Fortunately the smell is reduced enough that just living in the unit provides enough air movement so that it does not smell; for tenant turnover we need to open the unit up prior to the showing otherwise it has some smell. 

I would stick to outer zip codes, not center city zips. 32205, 10, 20, 21 22 44, west of the river. 07,11,77,25,16,46, east of river 18 and 26 by the air port.. if the portfolio is higher end investment homes 17, 23 57,56, 58 59 , and  24 ,33, 66, 50 .toward the ocean. 

If the water pipes are properly winterized they should be blown out with air as there are often low spots that trap water which freezes.

I have a bi-yearly contract with them to maintain the units and they currently have a new policy where they check for mold in the duct work by an intrusive method and they are finding slight mold growth and are recommending this device called Nasa Air Scrubber (~$1200 per unit). 

I am looking to buy window units hot and cold air functions for a property under Rehab - has anybody bought this lately and would you recommend any brand based?

I looked at various sources where this seem to be up in the air. 

Cleaning - you can still negotiate a package deal with the cleaner (if we give the contract for cleaning both buildings, we need a discount).

His quote came in a little bit above what we expected for a couple reasons that are extremely boring to explain, but long story short we think if we sub contract out the electrical work associated with the install on our own and go with forced hot air systems we will be right in line for what we budgeted for.Painting in the common area and the 3rd floor flooring work should pick back up next week.

I'm often shocked at the number of people in Chicago who will pay $1,800 a month for a 1 ba apartment with no upgrades and window air conditioning.

The Building Code however could make certain requirements impossible to adhere to (such as light and air, egress, fire seperation, etc.) .