Chicago masonry guides — answer-first reference.

Start with Signs Your Brick Needs Repair — it walks the early warning signs and ties each one to a likely cause. If you've already seen diagonal cracks above a window or rust streaks from a steel piece, jump to the Lintel Guide instead.

In modern Chicago practice, tuckpointing and repointing are the same trade — grinding out failed mortar joints and replacing them with fresh, matched mortar. The historic distinction is real but rare in the field today. The vs-repointing guide covers both meanings.

The cost guide consolidates per-service ranges across all five 312 Masonry trades — tuckpointing, brick repair, restoration, commercial facade and brick pavers — plus neighborhood differences, the permit question and Facade Ordinance scope.

Most residential tuckpointing in Chicago does not require a permit. Permits apply for buildings 80 feet and taller (Facade Ordinance scope), addresses inside a Chicago Landmark district, and any structural work. The cost guide has the full answer.

Those are masonry trade terms. A wythe is a continuous vertical section of wall one masonry unit thick; a collar joint is the vertical mortar joint between two wythes in a multi-wythe wall. The masonry glossary defines those and 25+ other terms used across our guides and quotes.

Both. The guides are written to be readable by a homeowner or condo board member who wants to understand what's happening on their wall, while being technically correct enough to be cited by another tradesperson. Each definition and number is sourced from working Chicago masonry practice.