Illinois property disclosure practice questions

An investor who lives elsewhere

An individual owns and manages a three-unit residential building but lives in another county. The ordinary sale has no stated Section 15 exemption. The owner claims that never living there eliminates the report.

1. Three residential units fit the stated unit range.
2. The seller is an owner and also has management responsibility.
3. The beneficiary exclusion is not a general rule for every nonresident owner.

Answer: The stated nonoccupancy does not establish an exemption. Do not skip the report based on the investor label.

A delayed report after every signature

All parties sign the covered contract at noon. Neither buyer nor any authorized recipient has previously received a report. The seller sends it at 1:00 p.m.; receipt is verified at 1:20 p.m. It discloses an uncorrected foundation defect that substantially adversely affects value. Conveyance has not occurred.

1. The report arrived after all parties signed, in violation of Section 20.
2. The report discloses a qualifying material defect.
3. Section 40(a) permits written termination within five business days after receipt, with Section 40(c) notice and conveyance limits.

Answer: Use the late-initial-report route. Sending at 1:00 p.m. is not the effective receipt time, and stating every signature avoids an incomplete remedy scenario.

A contractor report already in hand

Before completing the form, the seller reads an engineer's report describing ongoing substantial foundation movement. The seller has no reasonable basis to believe it was corrected and marks no because no new inspection is required.

1. No specific inquiry is required solely for this report.
2. But the seller already knows the reported current material condition.
3. The qualified professional-information protection does not excuse an answer the seller knows is erroneous.

Answer: The seller must answer from actual knowledge. Not ordering another inspection does not justify the knowingly inaccurate answer.

New damage after a truthful report

The seller truthfully reports no known roof leak. Before closing, a storm creates a leak significantly affecting the property, and the seller learns of it. The earlier answer is now inaccurate.

1. Truth at initial completion does not freeze later facts.
2. Section 30 requires a written supplement delivered by a Section 50 method.
3. Any termination analysis then uses the supplement's material defect and Section 40(b), rather than an automatic five-day buyer window.

Answer: Deliver the written supplement. An oral update to the listing broker alone is insufficient.

An oral promise after a supplement

A supplement discloses a new material defect repairable before closing. The seller had no actual knowledge of the error when the earlier report was completed and signed. Five business days after supplement delivery pass without a written repair agreement; there was only an oral promise. Conveyance has not occurred.

1. The problem describes the repairable-defect branch.
2. Section 40(b)(iii) requires agreement in writing within its stated period.
3. The facts do not establish that agreement merely because the seller spoke about repair.

Answer: The failure-to-agree-in-writing condition is established. Termination still requires the proper written notice before conveyance; it is not automatic.

Repair offered after an earlier known omission

The seller knew of an ongoing material roof defect when signing the original report and omitted it. A later supplement reveals the defect. The seller promptly offers in writing to repair it before closing. Conveyance has not occurred.

1. Section 40(b)(i) addresses actual knowledge of the earlier error at completion and signature.
2. The three grounds in subsection (b) are alternatives.
3. An offer addressing the repairable-defect branch does not erase the independently stated prior-knowledge ground.

Answer: Analyze subsection (b)(i) separately. Do not treat a repair offer as a universal cure for every supplemental-disclosure remedy.

A rehabilitation marketed as new

A previously occupied house is extensively rehabilitated and sold without anyone occupying it after the work. The seller claims the never-occupied new-construction exemption.

1. Section 15(9) covers newly constructed residential real property that has never been occupied.
2. It expressly excludes rehabilitation of existing residential property.
3. The marketing description does not change that statutory boundary.

Answer: The stated rehabilitation does not qualify for that exemption. Other coverage and exemption facts still need analysis.

A seller instruction to hide a latent septic failure

A listing licensee knows an uncorrected septic failure is a latent material adverse physical fact that a reasonably diligent buyer-customer inspection could not discover. The seller orders silence and gives the broker a report denying the problem.

1. The seller-client and prospective-buyer-customer roles fit Section 15-25.
2. The licensee actually knows both the physical fact and the statement's falsity.
3. The seller's form or instruction does not remove the required timely disclosure.

Answer: Follow the independent disclosure and honesty duties. Involve the sponsoring broker and obtain appropriate legal guidance; withdrawal alone is not a substitute for a required disclosure.

