Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Illinois

Re: forclosure in future

The unpaid taxes are a lien that will be paid before the lender is paid. Government has given itself the top priority. Between levels of government the Federal comes first (income taxes), State, then local.

They can go until the house is sold or the unit of government foreclosures the property, aka 'tax sale' . Taxes are eternal. There is no statute of limitations on unpaid taxes. You have a few more rights against a lender than a taxing body than against government.

If the condo is sold at auction and the amount does not cover the amount owed the loan company can sue for a the unpaid balance unless they have agreed not to in advance. I say the lender, because the governmental agency got their back taxes first.

Re: forclosure in future

The taxes are a lien on the house they relate to and are paid first, as the other attorney said. Then the lien-holders would get paid off in the order they recorded their liens (such as mortgages). Also, it usually takes about 2.5 years to lose your home to unpaid taxes.

Regarding whether you'd owe for the amount the bank couldn't recover at the judicial auction (the "deficiency"), the short answer is yes. Of course, if you sell the property at a high enough price to pay off the mortgage that won't be an issue. Also, if you short sell the property, you can probably negotiate to get the deficiency waived. In any case, the banks rarely try to collect it. Good luck!