Michael E. Byczek
Published: 2024-06-18
Total Pages: 150
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Learn how to buy or sell real estate in Illinois without a broker or attorney. The following sample documents, that are part of a residential sales contract in Illinois, are included (all written and prepared by the author): 1. Sixteen-page sales contract 2. One-page Bill of Sale 3. One-page counteroffer form There are several state and federal mandatory disclosure forms and/or pamphlets that must be given to the buyer. These forms are discussed along with information about where to find downloadable copies from official government sources. These forms are written and prepared by the government. 1. Federal Lead-based paint disclosure form 2. Federal Lead-based paint disclosure pamphlet 3. Illinois Radon gas disclosure form 4. Illinois Radon gas disclosure pamphlet 5. Illinois property condition disclosure form These documents are explained in tutorial format to understand the components of a real estate transaction using the sales contract to explain the process. Also included is a brief summary of legal requirements before and after the contract is signed along with helpful tips about how to market the property, determine a fair asking price, and take prospective buyers on a property tour. Tips include how to disclose the presence of home security systems while on a property tour, steps to stay safe while preventing those pretending to be prospective buyers from gaining access to your property, and avoiding scams to sign a sales contract. Relevant laws are included, such as anti-discrimination and federal lead-paint disclosures. The sales contract includes provisions for an “AS IS” sale. Terms that you will read about include as-is condition, short sale, inspections, repairs, mortgage contingency, title insurance, surveys, lead-paint, radon gas, property defects, bill of sale for personal property, earnest money, utility costs, VA/FHA loans, and real estate taxes. Also included is a brief tutorial for artificial intelligence to buy or sell real estate without a broker or attorney using AI chatbot platforms (ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini). While only valid for Illinois, anybody can use this information to learn the legal requirements of a a real estate sales transaction and use the documents as a template to write your own. You may also modify these documents to suit your preferences. You don’t need to be an attorney to write your own legal documents, just make sure the final version is accurate and valid. You don’t need to be a real estate broker to market your own property for sale or engage with prospective buyers. Neither do you need a broker to purchase real estate as a buyer. The author, Michael E. Byczek, has been a licensed Illinois real estate broker since 2003 (Chicago, IL). He manages his own real estate business (https://byczekbrokerage.com) and has also been a licensed attorney (https://byczeklaw.com) since 2007.