See also the Illinois Attorney General page, Homeowner's Rights for the state and Cook county notice requirements and the mandated notice: http://illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/consumers/SB1879_Home_Owner_Rights.pdf

It is very difficult to convince consumers that this is a great time to buy...even though it is really is!

Your only example of someone not legally allowed to require it is the landlord, and as I pointed out above, I won't give it to a landlord.Btw, most businesses that say they require a ss # just use it as a personal identifier (which is the most dangerous use from a consumer standpoint), and they are happy to provide another identifier if you ask them.

However, if you are marketing to the end consumer, let's say on a residential flip, this might not help as much as you think.

He went in a nursing home and since the place was fully furnished I allowed my daughter who lived across town to move in with some of her friends and pay a modest rent.

ScottIf you find yourself in litigation, you would not "associate" yourself with NAR to accept their $50,000 provided to each agent to successfully defend themselves against any and all consumers?

Get all your facts and dates together and contact your local newspaper or TV station consumer protection watchdog.

At some point consumers need to just rise up and state they will no longer be treated in this manner and move on to a company that will treat them right.

I have found that the one higher end property I have consumes more of my time fixing things like dishwashers, ceiling fans, ice makers, etc.

These are the best books that I've found for beginners for fix-and-flip and wholesaling:------------------------------------------------"FLIP: How to Find, Fix, and Sell Houses for Profit"Rick Villani and Clay DavisISBN-10: 0-07-148610-0ISBN-13: 978-0-07-148610-1"Getting Started in Real Estate Day Trading"Larry GoinsISBN-13: 987-0-470-41862-8 (cloth)------------------------------------------------As for earnest money deposit, it's not legally required for a valid binding contract (EMD is a deposit not consideration), unless the parties specifically agree in the contract that EMD is required or there is an unusual situation like California pre-foreclosure of an owner occupied home (in that situation CA law requires a nominal cash EMD of about $100 if I recall correctly), and some other states have some inane consumer protection laws regarding pre-foreclosure of owner occupied homes.Having said all that, if you are buying from a For Sale By Owner (FSBO), then I suggest using a 0% interest promissory note for the EMD, that is redeemed upon completion of the inspection period or upon contract assignment, whichever occurs first.