Purchase and sale contract review
Before you sign, or during the attorney-review and inspection windows, so the agreement protects you against future problems.
Real Estate
Real Estate Law in Illinois
Buying or selling a home is one of the largest financial moves most people ever make. We represent buyers and sellers through the entire transaction — reading the contract before you are bound by it, fixing terms that work against you, and closing on time without surprises.
Understanding. Answers. Direction.
Buying or selling a home is one of the largest financial moves most people ever make. The paperwork moves fast, the deadlines are real, and a single overlooked clause can cost you long after the keys change hands. At Marvel Law, we represent buyers and sellers through the entire transaction — reading the contract before you are bound by it, fixing terms that work against you, and closing on time without surprises.
We handle closings in our Bloomington office and work with clients across Central Illinois. We give honest assessments on fees up front, and we offer evening and Saturday hours so the process fits your schedule, not the other way around.
What we do for you
Informed and protected, from contract to closing.
Residential and commercial real estate move on very different tracks. Our goal on every file is the same: keep you informed and protected, with clear due-diligence guidance and a careful review of title, contract, and deed. For residential matters we handle:
Closings
A seamless, deadline-driven process with the title company, lender, and other side, conducted in our office or remotely.
Title and deeds
Examining title commitments, clearing exceptions, and preparing warranty, quitclaim, and trustee's deeds.
Transfer on Death Instruments
Passing a home directly to your chosen beneficiary at death, avoiding probate on the real estate.
Boundary, fence, and easement issues
Surveys, encroachments, access rights, and disputes with neighbors.
Nondisclosure and defect disputes
Pursuing or defending claims when a property's condition was misrepresented.
If your matter is commercial or industrial, see our Commercial & Industrial Real Estate page.
Built for Illinois law
Real estate, built for Illinois law
A generic form contract is not a plan. Illinois has its own rules on disclosure, deeds, and how property passes — and the details decide whether your purchase is protected.
Contract review and a seamless closing
Most Illinois residential contracts give the buyer and seller a short attorney-review period and an inspection period after signing. That window is where the real work happens. We review the contract to confirm your interests are protected, modify terms when necessary, and respond to inspection findings — then drive the closing to the finish line, coordinating deadlines, title, and lender requirements so nothing slips. We routinely prepare titles and deeds and conduct closings directly in our office.
Title and deeds
Clear title is what you are actually buying. We examine the title commitment for liens, easements, and unreleased mortgages, work with the title company to resolve exceptions, and prepare the deed that fits the transaction — a warranty deed for an arm's-length sale, a quitclaim deed to clear an interest, or a trustee's deed where a trust is involved. Getting the deed right protects the next sale, too.
Transfer on Death Instruments (TODIs)
Illinois law lets an owner record a Transfer on Death Instrument that passes real estate directly to a named beneficiary at death — with no probate on that property. The owner keeps full control during life and can sell, mortgage, or revoke at any time. A TODI must be signed, witnessed by two credible witnesses, notarized, and recorded with the Recorder of Deeds before the owner's death to be valid. A defective or unrecorded TODI does nothing, which is why these are worth doing right. (See our Estate Planning page for how a TODI fits a larger plan.)
Boundary, fence, and easement issues
Fence lines, driveways, and shared access cause more neighbor disputes than almost anything else in real estate. Before you build a fence, move a line, or rely on a path across someone else's land, the survey and the recorded easements matter — and so does Illinois law on what your neighbor can require of you. We review surveys, interpret easements, and resolve encroachment and access disputes by agreement where possible and by suit where necessary.
Nondisclosure and defect disputes
Illinois requires sellers of most residential property to complete a Residential Real Property Disclosure Report, and a seller who conceals a known defect can be liable. When a problem surfaces after closing that should have been disclosed, we initiate protective and aggressive action on a client's behalf, and we file suit when it is in the client's best interest and pursue it to completion. We also defend sellers and agents accused of nondisclosure.
The Marvel Law approach
Protect your interests, explain in plain language, close on time.
You know your property and what you want out of the deal. Our job is to protect your interests, explain the contract and title in plain language, and close on time without drama. We tell clients honestly what a matter will involve and what it will cost — and we are built to handle the rare deal that turns into a dispute, because we litigate as well as transact.
Richard T. Marvel has practiced law in central Illinois since 2001 — as both a litigator and a transactional attorney, which shapes how he drafts to prevent disputes. Read his full bio →
"Documents drafted by someone who has litigated disputes are documents built to prevent them." — The Marvel Law approach
Which tool fits your situation
Which tool fits your situation
| If you are… | We typically handle… |
|---|---|
| Buying a home | Attorney-review and inspection-period contract review, title examination, and your closing |
| Selling a home | Contract review, disclosure compliance, deed preparation, and closing |
| Passing a home to family | A Transfer on Death Instrument or trust-based transfer to avoid probate |
| A landlord or investor | Lease review, title work, and tenant matters — see Landlord-Tenant |
| In a dispute with a neighbor or seller | Boundary, easement, and nondisclosure claims, by negotiation or suit |
| Facing a high tax assessment | A possible property tax appeal |
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
You are not legally required to have one, but the contract you sign is binding and the attorney-review and inspection windows are short. Having a lawyer read the contract before those windows close, examine title, and prepare the deed is inexpensive insurance against a problem that is far more costly to fix later.
A TODI is a recorded instrument that passes your real estate to a named beneficiary at your death without probate on that property, while leaving you in full control during life. It is not a substitute for a complete estate plan, but for the right owner it is a clean, low-cost way to keep a home out of probate. It must be properly signed, witnessed, notarized, and recorded before death to work.
Start with the survey and the recorded plat and easements — they usually answer who owns what and who is responsible for what. Many fence and boundary disputes resolve once the documents are on the table. When they don't, we pursue or defend the matter through the courts. (See our blog: A New Fence Could Cost You.)
Possibly. Illinois requires most residential sellers to disclose known material defects, and concealment can create liability. Whether you have a claim depends on what the seller knew, what was disclosed, and the contract terms. We will give you a straight assessment before you spend money chasing it.
Where we serve
Based in Bloomington. Serving central & southern Illinois.
Based in Bloomington (McLean County), we serve home buyers, sellers, and owners across Central Illinois — in our office and remotely. Real estate help in:
Real Estate in McLean County
Real Estate in Logan County
central & southern Illinois