Hi crew. My husband and I are new landlords in Chicago -- our tenants moved in on Aug 1. Shortly after they moved in, they told us about a funky smell coming from one of the kitchen cabinets. Since then, we have been trying to figure out what's causing the smell and have heard from a mold specialist that it is not mold.
Yesterday we decided to cut out the bottom of the cabinet and discovered some moisture in the subfloor under the cabinet. This is not near the sink or a window but is next to the stove -- so in theory it could have been caused by cooking spills although I don't think that's what's causing it since there is no evidence of it immediately under the stove.
So, we need to figure out where this water is coming from and determine if we need to rip out the cabinet(s) and potentially pull up the (crappy vinyl) flooring and plywood subfloor.
My question for the group is: what type of person should we call about this? We are generally pretty handy with DIY stuff but we both have full-time jobs and this seems a little beyond our abilities to get done quickly and thoroughly while our tenants are still living there, so I'd like to call in a professional. Should that person be a general contractor, a handyman, some other type of job description that I haven't even thought of yet??
Huge thanks for any advice or words of wisdom that you can share. Mustachians are the best and I fully trust in your collective knowledge!