Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Illinois

There are several issues here, and some equivocal facts. When you say that "the bank took over" does that mean that there was a receiver who was appointed by the court? If the HOA is a corporation, it must abide by Illinois NFP corporation laws and rules. Did the HOA fees go up by special assessment, or regular budget/assessment process? Are they SF homes or townhomes? Is it a condominiumized townhome development? How long was it from the time that the first home was closed until now - all of these and other questions may make a difference. And when you say the 'builder' is on the board, typically only human beings (individuals) sit on such boards. The best thing for you and your neighbors to do would be to demand an owners' meeting; and the best way to get that going would be to band together and get an attorney to represent you as a group. As to warranty issues, if the builder is bankrupt you may be just without recourse unless there was fiscal mismanagement of the builder entity (assuming it was an LLC, partnership or corporation with limited liability) to the point that there was a breach of fiduciary obligation, or if you were provided some kind of third party warranty program when you bought so that someone else other than the builder is responsible for warranty repairs. These are complicated issues and a knowledgeable HOA attorney in particular would probably be most helpful, but be aware if the attorney represents you owners as a group he or she may not be able to represent you because your interests as an owner and the group of owners' interests may be in conflict.