Overview
The Real Estate Practice group at Burke, Warren, MacKay & Serritella has one of the most robust and experienced real estate law practices in Chicago. Burke Warren’s Real Estate group is involved in virtually every aspect of real estate, representing real estate industry professionals as well as clients in other businesses with real estate needs. While offering the specialized talent of a real estate boutique, Burke Warren provides its real estate clients coordinated access to other service specialties such as tax, litigation, zoning and land use, government incentives, and ERISA.
Our diverse client base includes developers, investors, pension funds, governmental entities, not-for-profit entities, and a wide variety of commercial real estate owners and users. Burke Warren's clients are actively involved in buying, selling, leasing, developing, owning, or operating all types of real property, including office, industrial, retail, multifamily, student housing, medical office, vehicle dealership, and golf course properties.
Real Estate Acquisitions and Dispositions
Our real estate attorneys provide skilled assistance in purchase and sale transactions, on either side of a transaction. We negotiate, document and close transactions, and assist in the structuring of those transactions to avoid unintended tax consequences and help achieve the client’s goals. We manage and coordinate the due diligence process from obtaining and reviewing title work and surveys obtaining zoning and land use approvals, reviewing leases and other agreements pertaining to the property to working with our client's team of consultants with respect to environmental and other matters.
Development
We work with developers throughout the entire development process, from negotiating governmental incentives, land acquisition, obtaining land use and zoning approvals; negotiating design and construction contracts and loan documents; and preparing joint venture agreements to leasing and ultimately selling a project. Burke Warren provides a single source for the legal needs of its developer clients.
Leasing
Our commercial leasing practice is nationally recognized. We represent landlords and tenants in office, industrial, retail, health care, and mixed use projects, with heavy concentration in shopping center leasing and office leasing in central business district and suburban locations.
Zoning, Land Use, and Entitlements
The attorneys in the Real Estate Practice group have handled numerous land use matters in the City of Chicago and the surrounding metropolitan area. We have multiple contacts in various municipalities and counties who can help our clients through the zoning process and assist in obtaining available entitlements to support their projects. We represent clients in obtaining planned development and subdivision approvals. We work with our clients to obtain tax increment financing (TIF), sales tax rebate agreements and other avoidable incentives from local governments in the Chicago metropolitan area as well as outside the State of Illinois.
Capital Markets and Joint Ventures
In collaboration with our tax and corporate attorneys, the real estate attorneys at Burke Warren structure and negotiate joint venture agreements between investors and developers and create investment funds and syndication vehicles for real estate acquisitions and ownership. This work includes the representation of pension funds and collective investment funds in joint ventures with developers and expert handling of the complex tax and ERISA issues that are inherent in those projects.
Construction
Members of the Real Estate group represent owners and contractors in the negotiation of construction and design contracts for a variety of projects. When disputes occur our team is able to represent our clients in other litigated and arbitrated matters.
Real Estate Tax Appeals
Burke Warren’s real estate tax practice ensures that our clients pay the minimal amount of property taxes required by law through appealing assessments and identifying other tax-savings opportunities. Our services include reviewing and appealing annual assessments, obtaining property tax exemptions, obtaining state and local property tax incentives, and challenging property tax levies. We have extensive experience representing commercial, industrial, and multifamily residential property owners in Cook County and the surrounding collar counties, as well as nationally. We also offer experienced counsel on the real estate tax aspects of complex purchase and leasing transactions.
