Selling a house for cash is simpler than a traditional sale, but simple does not mean vague. You deserve to know exactly what each step involves before you start. We are Sell Home Chicago, a local cash home buyer, and this page walks through our process from your first message to the cash you collect at closing, with nothing hidden in between.
There are three steps: tell us about the house, get your cash offer, and choose your closing day and get paid. No repairs, no cleaning, no showings and no fees sit anywhere along the way. Here is what happens at each stage, and why a cash sale moves faster than a sale that depends on a bank loan.
Ready to begin? Send the address and a few details for a fair, no obligation cash offer.
Tell us about the house
The first step is a short conversation. Send the form with the property address and a few details, or call and tell us about the house. We want the basics: where it is, roughly what condition it is in, and your timeline. You do not need to prepare anything, gather paperwork or clean a single room.
This costs nothing and commits you to nothing. We are not signing you up for a listing or putting your house on a market. We are gathering what we need to work out a fair number. If a detail about the house is awkward, a hoarded room, a tenant who will not leave, a lien you are unsure about, tell us anyway. It helps us, and none of it scares us off. Our we buy houses page lists the kinds of houses and conditions we take.
Get your cash offer, and how we build it
Once we have the details, we work out what we can pay and come back to you with a cash offer. A fair offer is built, not guessed, and we will show you how we reached ours so the number makes sense before you decide anything.
We start from what your house would sell for in good, updated condition, based on what similar homes near you in Chicago have recently sold for. From that we subtract the cost of the repairs the house needs to reach that condition, the costs of buying and reselling it, and the margin we need to stay in business. What remains is the cash we can pay you today, as-is, with no financing and no waiting.
A cash offer comes in below full retail, and we tell every seller that plainly. What you trade that difference for is real: no agent commission, no repairs, no showings, no closing costs out of your pocket, and a firm date with cash at the end. The offer carries no obligation, so you can take it, think it over, or walk away. Our cash home buyers page explains why a cash offer is more certain than a financed one, and sell my house for cash goes deeper on the offer and the payment.
Ask for your offer and we will walk you through the number, with no pressure to accept.
Choose your closing day and get paid
If the offer works for you, you pick the closing date. We close at a local title company, a neutral third party that handles the paperwork, confirms the title is clear, and pays out the money. Any mortgage still on the house, along with liens or back taxes, is paid off there out of the sale, and whatever is left is yours.
We cover the normal closing costs, so the amount we agree on is the amount written up for you, with no surprise deductions at the end. You get paid in cash, by wire or check, whichever suits you. Many sales close in about one to two weeks, because there is no loan to wait on, but the date is yours. If you need longer to move, you take it, and we can work out the move-out together.
Why a cash sale moves faster
The slow part of a normal sale is the buyer’s mortgage. A financed buyer has to pass loan underwriting and a bank appraisal, which commonly stretches a sale past a month after an offer, and the loan can still be denied at the last minute. Because we pay cash, there is no lender in the deal, so none of that applies. There is no underwriting, no appraisal to wait on, and no financing that can fall through.
- No mortgage lender, so no loan underwriting or bank appraisal to wait on
- No repairs or inspections required before a sale can close
- No listing, staging or showings to schedule around
- No agent commission, and we cover the normal closing costs
- A firm closing date you choose, often in about one to two weeks
None of this is a guarantee of a particular price or a particular day, because every house and situation is different. What we can promise is a straight answer and a process with no fees and no surprises. If you are weighing a cash sale against listing, or facing a specific reason to sell, our situations page covers the situations people come to us with, and our contact page is the place to start when you are ready.
Start with a fair cash offer on your house
Send the address and a few details and we will get back to you with a fair, no obligation cash offer. There is no cost, and no commitment to go further.
Start with the form or a call, and get a fair, no obligation cash offer on your Chicago house.
Questions people ask
How long does the whole process take?
From your first message to cash in hand is often about one to two weeks, though it depends on the house and the title work. We can usually give you an offer quickly after we have the details. If you need to close faster, tell us, and if you need more time, you set a later date. See our sell my house fast page for more on the timeline.
Do I pay anything during the process?
No. There is no cost to ask for an offer, no fee to accept one, and no agent commission, because we are the buyer and not an agent. We also cover the normal closing costs. The cash figure we agree on is what is written up for you at the title company, with nothing deducted at the end.
What do I need to send to get an offer?
The property address, a rough idea of the condition, and your timeline are enough to start. Photos help but are not required. You do not need to clean, repair or gather documents first. If there is something unusual about the house or the title, telling us early lets us account for it in the offer.
Can I change my mind after I get the offer?
Yes. The offer carries no obligation. You can accept it, take time to think, compare it against listing with an agent, or walk away and owe us nothing. We would rather give you a straight number you turn down than push you into a sale. The decision and the closing date are both yours.
Why do you close at a title company?
A title company is a neutral third party that confirms the title is clear, handles the paperwork, pays off any mortgage, liens or back taxes out of the sale, and releases your money. Closing there protects both sides and keeps the sale clean and on the record. You sign, and the funds are paid to you in cash by wire or check.