Apparently not, according to DBKP and the Cook County records:
Listed in the Cook County Records Property Tax Assessments as "owner" of Obama's home isn't the President-elect, nor his wife, but attorney William Miceli. The same attorney cited as a source by the Washington Post and Chicago Sun-Times regarding Obama's ties to Tony Rezko. Miceli was Obama's former supervisor at the Davis Law firm that represented Rezko.
Not only that, but the loan on the house is over the limit for a Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac loan.
This is going to be a long and strange 4 years.
Hat-tip to DBKP and The Strata-Sphere.
Correction: I should have caught this. There is no problem with the loan amount being over the Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac limit. It simply means that the amount over the limit is held by another entity.
Update: Who paid Obama's 2005 Property Taxes?
Why is this important? Well, William Miceli is identified in the deed as the assessee--the person or property that is being assessed. In other words, Miceli was expected to pay the taxes for the 10-foot strip of land now owned by Sen. Obama.
A second document from the Cook County Tax Assessors' Office shows that Sen. Obama's 2005 assessed taxes were, as we already know, $21,729.03, and for the "current year", 2006, $22,162.47, which had been paid in March and December 2007. The taxes for both years had been paid; there were no open years, back taxes due, or any additional taxes or special assessments noted.
Additionally, William Miceli is clearly identified on this tax document as the assessee for Sen. Obama's entire real estate holding. In the upper righthand corner of the page is the handwritten notation "Assessee is with Miner, Barnhill & Galland PC @ 14 W Erie", which is the law firm's address.
Update: Changed the title to more accurately reflect the situation. The question is why did someone else pay Obama's property taxes? What did that person receive in return for paying Obama's taxes?
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