Foreclosure Law vs. Probate Act - Which One Wins?
The Illinois Appellate Court Second District's recent opinion In Re Estate of LaPlume provides an interesting case of foreclosure law and the Probate Act in conflict - which one wins? T he foreclosure statute at issue was the Mortgage Foreclosure Act , and the plaintiff was a bank who had filed a mortgage foreclosure action separately from the decedent owner’s probate estate. The bank’s lien totaled about $165,000, and the total of liens and mortgages encumbering the property was more than $207,000. The executor meanwhile found a potential buyer willing to pay $200,000 for the property, and filed a petition in the probate court under section 20-6 of the Probate Act , asking the court to order a short sale as per the offer. The two cases were then consolidated in the probate court and during briefing of arguments, the executor received a revised offer to pay $205,000 for the property. The trial court ruled for the bank and dismissed the executor’s petitions...