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A-B-Seek
Seek and ye shall find. Age old advice. But it begs the question of when you seek how do you seek? Bottom line in our culture typically has been we want what we want when we want it. And so we become devotees of rapid provision. We go online with the ease of using our cell phone. Get it on the web. Turn to Amazon or Ebay or zappos or whatever purveyor you wish to insert in the blank line. It's no different with real estate. Or is it?
9 in 10 Folks in Chicago Looking for a Home Start their Searches Online
Folks seeking Chicago real estate initiate and maintain their searches to buy a Chicago home or condo at a rate of more than 9 of 10. That's astounding! But because for most of us this sizable expenditure is done maybe three or four times in a span of an average person's lifetime it strikes me as something that needs to be conducted with perhaps a bit of solemnity. Both on the part of the person doing the buying and on the part of the person doing the selling. What I mean by solemnity is a phrasing to yourself the question - "So, who do I trust?" And hand-in-hand with trust, is the implied question of where do you turn? For straightforward information. For facts steeped in knowledge. For someone capable and able to provide professional insights that truly bear in mind your interests. For a change. I'd like to say trust your gut - but in the disembodied world of email communication and stylized versions of a million me's online, what's the truth? Where does it rest? And who is dispensing it?
Follow the Trail - Paper or Digital
A good lawyer, as several of my clients are, will advise that you follow the paper trail. In an electronic age we can interpret the paper trail as the digital finger print intimating much about the person who really wants your business. In other words, what are you able to find out about the real estate professional who really wants you to be his or her next client? If you've registered online you know what I am talking about. You want to look at a house and you go to a Chicago real estate website that requires that you register with your email address. And all of a sudden your inbox is bogged down every day (sometimes multiple times a day) with needless detritus from an agent about which you know little except that he is polluting the broadband mostly with listings that bear little resemblance to the idealized home that you want next to be yours. What to do, what to do... The first place to turn is google or yahoo - plug in the agent's name and see what search results come up.If scant little shows up that may be a good indicator that the agent is not very rooted in the market (and that you may be better served finding somebody with more of a digital imprint). If a ton of stuff shows up, sift through it to figure out if the agent generating these results correlates with what you want and where you want to go as you buy a new home or condo. At the beginning and end of the day as you search for a single family or condo to purchase in Chicago or anywhere you are engaged in not only a home choice but also a fairly monumental business decision. Given the importance of this decision, the advice of The Real Estate Lounge Chicago is that you view it through the prism of determining who will best and most effectively serve your needs.
Finding a Home is Not the Time to Experiment - Find a True Professional
My strongest suggestion as you get ready to dig into the Chicago real estate market, affiliate yourself with a Chicago real estate professional who is skilled and experienced. In other words, make sure to work with somebody who has made it into the end zone. If you watch any sports, especially football, you hear broadcasters cajole the guy who celebrates too much upon scoring a touch down. Often these criticisms are punctuated by the phrase, "Act like you've been there before." In a very real sense the same admonition has a strong pragmatic application with respect to your choosing a Chicago real estate professional to represent you.What do I mean by this? By aligning yourself with a Realtor who "has been there before" you avail yourself to a skilled professional who will...
- listen to you and integrate what you say into a coordinated and effective search that reflects your wants and wishes
- sift through listings and identify the homes that best match what you want while communicating with you why those in the trash heap did not make the cut
- apprise you of any and all market developments related to what you want
- effectively, aggressively and successfully negotiate and advocate on your behalf
- provide you with all array of professional referrals, including lenders, attorneys, inspectors and handymen
- walk you through the steps of the purchase process from the search to the find to the contract to the negotiation to the inspection to the attorney review period to the mortgage contingency period to the final walk-through to the closing to the turn over of the keys and beyond
- be available to answer your questions and, when necessary, seek outside counsel
- at every juncture be a professional and trusted resource who will ensure that you are fully edified, enabling you to make an informed choice as you make this significant decision regarding your Chicago real estate purchase
By the way, as you are right here, right now, The Real Estate Lounge Chicago is a perfect place to start and finish your Chicago real estate search with some of the best advisers in the Chicago real estate market. Our digital fingerprint is evident. And our reputation is unparalleled.
All the Print That's News to Fit
200 North Jefferson features a new and attractive price. This stylish River West one bedroom condo in a full amenity highrise with city and river views is now listed at $269,900. A deeded garage parking space is available for $25k. 2801 N Oakley will be open Sunday from 11a-1p. This spacious Roscoe Village condo includes a heated garage space in its $399,900 list price. 3118 N Sheffield will be open Sunday from 2p-4p. This high-end Lakeview condo offers three beds and two baths along with a garage space. New list price is $599,900.
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