If you are a typical Illinois buyer or seller, attorney review can feel mysterious. You sign a stack of papers. Someone mentions a five business day window. Then the emails start. “Our attorney will be in touch.” “We are waiting for their attorney to respond.” You hear about “attorney letters” and “inspection issues,” but you rarely see what actually happens behind the scenes.
From the outside, it can feel like nothing is happening at all until someone suddenly says, “We are clear to move forward” or “We have a problem.”
Inside a real estate law office, that same window is very busy. This is when your lawyer reads the entire contract, compares it to the way you described the deal, fixes language that puts you at risk, and turns the inspection report into a concrete plan instead of a vague list of complaints. It is also when we manage a set of quiet but critical deadlines that keep your transaction alive.
In this article, I am going to walk you through what attorney review and inspection really look like inside The Bow Tie Attorney’s practice. We will talk about how I, Mahmoud Faisal Elkhatib, approach Illinois real estate contracts for buyers and sellers, how inspection results become repair requests or credits, and how we coordinate with lenders and title so your closing does not quietly derail. If you have ever searched for “attorney review period in Illinois” or “what does my lawyer do during inspection,” this is your inside tour.
If you are under contract on a home or condo in Chicago or the suburbs, The Bow Tie Attorney can step into your attorney review and inspection window with a clear plan instead of just sending one form letter.
Most residential real estate deals in Illinois use a contract that builds in an attorney review period and an inspection contingency. In plain language, that period gives both sides a short window to have attorneys review the contract and request reasonable changes, and for the buyer to inspect the property and respond to what they find.
For buyers, this window is your chance to make sure the contract matches your understanding and to address serious property issues without being trapped. For sellers, it is a chance to clarify obligations, limit surprises, and keep the deal moving instead of watching it drift away.
Attorney review is not a formality. It is the moment when the legal skeleton of your deal is checked, strengthened, and adjusted before everything else is built on top of it.
In practice, the exact rules depend on the contract language and local custom, especially in the Chicago area. But the core idea is the same across Illinois. There is a defined period where lawyers can propose modifications, accept or reject them, or declare the contract null if the parties cannot agree. At the same time, the buyer can complete inspections and use those findings to request repairs, credits, or, in some cases, an exit. Understanding that structure is the starting point for everything we do in that window.
When a new contract hits my inbox, I do not start by hunting for exotic legal traps. I start by asking you a simple question. “Tell me the deal in your own words.” How much you are paying. What is included. How quickly you need to close. What worries you most. That story becomes my lens on the contract.
Then I read every page.
On a buyer side file, I am looking for issues like:
On a seller side file, my focus shifts. I am watching for one sided provisions, inspection clauses that invite endless renegotiation, and obligations that could leave you carrying costs or liability long after closing. In both roles, my goal is the same. I want the paper to match the deal you think you made, not just what the default form says for everyone else.
Inspection day is when reality shows up. A good inspector will give you a detailed report. A good attorney will help you translate that report into options.
Inside our office, the process usually looks like this:
One important point for both buyers and sellers. The purpose of inspection is not to turn a used home into a brand new one. It is to make sure you are not stepping into hidden problems that would have changed your decision if you had known about them. Part of my job is to keep expectations anchored while still protecting your interests.
While we are revising language and working through inspection, there is a parallel track of quiet coordination happening in the background. That track is what keeps your deal from drifting off schedule.
For most Illinois closings, that includes:
From your perspective as a buyer or seller, this often looks like short emails and quick update calls. From our perspective, it is a steady stream of small adjustments that keep the contract, the loan, and the closing table pointed in the same direction.
If you feel like your contract is stuck in limbo during attorney review and inspection, The Bow Tie Attorney can step in to organize communication, clarify expectations, and move your Illinois deal toward a clear yes or no.
From the inside, our goal is simple. During attorney review and inspection, you should never feel like you are guessing what is happening with your own transaction.
In a typical file, here is what that looks like:
You will still see some of the usual phrases in your inbox. The difference is that you will know what they mean and what we are doing to move the file forward in the background.
The best time to involve The Bow Tie Attorney is before you sign something you do not fully understand and before your review window is almost over. For many clients, that means:
Whether you are buying your first condo or selling a long time family home, you deserve more than a signature on the last page. You deserve an Illinois real estate attorney who treats the attorney review and inspection period as the heart of the deal. That is how we approach it at The Bow Tie Attorney, and it is how we will approach your file if you hire us.
If you are under contract on a property in Chicago or anywhere in Illinois and want an attorney review that actually defends your interests, schedule a strategy session with The Bow Tie Attorney, Mahmoud Faisal Elkhatib, and see what a hands on review and inspection period feels like.
Many standard residential contracts in the Chicago area use a five business day attorney review period, but the exact timing depends on the form and any changes the parties make. Some contracts tie the inspection period to the same window, others treat it separately. The important thing is to know what your specific contract says and to get it to your attorney quickly so you are not burning half the window before anyone starts reviewing it.
If we find language that is risky or inconsistent with your understanding, we raise it in a written attorney review letter to the other side. That letter may propose revised wording, request additional documents, or ask for clarification. The other side can agree, counter, or reject the changes. If the parties cannot agree on certain items, the contract may allow either side to declare it null and void. The goal is not to blow up the deal over every detail but to fix the issues that matter before you move forward.
Both buyers and sellers can use the attorney review period. Sellers benefit from having their own Illinois real estate attorney look at the contract to confirm that the obligations, timelines, and risk allocation are fair. In many deals, seller side review focuses on limiting open ended inspection demands, clarifying what happens if financing fails, and making sure the seller is not promising more than they can deliver by closing.
Standard forms are a starting point, not a guarantee of safety. They are designed to work for many situations, but they cannot account for your specific property, lender, inspection results, or family plans. The most important risks live in the details that get filled in, crossed out, or added as riders. An attorney like The Bow Tie Attorney reads those details in the context of your life and your goals, not just in the abstract.
A long inspection report does not automatically mean you should cancel. It does mean you should pause and think. We help you rank the issues from critical to cosmetic, estimate likely cost ranges, and decide whether to ask for repairs, credits, or both. Sometimes the right move is to negotiate a fair adjustment and continue. Other times, especially when structural or safety issues are severe, the best decision is to walk away and focus on a different property.
It is almost never too late to benefit from legal advice, but the earlier you involve counsel, the more options you have. If your attorney review period has already expired and major issues appear, we may be limited to whatever rights the contract still gives you. If you bring us in at or before the start of attorney review and inspection, we can shape those rights, negotiate better language, and address problems before your leverage shrinks. If you are unsure where you are in the timeline, reach out and we can look at your contract dates together.
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“Excellence is not a skill, it’s an attitude. In real estate, that attitude translates to meticulous preparation, unwavering ethics, and an uncompromising commitment to client success.”
— Mahmoud Faisal Elkhatib, The Bow Tie Attorney
