I'm our licensed realtor, an Illinois-licensed real estate agent. I work with buyers across SW Cook and Will County who want something the public MLS won't show them: off-market, distressed, or creative-financing properties where the math actually pencils out at today's prices.
This is the long-form version of the conversation I have with most new buyers. It explains how I source those deals, what kind of buyer each one is right for, and how to start the process with me without wasting a Saturday touring listings you'll never actually offer on.
"The hardest part of finding a great fixer-upper isn't the renovation. It's finding the property before the rest of the market does. That's the part I solve."
Why "off-market" is not a marketing slogan
The Chicago and south-suburb markets right now are running roughly 98% list-to-sale at about 44 days on market on the MLS. That means by the time a listing hits Zillow or Redfin, you're competing with cash investors, retail end-buyers, and out-of-state hedge buyers all chasing the same comp. The bid-up is fierce, even on properties that need work.
The properties I bring my buyers aren't on Zillow. They come through three channels:
- Direct-source distressed properties from my premier client, Sell Chicago Properties - an investment principal with extensive experience identifying, acquiring, and resolving title on Will and Cook County properties that need a cosmetic refresh but otherwise show beautifully. Their company site is here; their current and past inventory is what I get to list and represent.
- Tax-deed and tax-redemption transitions - owners working through Will County's redemption clock (the official deadlines are published by the Will County Supervisor of Assessments) who choose to transition rather than litigate. These often look brand new structurally; the only thing "wrong" is paperwork.
- Pre-MLS pocket listings through licensed agent-to-agent relationships. This is bread-and-butter Illinois Realtors network behavior - every licensed broker has access to it; very few buyers know to ask their agent for it.
The point: an MLS-only search is a search through what's left after my buyers and I have already passed. That's not a moral judgment - it's just the supply chain. If you want better inventory, you need an agent who sources differently. (For the legal framework around how IL agents handle these transactions, see the Illinois Real Estate License Act of 2000, 225 ILCS 454.)
About Sell Chicago Properties - my premier client
Sell Chicago Properties is an Illinois investment principal that I represent as listing agent on their distressed-property dispositions. They've spent years building relationships and infrastructure to source the kind of homes that work for cosmetic-rehab investors and value-conscious end-buyers - homes with great structural bones in great school districts that just need an updated kitchen, a paint refresh, and a hardware swap to compete with the recent comps.
They focus on:
- Tax-delinquent properties with structurally sound homes (the owner's situation is the only issue - not the building)
- Probate and post-divorce dispositions where the heirs want a fast clean exit
- Foreclosure-adjacent properties resolved through deed-in-lieu or short-sale structures
- Properties in 5/5-rated school districts (Lincoln-Way East feeder, Frankfort 157-C, etc.) where the school score holds value through every market cycle
Their playbook is the playbook real-estate investors learn in their second year: buy the worst-condition house in the best-rated school district, do cosmetic work on your own timeline, refi or resell into a market that already wants the address. The hard part is finding the houses. They've done that part for you.
Right now I'm representing them on 8936 Charrington Drive in Frankfort - a $549K cash / $549K creative-assignment opportunity in the Lincoln-Way East feeder where the same-street comp closed $623,500. Skip down to the featured-property block below or view the full listing.
Who I help - four kinds of buyers I work with
The "fixer-upper" or "distressed property" buyer is not one person. It's at least four. Here's how I think about each, and which kind of deal usually works for each.
Buyer profile 01
The first-time buyer willing to do two weekends of work
You can't afford a fully updated $625K Charrington Estates colonial in cash. But you can afford a $549K version where the cabinets need refinishing, the bath vanity is original 1996, and the family-room floor needs a coat. You have a weekend free, friends with tools, or the budget for a local cabinet guy. You'd rather sleep in your future master bedroom than pay $80K extra for someone else's renovation choices.
What I look for you: structurally sound homes in strong school districts where the only thing between the listed price and the recent same-street comp is paint, hardware, fixtures, and floor refresh. Roughly $25K-$40K of cosmetic work.
- Sound roof, no mechanical surprises
- Brick or solid framing built ~1990-2005
- Lincoln-Way, Lemont, Plainfield, Homer Glen, or Frankfort-157-C school feeders
- Lot size 0.25 acre or larger
Buyer profile 02
The end-buyer who wants their forever home below the comp
You're not flipping. You want to live in the house for a decade. You also want to step in below the neighborhood's resale comp so the first ten years build equity instead of just paying interest. You're willing to live with original 1996 finishes for six months while you renovate room by room on your timeline.
What I look for you: the most architecturally interesting and lot-strong home in a great-school neighborhood where the seller has a real reason to transition off-market (tax timeline, probate, divorce, relocation). Properties where you're paying the underwriter, not the realtor's open-house theater.
