In Illinois, there are three ways to hold title to real estate when there are multiple owners:

Tenants in Common. This form of ownership does not have right of survivorship, which means that upon the death of one of the owners, the deceased owner's interest in the real estate passes to his or her estate.

Joint Tenants. This form of ownership has right of survivorship, which means that upon the death of one of the owners, the deceased owner's interest in the real estate automatically passes to the other owner(s).

Tenants by the Entirety. This form of ownership is available only to spouses. It is similar to joint tenancy in that it has right of survivorship, so upon the death of one spouse, all interest in the real estate is automatically owned by the surviving spouse; however, it has the added benefit of creditor protection. When spouses hold real estate as tenants by the entirety, the creditors of only one spouse cannot attach to the real estate.

One form of ownership may be preferred over another depending on the specific circumstances. For example, if sharing ownership of a vacation home, each owner may prefer that his portion passes to his family rather than to the other owners.

In Illinois, if a deed doesn't specify, the default form of ownership is tenancy in common. It is important to consult with an attorney to determine what form of ownership is best for you.

Transferring real estate to trust does not necessarily terminate tenancy by the entirety. Spouses can hold title to real estate in trust and preserve the creditor protection that tenancy by the entirety adds. However, it's important to consult with an attorney to have your trust(s) reviewed and to ensure the deed transferring the property to trust contains the necessary language.

Depending on the type of trust you are planning to transfer your real estate to, you may be able to transfer title to your real estate to your trust without violating the terms of your mortgage. The Garn-St. Germain Depository Institutions Act of 1982 provided that lenders are prohibited from exercising the due-on-sale clause in mortgages for certain types of transfers. One of those exemptions includes the transfer of real estate into a revocable trust in which the borrower is and remains a beneficiary and which does not relate to a transfer of rights of occupancy in the property.

Nonetheless, it is important to consult with an attorney to have the details of your specific situation reviewed before making any transfers.

The standardized residential real estate contracts most often used within the greater Chicagoland area have certain contingencies within them that run fairly quickly. For example, you may see an “Attorney Modification” provision or an “Inspection Contingency” that runs for five (5) business days after the Acceptance Date. Because these contingencies toll so quickly, you should send a copy of your contract to your attorney as soon as possible after it is fully executed. Providing the executed contract to your attorney immediately after it is fully executed will allow your attorney to review it, prepare proposed modifications before expiration of the contingency, and calendar applicable dates right away.

Because these contracts have built-in periods that allow an attorney to review the contract for you, attorneys most often get involved in the purchase/sale process only after a contract is executed. However, if the contract you are presented with does not contain such a provision, it would be a good idea to consult with an attorney before signing the contract.

When initialing the "As-Is" provision in a residential real estate contract, you are agreeing that you will not request that the seller makes any repairs or provides any credits due to the condition of the real estate. Furthermore, any representations regarding the condition of the real estate (or personal property) which would otherwise be made by the seller are removed from the contract. Therefore, you are relying solely on your own inspections (and not anything that the Seller has told you) to determine if the condition of the real estate and personal property you are purchasing is acceptable to you.

Nonetheless, you may still have a professional inspection performed. I often recommend my clients have a professional inspection performed even when initialing the "As-Is" provision, in order to make sure they know what they are getting into and are able to make an informed decision.

While you have agreed not to ask for any repairs or credits, if the inspection you've performed (or have had commissioned) reveals that the property is in a condition that is not acceptable to you, you may still terminate the contract and receive a refund of your earnest money, so long as you’ve delivered a termination notice before the contingency has expired.

If you are using the Multi-Board Residential Real Estate Contract 7.0, 8.0, or the Chicago Association of Realtors Residential Real Estate Contract form, then each party must submit its requests within five (5) business days after the acceptance date; however, agreement does not necessarily need to be reached within the same time period. Once modifications are proposed, the parties negotiate open items until either (i) agreement is reached, or (ii) one of the parties terminates the contract. If a party does not submit any requests within the initial five (5) business day period, then that party waives its right to request modifications or terminate the contract pursuant to that provision.

In Illinois, taxes are paid in arrears, which means that the tax bills released each year are actually for the prior year (for example, in tax bills released in 2025 are actually for year 2024). The tax bills are released in two installments – one in the spring, and the other in the fall. Because taxes are paid in arrears, the seller of real estate is unable to pay, by the closing date, the real estate taxes for its entire period of ownership, so it is customary for the seller to provide a credit to the buyer at closing to account for real estate taxes which are not due and payable through the closing date, but which are attributable to the seller's period of ownership and therefore the responsibility of the seller.

This refers to a real estate contract being contingent upon the buyer’s ability to sell buyer’s own real estate before it closes on its purchase. If the buyer is unable to get its own real estate under contract by a specific date, or if the buyer is unable to close on the sale of its real estate before the closing date for its purchase (or by some earlier date as specified in the contract), then the buyer may terminate its purchase contract and receive a refund of its earnest money.

If a seller needs additional time in the real estate it is selling, the seller might request a post-closing possession agreement. This is an agreement which states that the buyer is allowing the seller to retain possession of the property beyond the closing date for a specific period of time (the "post-closing possession period"). This agreement should address a number of important factors, such as:

• How many days beyond the closing date the seller is allowed to retain possession of the property.

• How much the seller agrees to pay the buyer in exchange for buyer allowing seller to remain in the property after the closing date.

• If an amount is to be held back in escrow as security to ensure that the seller delivers possession of the property to the buyer in the same condition as required under the contract, with no new damage to the property.

• Who pays for utilities during the post-closing possession period.

• Who is responsible for the cost of repairing any new damage resulting to the property during the post-closing possession period, and how the cost of the repairs is determined.

• Who is responsible for any claims or injuries related to the property arising during the post-closing possession period.