Sell your house fast in Markham
Ranch, bungalow or vacant house anywhere in Markham: we buy as-is and take on the city’s inspection and water transfer stamp for you.
- Cash offer within 24 hours
- No repairs, fees or commissions
- We handle the city inspection
Your Markham cash offer
No obligation. We never sell your info. Prefer to talk? Call or text (773) 825-9855.
Selling a house in Markham
Markham is a city of about 11,700 people some 20 miles south of the Loop, in Bremen and Thornton townships. Posen and Midlothian are to the north, Harvey to the east, Hazel Crest and Country Club Hills to the south and Oak Forest to the west. I-57 cuts through on a diagonal, and a one-mile stretch of 159th Street links the I-57 and I-294 interchanges across the middle of town. Cook County’s courthouse for the south suburbs is on Kedzie Avenue. The Gensburg-Markham Prairie, a National Natural Landmark, protects some of the area’s original wet prairie.
Farming started in the 1840s and 1850s. Markham incorporated in 1925, named for Illinois Central Railroad president Charles H. Markham. Early residents came for railroad and factory jobs in neighboring Harvey. The city had 349 people in 1930 and about 11,700 by 1960.
That growth shows in the housing. Close to six in ten homes were built between 1940 and 1969, and about 95 percent are single-family houses, most with three bedrooms. Croissant Park dates from the mid-1930s. Bel Aire and Country Aire are other established neighborhoods.
The south suburbs are our busiest buying area, and Markham’s post-war houses are a big part of that. If your home has been kept up and updated, listing it may bring a better price, and we’ll tell you that. A cash sale fits better for a house with original plumbing or wiring, a basement that has flooded, an inherited home or a property that has been sitting empty.
What to expect
Call or fill out the form, and we’ll look through the house with you once. A cash offer follows within 24 hours, and we explain each number in it. Closing takes place at a local title company on a date you pick, and the normal closing costs are ours to pay.
What to know before you sell in Markham
- A flat stamp fee, not a percentage tax. Markham charges a set fee per parcel instead of a tax based on the price, and it lists the fee as a seller cost. When you sell to us, we pay it, along with the Illinois tax (50 cents per $500) and the Cook County tax (25 cents per $500).
- Inspection before the sale. City code requires an inspection before a house is sold, rented or transferred. The fee includes one re-inspection within 60 days. We schedule it.
- Final water reading. Markham requires a final meter reading, and the water bill has to be paid in full before the deed can be recorded.
- Daily fines for skipping steps. The city lists daily penalties for a transfer that doesn’t follow its rules, so the title company doesn’t close until the stamp, inspection and water bill are in order.
- Taxes a year behind. Cook County property taxes are paid in arrears. Your proceeds cover a credit to the buyer for the months you owned the house this year.
- Probate is downtown. Markham has a Cook County courthouse, but probate cases go to the Daley Center in Chicago.
Markham’s fee amounts have changed in recent years, so the title company gets the current figures from City Hall before closing.
Side by side: selling a Markham home two ways
| Sell to us | List with an agent | |
|---|---|---|
| Repairs | Not your job when you sell to us | Expect requests after the buyer’s inspection |
| Showings | We come once | Repeated tours and open houses |
| Commission | You pay none | Generally a share of the price |
| Closing costs | We pay them | Seller pays |
| Basement water history | Priced into our offer | Disclosed to buyers, and it can cost you offers |
| Timing | As little as 2–3 weeks, or on your schedule | Marketing time, then 30–45 days for the loan |
| Certainty | We pay cash, so no loan approval | Lender, appraisal or inspection issues can stop it |
| Price | Below retail, priced for condition | Top price for updated homes |
Most Markham houses are post-war, so a buyer’s inspector is looking at plumbing, wiring and foundations 60 or 70 years old. Kept up? Listing can make sense. Flooded basement or original systems? Our offer gives you a firm number to weigh.
Selling a Markham home with a flood history
Cook County’s hazard plan counts 18 repetitive-loss properties in Markham, all single-family homes, none of them mitigated. It names the Bel Aire subdivision and the Country Aire neighborhood as flood-prone, and a study is underway for Bel Aire. The Calumet Union Drainage Ditch runs through the city, and the east side’s combined sewers are being separated.
If water has come into your basement, Illinois law expects you to tell a buyer about the flooding you know of, and that can scare off buyers who need a loan. Let us know how often it has flooded and what repairs were made. Our offer already accounts for it, and no cleanup or waterproofing is needed first.
Three steps. You pick the closing date.
- Tell us about the house
Fill out the form or call (773) 825-9855. A few quick questions, no pressure.
- Get a fair cash offer in 24 hours
We look at the house with you and show you how we got the number. No obligation.
- Close on your date
As soon as 2–3 weeks, or take more time. We close at a local title company and pay your closing costs.
Markham FAQ
Does Markham charge a transfer tax?
Not one based on price. Markham charges a flat stamp fee per parcel, billed to the seller, but we cover it, along with the state and county taxes.
Will Markham inspect my house before I sell?
Yes. City code calls for an inspection before a sale or transfer. We set it up and handle the results.
My house in Bel Aire has flooded. Will you make an offer?
Yes. We buy flood-damaged houses as-is, including ones that haven’t been cleaned up.
The courthouse is in Markham. Is that where probate happens?
No. The Markham courthouse handles other south suburban cases, but Cook County probate is at the Daley Center downtown.
The house has been empty since my father passed. Can I still sell it as-is?
Yes. Once you have authority to sell, we handle the city inspection, water reading and other closing steps.
How soon could the sale close?
Usually 2–3 weeks after the title work and city inspection are done, or later if that suits you.