Buyer profile 03
The seasoned flipper / BRRRR operator
You've done five or fifteen of these. You underwrite in twenty minutes. You don't need handholding on the renovation scope - you need access to inventory that other flippers can't see. You also need creative-financing structures (subject-to, assignment with holdback, contract-for-deed) so you can deploy capital without locking it in a single deal.
What I look for you: tax-deed and tax-redemption properties where the seller has signed a notarized warranty deed and consented to a holdback structure. You can pay just the tax certificate up front and structure the rest through subject-to or escrow. (The legal framework lives in the Illinois Property Tax Code, 35 ILCS 200, particularly Articles 21-22 on tax sales and redemption.)
Buyer profile 04
The first-time flipper
This is one of my favorite buyers to work with, because the first flip is usually the one that sets a career. You've underwritten dozens on paper. You've watched HGTV until your spouse left the room. You're ready to put $35K of cosmetic work into a property and try to net $50K-$80K on the resale - and you want an agent who's been on the principal side of these deals, not just selling tract homes.
What I look for you: properties where the rehab is bounded - paint, floor, hardware, fixtures, counters - and the structural risk is essentially zero. I'll connect you with my go-to South-Suburb contractors (cabinet install, finish carpentry) so you don't lose your margin to subs who don't know the area. I'll also tell you the truth about which properties I would and wouldn't have flipped myself.
How working with me actually works
The process is shorter than people expect. Here's the honest version:
1. We talk for fifteen minutes.
Phone, text, or the chat widget on this page. I'll ask you four questions: budget, target market, what kind of work you're willing to do, and your timeline. That's enough for me to know what's in current inventory that fits you and what's likely coming.
2. I send you 1-3 specific properties.
Not a search-feed dump. Real options with my underwriting notes on each - comp math, condition assessment, what the rehab actually costs in this market, what the structural risk is, and what kind of financing structures the seller is open to. If nothing is currently a fit, I tell you that too.
3. We tour the one that lands.
Private showing, by appointment. You bring proof of funds for cash, or a pre-approval letter from a lender if you're financing. I bring the contractor, the structural answers, and the comp packet.
4. We write the offer the way the deal actually works.
For a Sell Chicago Properties listing, that often means a creative-financing path (full cash assignment, subject-to existing financing, or holdback escrow) alongside the straight cash option. I walk you through each one, with the cost-benefit. I represent the seller - but I'm an Illinois agent operating under 225 ILCS 454 and a written brokerage agreement, which means I tell you the truth about what works for you, even when it complicates what works for the seller. Bring your own attorney - I encourage it.
5. We close.
For our current Sell Chicago Properties inventory, closing typically lands within 7-10 days of accepted offer. Title work is already done. The deed is often pre-executed. You take possession on a defined timeline with built-in holdback protection against seller delay. If you've ever closed on a normal MLS sale you'll be shocked at how fast this is.
Currently representing
8936 Charrington Drive · Frankfort, IL
4 BR / 3.5 BA · 2,384 sqft · 0.32-acre lot in Lincoln-Way East feeder. Same-street comp closed $623,500. Listed $549,000 cash or $549,000 contract-assumption path. Close June 2. Sell Chicago Properties principal.
View the full listing -
The five questions a buyer should ask every distressed-property agent
- "How did you source this property?" If the answer is "it was on the MLS," that's a markup-focused buyer source, not an off-market deal. Real off-market has a real story.
- "What's the seller's actual situation?" Tax, probate, divorce, relocation, foreclosure-adjacent - each one shapes the negotiation. Anyone who can't answer this hasn't done the seller-side work.
- "What's the holdback / penalty structure?" On a distressed property the seller's incentives at closing matter as much as price. A $618/day post-close holdback is very different from "she promises to be out."
- "What's the comp and how recently did it close?" Same street within 12 months beats same-zip within 36. Ask for the BHHS or MRED records, not a Zillow estimate. (BHHS Chicago records are particularly clean for the south suburbs.)
- "Can I bring my own attorney?" If the answer hedges, walk away. The right answer is "please, bring two." (For attorney listings, ARDC's lawyer search is the public source of truth.)
What I won't bring you
I'll also say what I won't do, because it builds the trust the rest of this depends on. I won't bring you a property with active structural issues unless you specifically want a heavy rehab and we both go in with eyes open. I won't push you into a creative-financing structure you don't understand - if subject-to confuses you, we'll do cash. I won't represent a seller whose disclosed condition doesn't match what I see on the walk-through. And I will never make a representation about a property that isn't backed by something I can show you in writing.
I represent buyers and sellers under the disclosure framework of 225 ILCS 454 and the rules in 68 Ill Adm Code 1450. When I'm the listing agent, I disclose it. When I'm sourcing for a buyer-only relationship, we sign a brokerage agreement that says so. Always in writing. Always before the first showing.
