Buffalo Grove houses by decade
Its median year built is 1981, and the 1980s are the biggest decade: 5,062 of 16,593 housing units, about 31 percent, were built from 1980 to 1989, with another 4,690 from the 1970s.1 Add the two and more than half the village is in those two decades.
About 54 percent of the village's 16,593 housing units are single family detached homes, 8,914 of them, and about 14 percent (2,253) are single family attached homes such as townhomes, while roughly 27 percent sit in buildings of five or more units; around 80 percent of the village's 16,213 occupied homes, 12,945 of them, are owner occupied.2
Garages behind 1980s and 1990s homes
A door of that era may be an insulated steel sectional set paired with a chain or belt opener that was installed when the house went up, with photo sensors added at the floor.
Keep clear of the opening and leave the car where it is until a technician has had a look.
The slab and slope the door closes onto
One and two car garage driveways in Buffalo Grove have a maximum width of 24 feet as measured at the property line, three car garages a maximum of 27 feet, and driveway grades on all lots, as measured from the curb to the finished garage floor, shall be between 2 and 8 percent.3 Where the slab meets the door is where that grade matters, at the bottom seal.
Although the driveway apron sits in the public right of way, construction and maintenance of it are the property owner's responsibility.3
Checking a contractor in Buffalo Grove
Contractor registrations expire on December 31 of each calendar year and must be renewed annually.4 The village publishes a list of contractors registered with the village and notes that the list is updated every 30 to 60 days but does change on a daily basis; village staff verify a contractor's current registration status upon permit application.5
Buffalo Grove's project guides say it is the responsibility of the property owner to ensure that a permit has been secured prior to commencing any work and that all required inspections are approved.3 The village repeats that line on its Fire or Water Damage Repair guide and on its Driveways and Aprons guide, so the owner's duty follows from guide to guide.
A change in contractor after a permit is issued requires an amendment to the existing permit, and no further inspections are scheduled until the amendment is approved.3
What Buffalo Grove's permit lists say
Work requiring a permit (not an exhaustive list) includes driveways and aprons, roof replacement and window replacements, and work not requiring a permit includes gutters, siding and soffit or fascia;6 overhead garage doors are not named on either list. For a specific overhead door job the village is the office to ask.
A door that will not close
Buffalo Grove police tips on vehicle burglaries say to park vehicles inside garages when possible, noting reports of burglary crews in the surrounding suburbs looking in vehicles and checking for unlocked doors.7
When the door stops, reverses or will not come down, a door that stops and reverses is the service page for that symptom. For a door stuck open, tell us what the opener light is doing on the call. Give us a call with what the door was doing before it stopped and whether the opener has power at the outlet.
Building a detached garage in Buffalo Grove
Buffalo Grove requires an accessory structure permit to build a detached garage, counts any accessory structure of 200 square feet or more as a detached garage, puts driveway work on a separate permit, and asks for drawings that show all electrical work, including outlets, switches, light fixtures, openers and sensors.8
The permit must be posted at the property in plain view from the street and stay up until all inspections have been approved.8 Driveway work for the new garage goes on its own separate permit.
Windows, glass doors and permits in Buffalo Grove
Buffalo Grove requires a permit to install or replace any window or glass door that is 50 percent or more glazing, sliding and swinging glass doors included, but not to install or replace an entry door that is less than 50 percent glass or a storm door.9
Building codes in Buffalo Grove
Buffalo Grove's building codes include the 2018 International Residential Code and the 2017 National Electric Code, each as amended, and the 2024 International Energy Conservation Code as amended by Illinois, with the village's amendments in Title 15 of its municipal code.10 Those are the currently adopted editions for permitted work in the village.