Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Illinois

Oftentimes if you visit a condominium building, somewhere or other inside the building you will find a sign with the management company's information. However, many management companies will not speak to you and will only provide information to the condo owner or his attorney. If you do choose to place an offer on the condominium, and if your offer is accepted, you will be able to request and view all of the relevant condominium documents, including the rules and regulations, minutes, condominium declaration and bylaws, budget, and disclosures. In most instances (and you should have your contract reviewed to confirm this, and modified if need be), you will be allowed to terminate the contract and receive a full refund of all earnest monies if you are not satisfied with the association's paperwork.

Once there's a contract in place the IL Condominium Property Act requires various disclosures from a Seller to a Buyer, namely several items that allow you to see the financial condition of the Association. I also demand a year's worth of minutes from meeting's of the associations boar of managers meetings. I make these deals contingent on receipt and approval of the above so that you don't just get the info., you can also kill the deal if you don't like what you see.

Before there's a contract in place I doubt you'll be able to find out the association's finances. The primary document that governs living in a condo and creates a condo is called a declaration and is recorded in the chain of title on all the units. So you'd just need the PIN for the unit and then research in the County recorder's office.