Law360, New York (November 16, 2015, 11:59 AM EST) -- In Illinois, no particular notice to the mortgagor is required before commencing a mortgage foreclosure suit relating to commercial property and many of the rules intended to help keep homeowners in their homes do not apply. But what about the odd situation where an otherwise commercial property is used by the mortgagor as a primary residence? In a cautionary tale for foreclosing lenders, the Appellate Court of Illinois, First District, in Banco Popular North America v. Gizynski, 2015 IL App (1st) 142871, recently held that where an individual mortgagor utilizes a commercial property as his or her principal residence, the lender is required to provide the mortgagor with the notices required under the Illinois Mortgage Foreclosure Law (IMFL) governing residential foreclosures. Thus, even if the mortgaged real estate was never intended to be utilized as a residence or has commercial characteristics, a lender will not be saved from the IMFL's residential notice requirements....