Sometimes, when I re-read the monthly Legal Column I write for this space, I feel that my contribution to the Bulletin is unrelentingly grim. Full of bad news and worst-case scenarios, it seems to radiate negativity, as if the gray practice of law has offset onto the page. In reality, the practice of law is a constant process of discovery, of changes in the law, technology, the real estate market, and human nature. One of the best ways to find information on all of these is through the internet. So, with apologies to Chris Puszynski and her excellent column, I thought I'd share my favorite helpful sites with WIRE: (1) Refdesk.com http://www.refdesk.com/ - Definitely your first stop for general information. Zip codes? Almanacs? The Library of Congress? The Atomic Clock? It's all here, with a nifty “Site of the Day” feature, usually related to breaking news. (2) Illinois Chief County Assessment Officers Home Page http://www.pulawski.com/illinois.html - the Illinois page of this comprehensive website lists the websites, phone numbers, and township information of all counties in the state. It also has the state multiplier for each county - very useful when estimating what the projected real estate taxes are for a given land parcel, and the only place I have seen this information online. (3) The Cook County Assessor's Office http://www.cookcountyassessor.com/startsearch.html - search-start page of the Assessor's website, it offers a wealth of information for every parcel of Cook County real estate. Features include a property's previous year's, first pass and final pass assessments; a search for property index numbers (PINs) by address; age, square footage, and current use of properties; and even photos of most residential parcels. Very useful as a starting point for any realtor taking a first look at a given property (although if the property has any landscaping, the photo will usually be of a large bush with a house behind it). This site has been up for a while, but the new online version was unveiled this week, and it's worth a look. (4) The Cook County Treasurer's Office http://www3.cookcountytreasurer.com/payments/status/ - it's hard to believe that Maria Pappas wasn't swept into the U.S. Senate on a landslide last year - she had a daily online reminder of her managerial ability with this superb site. Go right to the payments page with your PIN, and you'll see the status of any Cook County parcel, with results posted online within a day of payment of the real estate taxes for each property. Points off for silly “security code” feature - was it just too easy to access? - but that won't slow down the average surfer. My favorite way to use this site: in conjunction the Assessor's site (for the address), and then use the PIN obtained from the Assessor to obtain the status of real estate taxes - particularly useful in ordering title searches. (5) The Cook County Recorder's Office http://www.ccrd.info/CCRD/il031/index.jsp - you might think from my choices that I'm very Cook County-oriented, but hey, I'm a Chicago attorney, and when I do close on properties outside of Cook, their procedures are a heckuvalot less Byzantine than our own. This gem of a site features searches of all documents filed in the Cook County Recorder's Office from January 1, 1985 onward, by grantor/grantee list, PIN, subdivision, legal description, trust or document number. This basic information is available online free of charge. Copies of the actual documents are available for the cost of $0.50 per page (via credit card) - compared to a starter fee of $10.00 at the County's offices - and print out from your own computer. This one has saved many trips to the County Building . (6) The Illinois Real Estate Lawyers' Association http://www.irela.com/ - IRELA's page, also linked on WIRE's own website, is primarily for members, but contains useful information regarding legislative developments and litigation in which the organization has a part. The updates on RESPA reform and efforts to anticompetitive practices among brokers and title companies will be particularly interesting to other real estate professionals. (7) GovLoans.gov http://govloans.gov/govloans.index.jhtml - a fine resource for all types of government loans, including mortgages. If your borrower is looking for a loan or grant, here is a reliable list, including descriptions and qualifications. It also has helpful links regarding ordering a credit report and how to clean up your credit. All in all - a front in the battle against predatory lending. (8) HUD - Help for Homeowners Facing the Loss of Their Home (9) Mortgage.com http://mortgage.com/C3/_Start.bus - ABN AMRO's site may not have been the first, but it's still the easiest one for consumers to remember. Current national rates, basic comparison shopping, and a mortgage calculator are all very consumer-friendly. (10) The HungerSite.com http://www.thehungersite.com/cgi-bin/ - OK, not a real estate site, but I couldn't let the opportunity pass to promote a little online charity. Site sponsors pay the sites according to the number of clicks; just click on the button for each site, once a day, and you have contributed to various worthy causes (hunger relief, child literacy, protection of the rainforest). Pay nothing yourself and feel good about it; use it first thing in the morning, and have a nice day. |
