Homeowners File Lawsuit Against Lake Hinsdale Village Association Alleging Unlawful “Transparency Ta

WILLOWBROOK, Ill. — January 12, 2026 — Two homeowners in the Lake Hinsdale Village community filed a civil action today in the Circuit Court of the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit, DuPage County, alleging that their homeowners association has violated state law by obstructing access to financial records and imposing unlawful fees for document inspection. The lawsuit seeks a Writ of Mandamus to compel the production of specific financial documents and a Declaratory Judgment regarding the legality of the association’s fee practices.

Plaintiffs John R. Krafcisin and Karin E. Krafcisin filed the complaint against the Lake Hinsdale Village Homeowners Association, an Illinois not-for-profit corporation. The filing contends that the association, through its management agent, RealManage, LLC, effectively denied a statutory request to inspect financial ledgers and invoices by imposing excessive hourly charges and asserting broad rights to redact financial data.

Key Allegations (as stated in the complaint)

• Constructive Denial of Access: The lawsuit alleges that the association engaged in a “calculated scheme of obstruction” by demanding estimated fees of $500–$600 to review and redact three months of records, effectively blocking the plaintiffs’ statutory right to inspection.
• Unlawful “Double-Billing”: The complaint contends that charging homeowners $100.00 per hour for “management time” to review records constitutes “unlawful double-billing.” The plaintiffs argue that because management services are already funded by the community’s annual assessments, these additional hourly charges amount to charging members twice for the same service.
• Improper Redactions: The filing alleges that the association intends to redact “personnel information” from financial invoices regarding staff costs. The plaintiffs contend that because these staff members are employees of a third-party vendor reimbursed by the association, the payments are common expenses subject to owner review, not private personnel files.
• Breach of Fiduciary Duty: The complaint alleges the association breached its duty of candor and loyalty by ratifying conduct intended to shield financial expenditures from the members who fund them.

Relief Sought

• Compelled Production: A court order requiring the association to immediately produce the requested financial ledgers and invoices for a fee limited strictly to the clerical cost of retrieval (not to exceed $100.00).
• Declaratory Judgment: A judicial declaration that the imposition of “review” fees for management services already funded by assessments is unlawful and void.
• Prohibition on Financial Redaction: A ruling that documentation regarding amounts paid for “Labor” and “Services” are books of account subject to inspection and may not be redacted, except for specific personal identifiers defined by Illinois Supreme Court Rule 138.
• Forensic Audit: An order compelling an independent forensic audit of the Management Agreement surcharges.

Background

Lake Hinsdale Village, located in Willowbrook, Illinois, is a private residential community designed in 1968 as a “Green Community” spanning 72 acres. The property comprises 539 residences—including 164 townhomes and 375 condominiums across seven mid-rise buildings—situated among 35 acres of open space and an 11-acre man-made lake. The association maintains extensive common amenities, including a 10,000-square-foot clubhouse, swimming pool, and private perimeter roadways.¹ These assets are funded exclusively through homeowner assessments.

Under Section 1-30(i) of the Illinois Common Interest Community Association Act (CICAA), association boards are required to maintain and make available for examination all contracts, leases, and detailed records of receipts and expenditures regarding these community funds. The filed complaint argues that charging high hourly fees for “reviewing” these financial records prevents homeowners from ensuring that the assessments funding these extensive amenities are being spent according to contract.

“Transparency is not a privilege; it is the law,” stated Plaintiff John R. Krafcisin in the filing. “This action was brought to ensure that members can exercise their absolute statutory and contractual right to audit the expenses they fund, without facing punitive fees or concealment of how their assessments are spent.”

Case Information

• Court: Circuit Court of the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit, DuPage County, Illinois
• Case Number: 2026MR000012
• Filing Date: January 12, 2026
• Nature of Action: Complaint for Mandamus, Declaratory Judgment, and Other Relief

What Happens Next

The matter is now pending before the Circuit Court. No hearing date has been announced in the filing materials.