u/Loftus-Law

A FSBO seller client recently received an offer for their home. As part of the offer, the buyer asked the seller to cover the cost of the buyer's broker. My client was adamant that they did not want to pay the buyer’s broker.

I understood the reaction. If you are selling FSBO, a big part of the appeal is avoiding unnecessary costs. So when a buyer comes in and asks the seller to cover their broker's compensation, the knee-jerk reaction is to say no.

Here's another way to think about it.

The question to ask yourself is whether accommodating the buyer’s request still leaves you with an acceptable net result.

For example:

A buyer offers $400,000 and asks the seller to pay 2.5% toward the buyer’s broker.

That is a $10,000 cost.

As the seller, you can either accept it and treat it as a $10,000 reduction in proceeds or counter by increasing the purchase price by 2.5%.

In this example, increasing the price would leave you with about $400,000 before other costs. In other words, you get what you want (more money), and the buyer can finance their broker's commission (allowing them a little more financial flexibility).

That does not mean the buyer will accept it. It does not mean the appraisal will support it. It does not mean the lender will approve every structure. Real estate loves to throw curve balls.

But the point is this: don’t turn the buyer-broker fee into a symbolic fight if the math can solve the problem.

In a FSBO or private sale, the best offer is not always the highest purchase price. The best offer is the best net offer after broker compensation, credits, inspection issues, tax prorations, closing costs, financing risk, and timing are all considered.

A request to pay the buyer’s broker is not automatically good or bad.

It is just another deal term.

The contract is not just a formality. It sets out the rules of the sale.

In a private sale, the buyer, the buyer’s agent, or the buyer’s attorney may be the one who provides the purchase contract. That does not automatically mean anything improper is happening. But it does mean the seller should slow down and read the deal carefully before signing.

A few examples of terms other than the purchase price that may directly affect how much money you walk away with from the closing table:

• How much earnest money is being deposited?
• What inspection rights does the buyer have?
• Is there a mortgage contingency (and is the lender legit)?
• What happens if the appraisal comes in low?
• How are property taxes being prorated?
• Which personal property or fixtures are included?
• What happens if the buyer misses a deadline?

The purchase price gets the attention, but the rest of the contract often decides whether the seller has a new set of problems.

Not that every buyer-written contract is bad, but a seller should not assume a contract is fair.

A better approach is simple: before signing, understand what the contract says, what deadlines it creates, and what leverage it gives the buyer. And seek advice when needed.

Not legal advice. Just something FSBO sellers should think about before signing something prepared by the buyer.

Many homeowners want to sell their home without a realtor. For those of you considering that path, here are a few things to avoid as you prepare.

Some of these may be obvious. Some you may not have thought of before now:

• Pricing based entirely on Zillow or online estimates

• Using outdated or generic contract forms

• Waiting until a buyer is found to address title issues

• Missing municipal inspection or transfer requirements

• Assuming the buyer pays all closing costs

None of these mistakes automatically kill a deal, but they might end up costing you time, money, or both.

Does anyone have anything to add to the list?

When you sell your home in the Chicago area, your realtor will probably recommend an attorney to represent you.

That recommendation may be perfectly fine. Your realtor's referral can be a helpful starting point.

But it should not automatically be the ending point.

In a real estate transaction, your attorney has a different role than your realtor. Your realtor is there to help negotiate the deal, manage the process, and get the transaction to closing. Your attorney is there to review the contract, flag legal risks, negotiate attorney review issues, address inspection disputes, review title and survey matters, explain closing figures, and protect your interests.

Most of the time, everyone wants the same thing: a smooth closing.

But that's not always how things turn out.

Sometimes protecting the client means slowing things down. Sometimes it means pushing back on a repair request, a closing date extension, a possession issue, a tax credit, or contract language that creates risk. Sometimes it means saying, “This may close, but you need to understand what you are agreeing to.”

That is why independence matters.

The issue is not whether a realtor’s recommended attorney is good or bad.

The issue is whether the attorney's advice is informed by your best interests, or the continued referrals of your realtor.

Before hiring the attorney your realtor recommends, ask:

• What percentage of the attorney's practice involves residential real estate?
• How many real estate transactions does the attorney handle in an average year?
• How responsive is the attorney?
• Will you be working with the attorney or a non-attorney on the staff.
• What is included in their attorney fee?
• Are they willing to push back when necessary?
• Are they focused on protecting you, or just getting the file to closing?

A realtor recommendation can be useful. But your closing attorney should be your choice.

In a real estate transaction, convenience is nice. Independence matters a lot more.

A lot of FSBO sellers understandably focus on one big question:

“How do I find a buyer?”

That makes sense. No buyer, no sale.

But once you do find a buyer, the hard part is not necessarily over.

That is when the transaction actually has to survive:

• Attorney review
• Inspection
• Appraisal
• Buyer Financing Approval
• Title Issues
• Survey issues
• Municipal transfer requirements
• Possession disputes
• Credits, repairs, and last-minute negotiations

A handshake and a signed contract are not the same thing as a closed sale.

This is especially important in Chicagoland, where we have a particular set of local customs, such as: attorney review, tax credits, title company requirements, and municipal rules can all affect the timeline.

