Address: 1120 Raab Ave, Belleville, IL 62220
4 bedroom, 2 bath, 1832 sq ft
Year built: 1923

Subdivision: Twelve Oaks Subdivision Block 10 Lot 5
Parcel ID: 08-29.0-210-005
Year Renovated: 2018

Sales History:
(Note: only data from 1995 onward is available online)
Jul 2001: $79,900 (private party)
2016: Foreclosure (Fannie Mae)
May 2017: $32,000 (BCDC)
Apr 2018: $110,000 (private party)

This house has an interesting history. It was involved in an Illinois Supreme Court case in 1927. The story starts in 1923 when the Twelve Oaks subdivision was being built out. John Thompson sold Lot 5 in Block 10 (the lot for this house) to Ludwig Hentze for $550 in September 1923.

Ludwig Hentze took out a building permit for a $4000 dwelling on 9/25/1923. He was the homeowner, not the builder.

On 9/25/1923, Ludwig and his wife Emielie hired a general contractor, George W. Reinhardt, to build their house for $6400.

Soon after, Reinhardt ordered $1212.96 ($19,000 in 2021) of lumber from Liese Lumber Company. Liese delivered the last of the lumber on 11/26/1923.

On 11/2/1923, Ludwig and Emielie Hentze took out a $4,000 mortgage from the Belleville Savings Bank. The $4,000 was deposited in Reinhardt’s account. That same day he wrote a check to Liese for $1,000. He did not tell Liese to apply the $1000 to the account for the house that he was building for the Hentze’s. Instead, Liese deducted the amount from the other past due bills that Reinhardt had owed.

On 12/24/1923, Liese served notice on Ludwig Hentze informing him of the past due bill for the lumber. They placed a Mechanics Lien on the property shortly after.

Liese filed suit to foreclose on the lein in Circuit Court of St. Clair County on 2/22/1924. In court Reinhardt testified that they never had a written contract listing subcontractors and their claims as required by the Liens act. The Hentze’s lost and were ordered to pay Liese the entire bill with no credit for the $1000 paid by Reinhardt with their money.

In October 1924, the deed was transferred from Ludwig Hentze and wife to Lenore C Reuther. Lenore Reuther was assistant secretary for Citizen’s Building and Loan Association and worked for the St Clair Guaranty and Title Company. There are hundreds of properties put in her name from the 1920s until 1943 when she got married and left her jobs. This deed transfer may have been done to secure a loan to pay the lawyers from the court case!

The Hentze’s appealed the court ruling to the Appellate Court of Illinois, Fourth District. The case was heard on 2/17/1926. They won on appeal.

But it was not over. Liese appealed to the Supreme Court of Illinois. The case was heard on 10/22/1927. The Hentze’s lost and were ordered to pay Liese the $1000. There was no indication if Reinhardt was ever ordered to pay them the $1000 he stole from them or suffered any consequences.

Also around this time, the City imposed a hefty Special Assessment on Twelve Oaks to pave the streets.

The 1925 Belleville City Directory lists Emelia Hentze at 1120 Rabb Ave.
In January 1925, they rented out their garage and were looking to take in a boarder.

It is unknown when the Hentze’s sold the property. Whoever was living there in 1929 and 1930 was looking for a maid.

In July 1932 it was listed for sale in the Belleville News Democrat

The next deed transfer noted in the Belleville News Democrat was a Quit Claim Deed with it transferring from Geo W Rinck to Irving Obst and wife in December 1933.

The 1935 Belleville City Directory lists Irving W Obst at 1120 Rabb Ave.

Irving Obst was a milkman for the St Louis Dairy Co since at least 1932. He was born in 1890, married in 1917 and died in February 1960. His wife’s name was not mentioned.

In February 1940, Irving was involved in a train/truck accident in his milk truck at the Van Buren St crossing. A picture and short article was on page 1 of the 2/24/1940 Belleville News Democrat.

(Click on the image for a larger resolution)

The online Belleville News Democrat archives at the Belleville Public Library covers from 1901-1956 and from 2000 to present. Without a trip to the St Clair County Recorder of Deeds office, it is not possible to determine when Irving Obst sold the property.

However, the 12/24/1956 issue of the Belleville News Democrat reports that he was living at this address when he was released from St Elizabeths Hospital after a two week stay.

The next report of a real estate transfer for this property in the Belleville News Democrat was on 11/25/2001 when Paul E. Czerniejewski sold the property to the person who last owned it before the BCDC obtained it from Fannie Mae in 2017.

BCDC Listing (Mar 2, 2018):

Realtor: Connie Stelling with Coldwell Banker Brown Realtors – Belleville
Property Overview –

This is a fabulous full brick, 4 bedroom, 2 full bath home, completely rehabbed and waiting for the right buyer!!

New roof, windows, doors, fixtures, new kitchen cabinets, new flooring on the main level, and newly refinished upper level floors, along with completely new baths with granite vanities, gorgeous archways and lots of beautiful woodwork make this home irresistible!

This is another one of the Belleville Community Development’s beautiful fully rehabbed homes! All buyers must meet certain income guidelines per HUD requirements. Income guidelines and application are in agent attachments. Please view pictures and virtual tour for a great view of the floor plan!Please call an agent if you have questions concerning this program.