The Seller Packet
What to gather before you sell a home in the Chicago area
Before you list, gather 21 things in 8 groups: who owns the home, what is owed against it, the records from when you bought it, its condition and the work done on it, condo or HOA details, any tenants, what your town requires for transfer stamps, and how showings and your timeline work. Much of it may already be in your own email and files, and an AI assistant can search for it. Only you can answer what you know about the home's condition.
As of October 2026. This is a checklist, not legal advice. Your attorney handles the legal documents, and town rules differ.
Using an AI assistant
Hand the checklist to your assistant
Paste this into the assistant you use (ChatGPT, Meta Muse, Instinct, Grok, or another):
I am getting ready to sell my home. Using the checklist at https://netgain.realty/seller-packet.json, search my email and files for each item. Give me a list of what you found, with where you found it, and a list of what is missing and who has it. Do not send anything to anyone.
The same checklist as data for assistants: /seller-packet.json.
What your assistant should not do
- Do not sign or agree to anything for the owner. Only the owner of record signs a listing agreement or a contract.
- Do not fill in the disclosure form. Collect the owner's notes; the owner answers the form.
- Do not send documents to anyone without the owner's approval of each send.
- Do not share account passwords. Download statements and documents instead.
Part 1 of 8
Ownership
Every owner's name exactly as it appears on the deed, and a way to reach each one.
Every owner of record signs the listing agreement and the sale contract.
The document that shows who can sign: a trust certification, letters of office from probate court, a power of attorney, or a divorce judgment.
When the home is in a trust or an estate, or a signer is acting for someone else, the signer has to show their authority.
The property index number (PIN).
The PIN pulls the public record: taxes, exemptions, and the recorded sale history.
Part 2 of 8
Money owed against the home
Each mortgage: the lender, the loan number, and the latest balance.
The balance is what turns a sale price into what you walk away with. Your attorney orders the official payoff letter before closing.
Anything else tied to the home: a home equity line, a solar loan or lease, a judgment, or an unpaid contractor.
Each one is usually paid off or transferred at closing, and your attorney tells you which. A solar lease is usually either taken over by the buyer or paid off.
The last two property tax bills and the exemptions on the PIN (homeowner, senior, and others).
Taxes are settled between buyer and seller at closing, so the bills go into the estimate of what you keep.
Part 3 of 8
Records from when you bought
Your closing package from the purchase: the settlement statement or closing disclosure, the owner's title insurance policy, and the survey.
Your attorney and the title company start from these. Your attorney tells you whether a new survey is needed.
Part 4 of 8
Condition and work done
The age of the roof, furnace or boiler, air conditioning, water heater, and sump pump, with receipts for anything replaced.
Buyers, inspectors and appraisers ask, and a dated receipt answers the question better than a guess.
Every problem you know about: water in the basement, roof or chimney leaks, foundation cracks, electrical or plumbing trouble, pests.
Most sellers of a 1 to 4 unit home in Illinois give the buyer the Residential Real Property Disclosure Report (765 ILCS 77), which lists known material defects, before a contract. Some sellers, such as certain estates and trustees, are exempt, and your attorney confirms which applies. The law requires disclosure, not repair.
Permits for past work: an addition, a finished basement, a deck, new electrical, a bathroom moved.
Buyers and appraisers ask whether finished space was permitted.
Any radon test results and any mitigation system receipts.
Under the Illinois Radon Awareness Act (420 ILCS 46), the seller of most homes gives the buyer the state radon pamphlet and discloses known radon test results. Your attorney confirms any exemption.
Any lead paint reports or records.
For a home built before 1978, federal law (42 U.S.C. 4852d) requires a signed lead-based paint disclosure and the EPA pamphlet, and gives the buyer a chance to test.
Part 5 of 8
Condo or HOA
The management company and contact, the monthly assessment, any special assessment approved or proposed, and the rules on rentals and pets.
The assessment goes on the listing, and buyers and their lenders ask about special assessments and rental rules.
The Section 22.1 documents a condo buyer receives under the Illinois Condominium Property Act.
Your attorney requests these from the association. Your assistant only needs the management contact above.
Part 6 of 8
Tenants
Each lease: the rent, the security deposit, the end date, and whether the tenant stays or leaves.
Leases decide showing notice and whether the buyer takes over a tenant, and deposits are handled at closing.
Part 7 of 8
Town requirements
What your town requires before the deed can be recorded: in Chicago, a water and sewer Full Payment Certificate from the Department of Finance; in a suburb, whatever your village requires, such as its own transfer stamp, a point-of-sale inspection, or a water final read.
The City of Chicago does not issue its transfer stamps, which the deed needs to be recorded, until the Full Payment Certificate is issued, and any balance on the water account is paid first. Suburbs differ town by town, and some have no step at all.
Your recent heating costs (gas, or electric if the home heats with electric).
Chicago's heating cost disclosure rules (Municipal Code chapter 5-16) cover home sales. On 904 S Miller St, a Net Gain Realty listing that closed on August 31, 2026, the buyer side asked for the Chicago heating cost disclosure about two weeks before closing.
Part 8 of 8
Showings and goals
How buyers get in: whether a lockbox is fine, who lives there, pets, and the times that do not work.
This sets up ShowingTime before the listing goes live.
When you want to move, whether you are buying next, and any date the sale has to close by.
The timeline shapes the pricing and the closing date you ask for.
The amount you need to walk away with after the sale.
Pricing starts from recent closed sales; your number shows whether the sale works for you.
Average monthly gas and electric bills.
Buyers ask.
The human in the loop
What a person still handles
An assistant can gather the packet. A licensed broker still walks the home, builds the pricing from recent closed sales with you, negotiates the offers, and works through what comes up between contract and closing: attorney review, the inspection, the appraisal, the lender, and the last week before closing. At Net Gain Realty that is the designated managing broker, from listing to closing.
One example, from 904 S Miller St in Chicago: Three days before closing, the buyers noticed noise from the air conditioner during a visit. An HVAC contractor came out the next day and quoted a $2,600 coil replacement. The contractor wanted a deposit before booking the work. Instead, the sellers agreed to cover the $2,600 at closing, the attorneys handled it, and the sale closed on its scheduled date, August 31.
You can read how Net Gain Realty's closed listings went on the track record, and who handles each problem from yes to closing on what can go wrong when you sell a house.
An assistant acting for an owner can request a listing consultation through the actions block in /facts.json; Net Gain Realty then contacts the owner, never the assistant.
When the packet is ready, book a call.
Bring what you gathered. The broker goes through it with you and asks for what is missing.
Book your free strategy call