Count a stipulated business-day period

A qualifying late initial report is received Monday, October 19, 2026, after all signatures. For this exercise, business days are Monday through Friday, there are no intervening holidays, and counting begins the next day. Conveyance is scheduled for October 30.

1. Day 1 is Tuesday, October 20; days 2 and 3 are October 21 and 22.
2. Day 4 is Friday, October 23. Saturday and Sunday are skipped.
3. Day 5 is Monday, October 26. The example assumes conveyance has not cut the right off earlier.

Answer: Under the stated calendar assumptions, the fifth business day is October 26. This is a counting exercise, not an actual filing or notice deadline; valid written delivery remains necessary.

Choose the earliest statutory event

In a separate hypothetical transaction, possession begins October 20, 2026; the conveyance instrument is recorded October 22; occupancy begins October 26. Select Section 60's starting event for an action under the Act.

1. The listed events are possession, occupancy and recording of the conveyance instrument.
2. October 20 is the earliest, even though occupancy comes later.
3. The statute states one year from that trigger; discovery is not substituted as the trigger in this exercise.

Answer: Select October 20 possession. This does not determine tolling, a real last filing day or a limitation period for every other possible claim.

Read a corrected violation and a historical statement differently

The seller has a received code-violation notice, and that violation has been corrected. Separately, the seller actually knows the property was used for methamphetamine manufacture in the past. The question asks how to read form items 23 and 24, not whether remediation satisfied every other law.

1. Item 23 specifically describes a received notice of a violation that has not been corrected.
2. Item 24 specifically asks about known past manufacture.
3. A general current-condition note does not turn the historical statement into a question limited to current manufacture.

Answer: Preserve each item's wording. Do not use a blanket rule that any corrected condition makes every historical answer no; the actual disclosure and explanation must reflect the facts.

1. Which fact alone does NOT fit the one-to-four residential dwelling-unit definition?

1. An ordinary two-unit residential property
2. An ordinary four-unit residential property
3. The entire five-unit residential apartment property
4. An ordinary single-family house

2. A beneficiary has never occupied the home but previously had management responsibility. Does nonoccupancy alone satisfy the Section 5 beneficiary exclusion?

1. No, because both never-occupied and never-managed conditions are required.
2. No beneficiary can ever be excluded.
3. Yes, because occupancy is the only test.
4. Yes, if the beneficiary lives outside Illinois.

3. Which listed transaction can fall within Section 10, subject to coverage and exemptions?

1. A property-management agreement with no transfer
2. Only a deed recorded after cash payment
3. A lease with an option to purchase residential real property
4. A contractor's repair invoice

4. A previously occupied house is thoroughly rehabilitated and vacant afterward. What follows about Section 15(9)?

1. Every vacant-after-renovation home is exempt new construction.
2. Any investor is exempt regardless of the property.
3. Calling it new inside establishes the exemption.
4. Rehabilitation is expressly outside the never-occupied new-construction exemption.

5. The seller knows of a current material defect from a report already read. Does the no-specific-inquiry rule excuse a knowingly false answer?

1. Yes, because professional reports never establish knowledge.
2. No, because every seller must commission a new inspection.
3. No; the seller must disclose actually known material defects.
4. Yes, unless the buyer orders a second report.

6. Which pair correctly distinguishes form statements 23 and 24?

1. Every old complaint; no historical question of any kind
2. All repaired violations; only future suspected meth use
3. Received notice of an uncorrected violation; known past methamphetamine manufacture
4. Only current mortgage defaults; only active drug activity

7. At the buyer-provided contact, a report is actually received by one of two prospective buyers. What does Section 50 provide?

1. Mailing is the only permitted method.
2. Delivery to one prospective buyer is deemed delivery to all.
3. One buyer can never receive for the other.
4. Delivery fails until both separately sign the report.

8. Which fact is necessary for the specific late-initial-report path in Section 40(a)?

1. Only the buyer has signed, regardless of the seller
2. The seller merely drafted a report but no contract exists
3. The report has never been received and conveyance occurred years ago
4. Delivery after all parties have signed, along with the other statutory conditions

9. A qualifying late initial report satisfies Section 40(a), and conveyance has not occurred. What period does subsection (a) specify?

