Is Your Inspector a “Butt-Kicker”?
Do you know anyone that was kicked out of their real estate deal at the last minute even though they had a signed sales contract and a committed seller? Well there is clear insider information about why this happens which may be a bit different than what interested parties have tried to convince you occurred. Read More
Fly On The Wall: Line Up Behind Multiple Offers
Legally, the broker you hire to sell your home is obliged to tell you about all offers that come in. Tomacor actually found a reference to this while training potential home inspectors in the Illinois Human Rights Act (775 ILCS 5). If your agent doesn’t present every offer to you, it is a violation Read More
Surviving A Chicago Winter
Christmas has come and gone and there are only 90 plus warming days until the springtime warmth and festivities that we are all eagerly awaiting. In the mean time, let’s be safe and stay warm despite the low temperatures. In our continued efforts to relate building science to anatomy and physiology, we offer the following Read More
The Three Little Pigs: A Masonry Fairy Tale
It’s funny how much truth there is in fairy tales. One of my favorite fairy tales, The Three Little Pigs, holds a lot of truth for homebuyers today. Recent green building standards have encouraged people to build home out of straw bails, yet wood frame homes compose the vast majority of the buildings that Read More
Stairway to Heaven
Three weeks ago I spent an entire day in a North Shore single family home where the buyer was demanding that the seller repurchase the property. The main topic of examination and cross examination involved the installation of three flights of stairs in the new building. First, some background: The house was sold in the Read More
Short Sales-Bring It On!
What an opportunity! Hundreds maybe even Thousands of short sale property on the market waiting to be picked up by someone who only needs to get the mortgage. Simply make an offer, any offer, and the real estate agent is required to deliver each offer to the seller, you will reel in something that’s workable Read More
Want Mold? You Got It!!!
Your home is probably the perfect environment for mold to flourish. Mold spores simply need a little condensation and some type of organic substance, such as wood or cloth, to use as nourishment. Give these two conditions, and in no time mold will be engulfing your bathroom tiles or basement walls. Not only are the Read More
Water Infiltration Getting You Down?
In the last month Tomacor has completed more than a dozen building inspections that have water infiltration problems through new roofs and new masonry walls. Overall, the quality of the construction detailing installed by masons and roofers is very poor and usually without regard for primary components that keep water out of masonry buildings such Read More
Buying Foreclosed Properties
Now is a great time to buy property, especially if its in foreclosure. During this period of “finger pointing” when banks own more property than they would like to, Tomacor has discovered a unique service to help buyers, retailers, and developers. We now offer a cost break-down for completing distressed properties. Tomacor has inspected approximately 50 Read More
Dumping (Garbage Accumulation) Prohibited in Chicago
Section 4(7-28-710) within the Chicago Municipal Building Code specifically prohibits any person to place, leave, dump or permit to accumulate any garbage or trash in any building, structure or premises so that the same shall afford food or harborage for rats or to dump or place on any premises, land or waterway any dead animals Read More
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