Hi,Brandon:

I can't remember the address anymore,but it was 3 houses from the corner of Pershing Rd. a one story red brick with a huge picture window in the front,entrances on each side and built in the 1950's. i was actually born in Berwyn myself--at mcNeal? hospital.

Dana,

Where on Oak Park Ave? My mother in law stills lives on the 3000 block of Oak Park.

But Berwyn is now making the sellers pull those kitchens out now if the basement can possibly be an illegal apartment.

You may want to check out the house at 3242 Maple. Completely updated and up to code. They are having an open house on Sunday from 1-3. Berwyn is a great neighborhood to raise a family, south berwyn area is a close community with lots of amenities and features.

Brandon,LOL! My grandmother lived on Oak park Ave. in Berwyn. She had an entire kitchen in the basement--this was so she wouldn't have to use the upstairs one & mess it up! She never used the original kitchen. i can just see someone trying to deal with that!

There are no "common violations" or “cost to repair each situation is different. Most are safety related and must be repaired before selling unless it's a foreclosure or REO.

With a foreclosure, you as the buyer would be responsible for repairs because these properties sell in "as-is" condition.

But overall South Berwyn and Central Berwyn are very popular with young professionals because of strategic location of METRA and availability of PACE and Mac Neal Hospital.

If you are looking into repairing this type of home, you may want to check on a 203K loan for rehabs.

Happy house hunting!

Chamil and Erica,
I've been selling real estate in Berwyn since 1991. I can tell you that Berwyn is one of the craziest Cities when it comes to compliance inspections. First of all you need to be aware that Berwyn falls under Home Rule. They are able to create fees and additional tax costs because of Home Rule. When you sell your home in Berwyn you'll be required to pay a 1% transfer tax fee (Due to Home Rule). They have allowed permits for certain things years ago and when the home owner goes to sell the City asks for things to be deconvert. It gets really crazy some times as to what Berwyn asks for.

I will tell you that "most" of the violations are electrical, fire and safety issues. The problems accure when you have a finished basement or attic and if the ceiling height isn't right, they can make them deconvert it. It can be messy at times.

Please make sure that you have a Realtor and an attorney who is familiar with Berwyn. Otherwise I wish you luck.

Ok, this is a red flag!!!!! If you are not in love with the city of berwyn then find another city/town/village! They are ticket crazy. Even when you clear the tickets guess what they are going to do to you?! It is good that you have done your homework and noticed it now.

Not all. I have a listing at 1911 S. Cuyler in Berwyn, IL. It's a legal 2-unit bungalow and had it inspected by the Village of Berwyn and came out with flying colors. A few CO detectors and GFCI's were pretty much all we needed. This is an elderly couples home and unfortunately they passed away a few years ago. They were in it for over 30 years and kept it in excellent condition. Please feel free to look at my listing here on Trulia or at http://www.billdafnis.com. It's priced at $274,900 and negotiable.

Common violations for homes are outdated electrical service, peeling paint, rain gutters missing or in poor condition, etc. Major issues can be non-conforming basement units, roof replacement, and the like. Cost for all these items vary from property to property. If you have located a home, check with the village to determine if the home has existing violations. Also ask if the home is subject to a village inspection prior to closing. If so, you may want to approach the seller to help with these items at closing.

Many villages require that a portion or all of the estimated cost of repair be place into an escrow account at the closing to further insure the repairs will be completed. Many sellers will have their homes inspected by the village prior to placing the house on the market. If so, they may have a list of the items that need to be repaired. You can get local contractors to estimate the cost of the repairs during the attorney review (smart sellers have this done before being on the market). If they are higher than you can bear, don't be bashful to ask the seller to assist. Many sellers don't want to loose a strong buyer for minor issues. Lastly, if you're buying a home that needs lots of work, try estimate the repairs with contractors prior to making your offer. Your agent should look for recent sales with similar condition issues so your making a fair offer.

Most contractors do not like coming out time and time again to estimate for buyers who do not have a contract to purchase or have already closed (a good contractor is a busy one). A good agent will have contractors they can recommend to you who can help with estimating and will be willing to give you at least an idea of cost during they buying process.

Check out the link in Web References for the village website. You can go to city departments. Click on Building Department. It looks like Berwyn has and attic and basement affidavit to certify condition of these items. You'll also find the phone number of their contact.

Good luck with the search. Berwyn is a great town.