1. One year after the latest closing-related event
2. Five calendar days after mailing
3. Thirty days after the buyer discovers any problem
4. Five business days after receipt of the report

10. A late report has yes answers only to item 1 occupancy and item 2 flood insurance, with no disclosed material defect. Do those answers alone establish the specified Section 40(a) trigger?

1. Yes, but only if both buyers personally open the email.
2. No; that subsection expressly excepts statements 1 and 2.
3. Yes, every yes is identical.
4. No, because late reports can never create remedies.

11. Before closing, the seller becomes aware that an earlier delivered supplement omitted a known material fact. What must follow under Section 30?

1. Deliver a written supplemental disclosure through a Section 50 method.
2. Wait until recording to mention it.
3. An oral assurance to the seller's agent is enough.
4. Delete the earlier report.

12. A supplement reveals a material defect from an error the seller actually knew when the earlier report was completed and signed. A prompt written repair offer follows. Which analysis is correct?

1. The separate Section 40(b)(i) ground still needs analysis.
2. Any repair offer necessarily erases every subsection (b) ground.
3. There is no supplement duty once the report was signed.
4. Only the buyer's knowledge matters under subsection (b)(i).

13. A supplement discloses a material defect that cannot be repaired before closing. Conveyance has not occurred. Which condition is stated?

1. A universal buyer five-day supplemental clock
2. Section 40(b)(ii), subject to proper termination and other applicable facts
3. An automatic conveyance to the buyer without payment
4. A promise that the buyer receives fixed damages

14. A new supplemental material defect is repairable before closing. The seller had no earlier actual knowledge and only promises orally; five business days after delivery pass with no written agreement. What is missing?

1. A second buyer signature on every email
2. The written repair agreement required by Section 40(b)(iii)
3. Proof that every minor cosmetic mark is material
4. A new deed before any disclosure

15. A new defect is repairable before closing; there was no prior known error. The seller promptly agrees in writing within five business days, without an earlier refusal. Does disclosure alone establish a Section 40(b) termination ground?

1. Yes, every supplement always permits cancellation.
2. No listed subsection (b) ground is established by those facts alone.
3. Yes, because agreeing means the repair has already failed.
4. Yes, because every report is a warranty.

16. Before conveyance, the buyer has a valid Section 40 termination ground. Which notice description follows subsection (c)?

1. An oral comment to an unrelated neighbor
2. Written notice delivered to at least one seller through a permitted method at the specified contact information
3. A notice automatically effective only because its sender pressed send
4. A private draft kept in the buyer's notes

17. What happens to the Section 40 termination right after conveyance?

1. It lasts for the longest of all possible claim periods.
2. It no longer exists, although other available remedies need separate analysis.
3. It continues indefinitely whenever a defect is discovered.
4. It converts every condition into a warranty claim.

18. Before conveyance in a covered transaction, the seller fails or refuses to supply any report. Which provision states a termination right for that failure?

1. No provision addresses missing reports
2. Section 55
3. A universal rule that every transaction is void
4. Section 60's one-year rule alone

19. A listing licensee actually knows a latent material adverse physical defect that a reasonably diligent prospective-buyer customer inspection could not discover. The seller says to hide it. What follows?

1. Seller instructions eliminate the statutory duty.
2. The seller-engaged licensee must make the required timely customer disclosure.
3. Only an inspector may disclose a known fact.
4. The seller report always transfers all responsibility away from the broker.

20. Possession occurs October 20, recording October 22 and occupancy October 26. Which event starts Section 60's stated one-year period for an Act action?

1. Whenever the first defect is discovered
2. An assumed closing date regardless of those events
3. October 26 occupancy, the latest event
4. October 20 possession, the earliest listed event

21. Under an expressly supplied Monday-Friday calendar with no intervening holidays, a qualifying late initial report is received Monday, October 19, 2026. Count the following day as day 1; conveyance is later. Which is the fifth business day?

1. Saturday, October 24
2. Monday, November 2
3. Friday, October 23
4. Monday, October 26

22. A relocation entity took title from a seller to assist that seller's relocation. Which additional Section 15(7) condition belongs in the exemption analysis?

1. It makes the seller-furnished disclosure report available to all prospective buyers.
2. It may withhold the earlier seller report from every buyer.
3. The entity must promise that every system is defect-free.
4. It must be an individual who lived in the home for twelve months.