HELPING YOU FIND YOUR PERFECT HOMEHome Purchases
We pride ourselves on offering our buyers unparalleled guidance and support throughout the purchase process. From our classes for homebuyers to providing thoughtful advice from years of experience, we’re here for you, every step of the way.
OLIVIA B.“I felt informed & prepared every step of the way & finally found my dream condo through their creative and expert guidance!”
HOW WE WORK WITH BUYERSOur Difference
Understanding Your Goals
We start with a real conversation. We want to know what you are looking for, what your timeline looks like, and what matters most to you in a home. Location, space, commute, outdoor space, school district: these are the things that shape your search, and we take them seriously from the start.
Building Your Search Strategy
Once we understand your priorities, we build a search strategy around them. That means the MLS, but it also means Compass's Private Exclusive network, which gives our buyers access to homes that are not publicly listed anywhere. In a market where the right property can go under contract in days, having access to off-market inventory is a real advantage.
Navigating the Contract to Close
In Illinois, the purchase contract triggers a five business day attorney review period. After that comes inspection, any repair negotiations, financing contingency deadlines, and closing. We stay on top of every step and make sure you know what is happening and why. Our buyers are not surprised at the closing table.
Making Competitive Offers
Writing an offer requires more than filling out a contract. We help you understand the strength of your position, how to price your offer relative to recent sales, and which terms matter most to sellers in a given situation. We have helped buyers navigate multiple offer scenarios, changing interest rate environments, and everything in between.
WHY CHOOSE THE EVERETT GROUPEDUCATING BUYERS SINCE 2015
One of the things that separates us from most teams is that we have been running homebuyer education classes since 2015. We have helped more than 5,000 buyers learn the process through our online classes, in-person events, and partnerships with companies including Deloitte, Uber, and Salesforce.
Our class, taught alongside our preferred mortgage broker, covers the seasonal patterns of the Chicago market, how to budget for closing costs, what a home inspector is actually looking for, how to evaluate an offer situation, and more. It is free and open to anyone considering a purchase, with no obligation to work with us afterward.
If you are early in the process and want to learn before you commit, this is a good place to start.
WHY CHOOSE THE EVERETT GROUPEDUCATING BUYERS SINCE 2015
One of the things that separates us from most teams is that we have been running homebuyer education classes since 2015. We have helped more than 5,000 buyers learn the process through our online classes, in-person events, and partnerships with companies including Deloitte, Uber, and Salesforce.
Our class, taught alongside our preferred mortgage broker, covers the seasonal patterns of the Chicago market, how to budget for closing costs, what a home inspector is actually looking for, how to evaluate an offer situation, and more. It is free and open to anyone considering a purchase, with no obligation to work with us afterward.
If you are early in the process and want to learn before you commit, this is a good place to start.
WHAT OUR BUYERS SAY
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WHAT OUR BUYERS SAY /
✸ ✸ ✸ ✸ ✸
As a first-time buyer, they over-communicated every step of the way & took the time to explain the process to me.
LAURA M.✸ ✸ ✸ ✸ ✸
Professional, fun to work with, quick to respond to inquiries, & a very smoothly run business..
AUSTIN D.✸ ✸ ✸ ✸ ✸
So You Want to Buy a Condo was really informative and gave us ton of useful info to get us ready to look for our first home.
BAILEY Q.✸ ✸ ✸ ✸ ✸
They helped us navigate a changing rate environment & how to make compelling and competitive offers.
DANIEL W.✸ ✸ ✸ ✸ ✸
I felt informed & prepared every step of the way & finally found my dream vintage condo through their creative and expert guidance.
OLIVIA B.✸ ✸ ✸ ✸ ✸
They helped us navigate a changing rate environment & how to make compelling and competitive offers.
CAM R.
CURIOUS TO KNOW MORE?FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
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We recommend starting your search about four months before your lease ends. Most buyers find their home within two months of active searching, and closing typically takes another 30 to 45 days after that. If you are looking for something specific, or inventory in your target neighborhood is limited, build in more time. If your living situation is flexible, ask your landlord about going month-to-month. That removes a lot of pressure from the process.
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Get pre-approved before you start touring homes seriously. A pre-approval letter tells you how much a lender is willing to lend based on your income, assets, debt, and credit. You will need to submit it with any offer you make. In a competitive situation, an offer without pre-approval is rarely taken seriously by a seller.
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Plan for 3 to 4.5 percent of the purchase price in closing costs. This covers attorney fees, lender fees, title company fees, and transfer taxes. If you’re buying in Chicago, Cook County and the City of Chicago each charge real estate transfer taxes, so buyers purchasing within the city limits will pay both. Your lender or attorney will walk you through a projected closing cost estimate early in the process so there are no surprises at the end.
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When a seller lists a home, the agent enters it into the MLS. Private MLS listings are shared with agents and their clients but do not appear on public sites like Redfin or Zillow. As a Compass team, we also have access to Compass Private Exclusives: homes that are not listed anywhere publicly but are available to Compass buyers through our internal network. For buyers in competitive neighborhoods, this can mean seeing properties before anyone else does.
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We regroup immediately. We review the feedback from the listing agent, assess where your offer stood, and adjust your strategy if needed. We also keep you active in the meantime with open houses and coming soon previews so you are ready to move quickly when the right property comes up.
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That depends on your personal situation, not the market forecast. No one can reliably predict where rates are going or when. What we can do is help you understand the actual cost difference between buying now versus waiting, run through different rate scenarios with our preferred lender, and give you a clear picture of what the numbers look like. The decision is yours. We just want you to make it with accurate information.
Get Our Buyer Glossary
Real estate has its own language: earnest money, escalation clause, attorney review, financing contingency. If you are new to the process, the terminology alone can slow you down. We put together a glossary of the top 50 terms you are likely to encounter during your Chicago home search. Enter your email below and we will send it to you right away.
Ready to Start Your Search?
Whether you have a clear picture of what you want or you are still figuring it out, we are happy to talk. Fill out our buyer inquiry form with a few details about your situation and we will connect you with a member of our team for an initial conversation. No pressure, no commitment required at this stage.
