Home Repair And Remodeling

We often hear of homeowners who were charged exorbitant prices for home repairs or remodeling, or who have paid a contractor for work that was never completed. In an effort to combat these abuses, the Illinois General Assembly recently enacted the Home Repair and Remodeling Act. The Act protects consumers who hire a contractor to do more than $1,000 of work.

Under the Act, a contractor must furnish a written contract and provide a detailed statement of the consumer's rights. The written contract must state the business name and address of the contractor. If the contractor lists a post office box or mail receiving service as the address, the residential address of the contractor must also be stated in the contract. The contract (or work order) must state the total cost, including parts and materials and any charge for an estimate.

The Act also requires a contractor to give the homeowner a consumer rights brochure entitled "Home Repair: Know Your Consumer Rights." The home repair brochure contains a number of useful tips and warns of the following signs of a potential scam:

• Door-to-door salespersons with no local connections who offer to do home repair work for substantially less than the market price.
• Solicitations for repair work from a company that lists only a telephone number or post office box to contact.
• Contractors who fail to provide references when requested.
• Persons who offer to inspect your home for free.
• Contractors who demand cash payment or who ask you to make a check payable to someone other than the owner or the company.

The brochure also cautions consumers to:

• Get all estimates in writing.
• Not be convinced to sign a contract by high-pressure sales tactics.
• Remember that you have three business days from the time you sign the contract to cancel the contract if the sale is made at your home.

It is important that you carefully read and fully understand any contract for home repair and remodeling before accepting it. If you are pressured into signing a contract that you do not fully understand, you may lose some of the protections of the Act. You should seek legal advice on an

This website is not intended to constitute legal advice or the provision of legal services. By posting and/or maintaining the website and its contents, Lucas Law does not intend to solicit business from clients located in states or jurisdictions outside of Illinois wherein Lucas Law or its individual attorney(s) are not licensed or authorized to practice law.