New disclosure law beginning January 1, 2008 - sellers of all single family homes, up to and including 4 unit apartment buildings are legally required to provide you with the new Radon Disclosure form, in addition to all other disclosures that may be required.  Click here for information about Radon in Illinois and a printable brochure about Radon in Illinois.

Have properties delivered to you by email that match your criteria.  No more wasted time scouting internet web sites, calling ads to find out the property is sold, wasting time and gas driving and looking for "For Sale" signs (some properties don't have a sign and you could miss out on a home you really wanted), etc.  Sign up for email alerts right here.

There's so much to tell you about buying property that we will only touch on a couple of things here.  We give our committed Buyer Clients a book detailing valuable information, step-by-step instructions, resources, with checklists and an organizational calendar to use so they stay on track and informed throughout the process.

Getting to Know You:  This is a very important beginning.  There are many things that will take place.  Here are some of the highlights.

We can't really begin to give you our very best and to service your real estate needs until we know what kind of property, features, and amenities you're looking for, your time frame, your financial qualifications and comfort zone, what's important to you, your situation, what you expect from us, what we expect from you, and so much more.

During our time together we'll review agency (see my page about agency in this website), the buying process, our booklet, the forms you will probably see, and answer any questions and address any concerns you may have.  From our meeting we will then determine if we should work together.

Let's assume we agree we're a good match and decide we'll work as partners.  This will set in motion a whole series of events.

Grounded Excitement:  Part of our job is letting you enjoy the emotional thrills and excitement of finding the home you want to call yours, but as an objective third party and your partner, it is also keeping you relatively focused on the realities (good and bad) of the property you're considering buying, the pros and cons of a particular property for your specific situation,  and the process involved to make it yours.

Present and Future Needs: We'll determine your housing needs and desires.  Not only for right now but also for the foreseeable future.  This is very important.  Perhaps you will be in your new home for several years to come so what you choose now will have to fit your current lifestyle and where you see yourself down the road.

Buying Power and Comfort Zone:  Next we need to determine your buying power by doing a lender pre-qualification/pre-approval and credit check.  (If you're paying all cash for your purchase we will need an original signed and recently dated statement from your account holder on their letterhead verifying all funds needed are available to you immediately or when needed.)  Once we know your maximum purchase price, we'll then determine your comfort zone and base our search on that figure.

What's Your Dream?

MLS Property Search:  Your information and housing needs are entered into our MLS database to search for property.  If properties meeting your criteria are available, the property information and photos are printed for your review.  We can decide if you want to see inside of any of the properties or if you want to take the listing information with you, drive by the properties, and check the outside of the properties and  neighborhoods.

We Found It!:  You've found a property you want to call "yours".  Remember "Grounded Excitement"?  Well, this is where it really comes in.  Prior to making your offer it's a good idea, if time allows, to visit the property at a different times of day, and days of the week.  A property will "feel" different during the day than it does at night, and differently during the week than on the weekend.  Listen to the neighborhood sounds and activity at different times and on different days - there will be a difference probably between a weekday/night and a weekend day/night.  Get out of your car, walk around, and decide if the neighborhood amenities and proximity to what's important to you will make you as happy as the house.

Check here for community profiles, demographics and other information important to you and your decisions.  Another possibility is Neighborhood Information.  Crime statistics and offender information can be checked online (usually under county links or the sheriff's website), or at the local police department (who would know better than they would), or crime.org.

Next, if time allows, we'll make another appointment to tour the property once more, with your detailed checklist included in your booklet.  This will be invaluable in evaluating the property prior to making your offer and when the time comes to do a property inspection.  We also advise our clients to make a pro and con worksheet based on their needs and wants in the property they want to live in and eventually buy.

What's Your Dream?

Making Your Offer:  Quite often the best properties on the market move fast, so once you have found what you want (and you will know it) then move fast so you don't lose the home you really want.  When we first meet and decide to work together we'll review the contract form and other potential documents necessary to buy your home - just in case we find the nearly perfect home and you want to buy it, and there are other offers coming in on it that day, you won't feel quite as over-whelmed and pressured.

Next, we'll prepare a computer generated market evaluation for the property, showing you what similar properties have sold for and the difference between the list price and the sales price, and average market times.  After all shouldn't you have the same information as the seller does?  This will be one of the components we look at in determining how much and what terms to offer when drafting your offer to purchase the property.

A word about making low offers would be - caution.  Some sellers are so offended and emotionally upset by low offers that it makes negotiating very difficult to practically impossible.  You'd be surprised at the number of great homes that are lost because of buyers inability or reluctance to negotiate a little on price, terms, or concessions.  Remember that in today's market $5,000 means about $35 more per month in your mortgage payment - or about the cost of going out to dinner and a movie once a month.  Quite a sacrifice for giving up years of pride and enjoyment in a home you would treasure and love.

Inspections:  We strongly recommend a professional home inspection be done and included as a contingent part of your offer.  A professional home inspection is an unbiased report on the condition of the structural, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems.  We also strongly advise a pest inspection for termites and other destruction pests.  You can also do radon, mold and lead paint testing, plus others.

We will attend the home inspection and strongly encourage our buyers to attend the home inspection too to learn first-hand about the workings and possible shortcomings of the property, just in case we have to negotiate on any problems that arise, you'll understand exactly what's being discussed and your possible options.  It will take about 1-4 hours depending on several factors.  Costs generally range from $150-$400 for a single family.

Closing the Sale:  There's a multitude of steps that have to be coordinated and completed before you really call this property "yours".  We will guide you through this complex maze.  At closing, I'll be right there with you too.

Chicago Tribune Neighborhood Information

Home Buying Advice

Mortgage Info

Credit Info

Glossary

1.  The multiple listing number, if known, 8 digits long,

2.  Address - if known,

3.  Any other information you may have about the property,

4.  Your email and/or phone information.