Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Illinois

Name on the Loan but not the Deed
My husband helped my son out several years back and co-signed a loan for some farm land my son wanted to buy. Then, about 2 years ago my husband signed something, which turned out to be a quick claim to have his name removed from the deed. My son and daughter-in-law told him he was signing something else at the time. Of course he trusted them. Now my son is unable to make the payments on the land and everything he has.... he is basically going under. He refuses to sell the land (even though it's worth a lot of money) and refuses to have my husband's name put back on the deed. What are out legal options at this point? We cannot afford to make the payments and we can't even sell it because our name isn't on the deed. The bank said our name cannot be taken off the loan of course. What are our options? We don't want to loose everything we have worked hard for, for the past 40 years. We realize we need a good real-estate lawyer at this point.

Asked on 10/11/08, 12:33 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys

Nicholas Chrisos Nicholas G. Chrisos Attorney at Law

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Re: Name on the Loan but not the Deed

You may have legal options in court, whether a constructive trust as the other attorney said or something called partition or quiet title actions. I guess the short answer is I'm not sure what the legal theory will be but I do believe there's a strong chance you have a valid legal claim that you could enforce in court. Talk to your county bar association to try to get a referral for a good real estate litigator as I wouldn't be able to help you with a case like that.

Answered on 10/13/08, 4:00 pm

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