Successfully selling a home or condo in the West Loop for the most amount of money requires the precise combination of: pricing the home correctly, timing, a solid marketing plan and making the condition of the home the best it can be to show to potential home buyers.
1) List Your Home in the West Loop for the Right Price
West Loop Home Pricing
Listing your home in the West Loop for the right price is the first and most important step to selling your home. When you list your home for sale at a competitive price, you attract the most interest from home buyers and real estate agents who have home buyer clients that are ready to make an offer. Listing your West Loop home for sale at the right price will attract the most attention to your listing and give you as the home seller the best opportunity to receive multiple offers for your home. Attracting multiple offers could get you much more money for your home than you originally anticipated because competitive real estate bidding increases the purchase price - especially in a hot West Loop real estate market with low home buyer inventory. Receiving a strong offer from a well-qualified home buyer over asking price is the best scenario for our home seller clients.
When you list a home at a price that is too high, and the home sits on the market with little to no showing activity, it raises red flags with savvy West Loop home buyers and real estate agents and they may think that something is wrong with your home listing. Listing too high may also force the home seller to eventually drop the price of the home below market value to compete with new, competitively priced listings.
Questions a home buyer might ask if the home is overpriced and sitting on the market
Are the photos of the home deceiving?
Does your home need more repairs and updating than the pictures indicate?
Is the seller being unreasonable with the asking price and refusing to negotiate?
Is there a large special assessment or another issue with the condo building / HOA that is not being disclosed?
Are the bedrooms too small or is the floor plan not desirable?
Want to Know What Your Home is Worth?
Connect with a West Loop Real Estate Expert to Get the Highest Price for Your Home. Call 312-767-7504
West Loop Listing Agent
2) Preparing Your Home for Showings in the West Loop
Before we list your home for sale, it is vital that you take the proper steps to prepare your home so that it looks its best when home buyers walk through your door. Always ensure that your home is “open house ready”. The condition of your home and how your home shows to home buyers will have a big impact on the amount of time that your home is on market and the quality of offers that we receive for your home.
Here is a checklist of steps to take before we list your home for sale
West Loop Home Staging
Clean hardwood floors and shampoo carpets
Move furniture so that home buyers can easily walk around your home
Remove all clutter and personal items of value and lock it in a secure location
Change lightbulbs and turn on lights
Make all beds
Open blinds and pull curtains back to create as much natural sunlight as possible
If you have already moved out of your home, we may want to consider staging your home in order to sell your home fast. Everyday that your home sits on the market and is vacant, it costs you - the home seller, money. Staging your home will help prospective home buyers envision their furniture in the home and will give home buyers a better sense of the flow of the home, how the floor plan will work for them and the dimensions of each room. Staging can be vital to the success of selling your home for the highest amount of money possible.
3) Timing - When to List Your West Loop Home For Sale
Those that know Chicago real estate, know that timing is everything. Chicago real estate tends to gain momentum right after the first week of February and the home buyer run tends to last through October. During the holidays, the amount of home buyers entering the market tends to decrease, however those home buyers that are actively looking during the holidays are SERIOUS home buyers.
It may be ideal to list your home in the spring season, when the most home buyers are actively looking to purchase a home. More home buyers means a higher chance of multiple offers, which also means a higher chance of receiving more money for the sale of your home. The spring season in Chicago also means that the most homes are listed for sale during that time. This means that the inventory of homes for sale increases and you will be facing more competition when your home hits that market.
The best advice for clients seeking to sell their home is that the best time to sell your home, is when you are ready. Certain factors that are beyond your control may be that you are relocating to another city or state for a new job, moving back to your hometown to be closer to family, downsizing to manage less space, or upsizing to have more space and bedrooms for growing your family. Whatever the case may be, we are here for you every step of the way and will make the home selling process as easy as possible so you can transition to your new endeavor in life stress free.
Is it Time to Sell Your Home?
Contact a West Loop Realtor Today to Get Started
Call 312-767-7504
West Loop Realtor
4) Your Home’s Marketing Plan to Successfully Sell Your West Loop Home
Creating an effective marketing plan is essential to selling your home fast and for the most amount of money. Technology driven marketing is at the core of our home seller services and for good reason - 95% of today’s real estate searches begin online. Once the listing agreement is signed to sell your home, we create a timeline with specific calendar dates for all of our marketing services to maximize the exposure of your home to thousands of home buyers.
Our Home Seller Services Include:
Home Seller Marketing Plan
Connect with your building’s HOA or property management company to get relevant information for listing
Schedule the logistics for all showings, setting up lockbox, approving / denying showing requests
Schedule photo shoots and video shoots for real estate marketing materials and virtual tours
Write property description
List your home on the MLS and feed your home for sale listing to hundreds of other online real estate websites such as Zillow, Trulia, Realtor.com and Redfin for maximum online exposure.
Conduct pre-listing home inspection and hire handyman, contractors and cleaners as needed prior to listing
Install For Sale signage
Schedule professional floor plan measurements
Schedule and promote open houses
Send postcard marketing mailings, print property brochures and flyers
Geo-target home buyers via Google and Facebook ads
Build custom property website
Pre-market PR push of listing to local media outlets + mass email blasts to thousands of Chicago real estate agents
Schedule Broker’s Open House with music, refreshments and lunch
5) Receiving Multiple Offers from West Loop Home Buyers
When pricing, timing and a solid marketing plan are in place and aligned with the best showing condition of the home or condo, you as the home seller will be in the best position to receive multiple offers which will ensure that you receive the highest price possible for your home in the West Loop. Each of these factors when combined together are essential to successfully selling your home for the most amount of money.
After receiving multiple offers for your West Loop home, your expert West Loop real estate agent’s job will be to review the offers with you and bring attention to the pros and cons of each offer to help you make the best decision on which offer to accept from a qualified West Loop home buyer.
Some factors to consider when reviewing multiple offers are:
Cash Offer or Mortgage Contingency
Buyer’s Lender if Buyer is taking out a Mortgage (via pre-approval letter)
Price
Closing Date (does this align with your desired closing date?)
Amount of Earnest Money
% Buyer is Putting Down
Other contingencies (“As Is”, FHA financing)
Real Estate Tax Proration Request
Closing Cost Credit Request
Contact an Expert West Loop Real Estate Agent to Sell Your Home Today. Call 312-767-7504
West Loop Real Estate Agent