that stating the amount owed by the delinquent owner. The goal is to have the seller’s lender cover as much of these unpaid fees/assessments as possible. The lender ultimately decides what costs it will pay when deciding whether to approve the short sale. They are not required by law to cover a certain portion of the unpaid assessments. If a sale is completed, the buyer will now have title to the property and will be responsible for paying assessments from that point forward.
If a lender files a foreclosure lawsuit against a delinquent owner, the lender must name the Association as a defendant and the registered agent for the Sheriff will serve the Association with a copy of the complaint. It is very important for the Association to file an appearance on the case and to appear at court proceedings in order to preserve its right to collect on the unpaid assessments. Our office will handle all matters concerning the filing of the Association’s appearance, answering the complaint and attending all court hearings for the case. Typically, the bank will retake possession of the property through a foreclosure sale. Once the bank sells the property to a third party buyer, the Association will be entitled up to six months of unpaid assessments prior to the foreclosure sale, also known as the sheriff’s sale. The bank will be responsible for paying the unpaid assessments from the date of the foreclosure sale through the date the bank sells the property to a third party. In addition, our office can work with the bank to have them pay the Association’s attorney’s fees and costs incurred during the collection process.
Our office is very experienced with helping condominium associations collect on unpaid assessments. We represent dozens of associations throughout the greater Chicagoland area. We will help prepare all collection documents and attend any necessary court hearings.