If you are building a new commercial facility in Illiniois, you are likely worried about potential issues. Indeed, construction defects can lead to real estate litigation.
Construction defects
Construction defects can occur at all levels of construction, for improper construction techniques to defective architectural designs. Common construction defects that lead to real estate litigation include structural issues, like unstable foundations, masonry, carpentry, concrete, etc.
Water intrusion and electrical/mechanical issues commonly lead to construction litigation. Broadly, the four categories of construction defects are subsurface, design, material and workmanship.
Subsurface defects
Subsurface preparations refer to all those things that must be done to the land prior to the beginning or completion of construction. This includes everything from water mitigation to foundation preparation. If this is not done correctly, the entire building could collapse or its useful life could be dramatically limited.
Design defects
The term “design defects” refers to the defects in your architectural and engineering plans. These issues are systemic and literally built into the building, and they cannot often be undone as they are not discovered until after the building is substantially or entirely completed. Though, the architect and engineer will blame materials and workmanship in litigation.
Material defects
Your construction contract should include explicit language about the materials and quality. You can and should include fixtures as well. Often, these are included in the engineering plans to ensure property air flow.
Follow up periodically to make sure nothing has changed due to market conditions, and if your general contractor did have to make a change, make sure you can sign off on those changes prior to purchase.
Workmanship defects
Finally, even if everything else is correct, if the project is not built appropriately, the project will be riddled with defects. Often, inspections are done during construction to ensure the appropriate level of workmanship is used. Though, this is where the most litigation occurs.
For our readers, the key takeaway here is that you should not expect everything to go right with your construction. Have inspections done periodically because a problem at any stage could lead to litigation later.