The big mistake I see FSBO sellers make is treating the contract like the end of the process. It is really just the beginning of a new phase.

Before accepting an offer, sellers should understand:

• Is the buyer actually qualified?
• What contingencies are in the contract?
• What deadlines matter?
• What happens if the buyer asks for repairs or credits?
• What documents will the title company need?
• What local requirements apply before closing?
• Who is coordinating the moving pieces?

Selling without a listing agent does not mean selling without a process.

It just means the seller needs to be more intentional about managing that process.

Not legal advice, just hard earned knowledge from experience.

As I post this in May 2026, most sellers in the Chicago market don't need to worry about finding a buyer. If your property is priced right, you'll have more offers than you can shake a stick at. Because of this, many sellers are deciding to sell without a realtor (FSBO).

If you decide to sell your home FSBO, there are some things to plan for if you want to make it to closing without losing your mind.

• You need a proper written contract. (not something your favorite LLM spun up for you)
• Your buyer may turn the inspection into a second negotiation. (or you can insist on an "as is" provision)
• Your buyer’s financing needs to be approved. (unless the buyer forgoes a mortgage contingency)
• The appraisal can create problems if the value comes in low. (appraisal gap waivers can help alleviate this concern)
• Title issues, liens, old mortgages, or missing documents can delay closing. (don't let this kind of thing pop up last minute)
• Tax prorations, payoff letters, municipal requirements, and closing figures still have to be handled.

That gap between “we found a buyer” and “we closed” is where a lot of the stress lives. So, make sure you are prepared for these things before you list your property FSBO. That way you can avoid a lot of unnecessary stress in the process.

Not legal advice. Just hard-earned experience from real estate closings in the Chicago area.

If you own commercial property in Cook County, the tax bill is not the time to start thinking about whether the assessment is wrong.

The appeal process is tied to assessment notices and township filing windows. Cook County publishes township-specific reassessment and appeal dates, and owners may have opportunities at both the Assessor level and the Board of Review level.

For commercial and income-producing property, the appeal may involve more than basic comparable sales. Owners may need to gather documents like:

• Rent rolls
• Leases
• Income and expense records
• Vacancy information
• Property records
• Appraisals or sales data

The mistake I see commercial owners make is waiting until the tax bill arrives. By then, the owner may already have missed the most useful window to challenge the value.

The better approach is simple: when the assessment notice arrives, review it immediately, check the filing deadline, and start gathering evidence before the appeal window becomes a scramble.

Bottom line: don't get bamboozled by the county assessor. Commercial tax appeals are easier to prepare when you treat them like asset management, not last-minute damage control.

Not legal advice, just hard earned experience.

If you own a condo in Cook County and your assessment and/or tax bill recenting jumped, your chances at successfully appealing are going to be tied to what your neighbors do.

That's why you should be urging your condo board to consider an appeal for the entire building.

Condo buildings are often uniquely suited for assessment appeals because there may be many similar units in the same building: same layout, same tier, similar square footage, similar condition, similar amenities, similar market factors.

That can make it easier to spot whether the building, or certain groups of units within the building, are being overassessed.

Instead of every owner trying to figure this out separately, the condo board may want to consider whether a coordinated building-wide appeal makes sense.

Why?

1. The board may have access to better building-wide data A single owner may only know what happened to one unit. The board may be able to look at patterns across the building.
2. The issue may affect many owners If multiple units were hit with questionable increases, this may not be a one-owner problem.
3. Similar units make comparison easier Condos often have better internal comparison points than single-family homes.
4. Timing matters Cook County appeal windows are based on township deadlines. If the board waits until owners are complaining about the actual tax bill, the appeal window may already be gone.
5. The association needs to handle the filing correctly An individual owner filing for their own unit is one thing. A condo association pursuing a group appeal is different and should be handled carefully.

If you are a condo owner, this is worth raising with your board sooner rather than later:

“Has the association reviewed whether our building should file a group property tax assessment appeal?”

That is a better question than waiting for every owner to complain separately after the damage is done.

Disclaimer: General information only. Not legal or tax advice.

If you own property in Cook County, there's a good chance that your 2024 property tax bill was a bit of a shocker.

The increase you noticed is a good news/bad news situation.

The good news - your property is (probably) worth a lot more than it was worth in 2021 (the last re-assessment year for city property).

The bad news - your property tax bill now reflects that without a concurrent boost in your cash flow.

What to do?

One thing you may consider is appealing your tax assessment. Here are three common bases for a successful appeal.

1. Lack of uniformity
This means similar homes in your assessment neighborhood are assessed lower than yours. The key word is similar. You want properties that are close in location, classification, size, age, construction, and general characteristics.

2. Incorrect property characteristics
Sometimes the county’s records are wrong. Examples may include incorrect square footage, wrong classification, or inaccurate property details. If the description is wrong in a meaningful way, that can affect the assessment.

3. Overvaluation
This means the Assessor’s market value estimate is higher than what the evidence supports. Useful evidence may include a recent arms-length purchase, comparable sales, a closing statement, sales contract, or appraisal.

A good appeal usually starts with a clear argument, not just frustration with the number on the bill.

The Cook County Assessor's Office thrives on frustration. Common sense... not so much.