Passing Inspection Before Sale A reader wants to know how to avoid a village-required inspection that will require updates to their property Q: This may be a question for Sam. We live in a village that requires us to purchase transfer stamps in order to sell our home. But for us to get the stamp, [...]
Bad Home Inspection: How do we report him? Q: We had a bad home inspection before we sold our rental property. Our buyers’ inspector came out to our property to do the inspection. I don’t live near the home and wasn’t there for the inspection. I went to the house a week later. I discovered [...]
Home Inspections: home inspectors make mistakes A reader wants to know if home inspectors make mistakes when doing home inspections. Q: My home inspector did an inspection of my home before I purchased it. The home inspector made mistakes: The inspector missed that there was a hidden water line problem. He also missed a false [...]
How do I get rid of bats? Uninvited "guests" upset one homeowner. Q: How do I get rid of bats? I have a large colony of bats in my fireplace and some in my walls. Two weeks ago I alerted the property management and they sent out professionals. The professional sent them a report and [...]
Do I really need a home inspection before buying a home? This building inspector explains why it’s so important to hire a professional, qualified home inspector. Last October, we answered a question from a reader asking when it is okay to buy a house that was updated without pulling necessary permits. (In some areas of [...]
Buying a flipped house: nightmare. This homebuyer discovered a host of expensive repairs right after moving into their new home. Buying a Flipped House: Nightmare Q: My question relates to buying a house that was flipped. I searched Ilyce’s website and only found articles for those who were flipping houses, not for buying what turns [...]
How do you protect yourself when selling a house? This home seller thinks a buyer might be taking advantage of them after a home inspection. Q: I would appreciate your advice on how a seller can protect themselves from being taken advantage of by a buyer. When I put my house up for sale, a [...]
I bought a house with problems not disclosed, now what? This new homeowner found out about a major insurance claim for tornado damage after closing. Q: My husband and I bought a home two years ago and we had a multitude of problems. First, the real estate agent forgot to offer us a walk-thru until [...]
What does a home inspector do? This home seller thinks the requests a buyer made after the home inspection are unreasonable. Q: I enjoyed your column today in the Sunday Chicago Tribune. In your experience, have you come across buyers trying to use their home inspector to assert that there are many problems with a [...]
When a home inspector overlooks an asbestos problem, what can you do? And, how do you find an inspector who will actually have your best interests at heart? Q: We hired a home inspector to help us out when we were buying a home in Chicago. We received the report, reviewed it and later closed. [...]
