Archive for the 'Chicago Info/News' Category
Incentives To Buy Homes Now Keep Coming
August 23rd, 2010 categories: Chicago Info/News, Economic Recovery, For Buyers, Mortgage Info
It’s easy to get down on today’s residential housing market. Home values are down. Foreclosures are up. Sales are sluggish.
But all of these factors, which make selling a condominium or single-family home today so challenging, make this a great time to buy a home in Chicago.
The Illinois Association of REALTORS® reported that the median sales price of Chicago homes stood at $230,000 in the second quarter of this year. That’s an extremely affordable price for Chicago. And by taking out an FHA loan, buyers here only have to come up with a down payment of 3.5 percent of a home’s purchase price.
At the same time, inventory levels are high. Buyers have a lot from which to choose when it comes to buying condominiums or single-family homes in some of the city’s top neighborhoods, like Lincoln Park, Ravenswood, Lakeview, Lincoln Square and Streeterville.
Then there’s the news regarding mortgage interest rates. According to the latest numbers from Freddie Mac, the average interest rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage loan stood at an amazing 4.42 percent for the week ended Aug. 19. The rate for the average 15-year fixed-rate loan hit 3.90 percent. Both rates were down from the previous week, and down from the same period one year earlier. This means that buyers today can get more home for their dollars.
Even the high number of foreclosures in Chicago and the rest of the country can mean good news for buyers. When banks and other lending institutions have to re-sell their foreclosures, they usually do so at a greatly reduced price. Again, this gives buyers the opportunity to purchase homes for fewer dollars. Some buyers might purchase a foreclosure to be able to get into a neighborhood that they otherwise could not have afforded.
No one’s arguing that this is a difficult time in which to sell a home. But for first-time buyers and any others who don’t have to first sell a residence, this is a great time to buy.
PLEASE CLICK HERE TO VIEW PROPERTIES NOT YET ON THE MARKET.
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Singles Find Chicago Market A Welcoming One
July 26th, 2010 categories: Chicago Info/News, Chicago Real Estate News
The housing market may be a challenging one for sellers, but it’s not bad at all for buyers. And for single buyers in the Chicago area, today’s market is ideal.
The Daily Herald recently ran a story about the growing number of single buyers purchasing condominiums and single-family homes in the Chicago region.
This is a big change. It used to be that single men and women rented apartments. Today, though, a growing number of them are skipping the rental period altogether.
The reasons are many. For one thing, the median sales price of condominiums and single-family homes in Chicago and its suburbs has dropped during the housing slump. Chicago housing is more affordable today than it’s been in years. Single buyers can purchase more home for their dollars today.
Then there are the record-low mortgage interest rates. The average interest rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage loan was still well under 5 percent as of the middle of July. That’s a terrific rate. For single buyers, it means they’ll pay less each month on their mortgage payments.
The Herald story also points out that the now-expired first-time homebuyer tax credit from the federal government, which provided a tax credit of up to $8,000 to buyers who were purchasing their first homes, encouraged a larger number of single buyers to enter the housing market.
There are other benefits to single buyers today, too. Sellers in Chicago and its surrounding areas are often desperate to move their homes. They’re often willing to lower their asking prices and make more concessions to buyers, all to help sell their homes in less time. There’s also a large inventory of condos and single-family homes on the market today. Simply put, buyers have plenty of choices when looking for a Chicago home today.
Personally, I think it’s a great idea for singles to purchase their own homes as soon as possible. Residential real estate in the Chicago area has traditionally retained its value. Though there are never any guarantees, single buyers who purchase today at what might be near the bottom of the local housing market will be well positioned to see their home purchase increase in value before they sell.
PLEASE CLICK HERE TO VIEW PROPERTIES NOT YET ON THE MARKET.
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Homes Still Getting Bigger, Survey Says
July 19th, 2010 categories: Chicago Info/News
Yes, we’re still dealing with the aftereffects of the Great Recession. And, yes, housing prices, in Chicago and across the nation have fallen. A growing number of homeowners are underwater on their mortgage loans, owing more on them than what their residences are worth.
But even with all this we have it good, both in the United States and in Chicago.
At least that’s what the 2009 American Housing Survey by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development says. The Chicago Sun-Times recently ran a story highlighting the results of this survey. According to the survey, U.S. homes are getting larger, and the vast majority of them have the modern conveniences that we now take for granted.
The Sun-Times story showed that, according to the survey, the median size of an occupied home in the country is 1,800 square feet. That’s up from 1,600 square feet in 1985. Homes built since 2007 have a median size of 2,300 square feet, according to the survey.
These houses also come with more rooms. According to the study, 64 percent of homes today have three or more bedrooms. This is a big jump from 1973, when 48 percent of homes had three or more bedrooms. We also have more bathrooms today, with 51 percent of U.S. residences having two or more. In 1973, only 19 percent had two or more bathrooms.
Finally, most homes have the modern conveniences that make life easier. According to the survey, 98 percent of homes have a telephone, 66 percent a dishwasher, 84 percent a washing machine, 99 percent complete plumbing facilities and 65 percent central air conditioning.
The Sun-Times story also contained some interesting information about Chicagoans and how they live. According to the story, about 60 percent of households in the Chicago area live in residences that they own. That is in line with most of the nation, where about 59 percent of households live in homes that they own. In Chicago, 51 percent of homeowners live in single-family detached homes. Across the country, though, 63 percent of homeowners live in these types of residences.
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July 15th, 2010 categories: Chicago Info/News, Chicago Neighborhoods, For Buyers, Green Homes
What do homebuyers in Chicago want? They’re searching for quality homes at fair prices. They want to live close to public transportation. They want good schools and plenty of nearby shopping and dining choices.
And, increasingly, they want green homes.
This search for environmentally friendly homes is finally getting a bit easier. CLTV’s Web site recently ran a story on the changes being made by Chicago’s MRED, a local multiple listing service of homes for sale.
Late last year, the MRED listing service gave REALTORS® the ability to add nearly two dozen green or energy efficient features with their property listings. According to the CLTV story, these features can include anything from drought-resistant landscaping to low-flow plumbing fixtures to bamboo flooring.
This is good news for Chicago buyers who are looking for green features. They can now find these environmentally friendly amenities listed prominently on many of the home listings they view online.
This move is something that officials from the National Association of REALORS® are happy to see. The CLTV story says that they’d like to see all the nation’s multiple listing services do this. Currently, according to one association official quoted in the story, from 30 to 40 of the services allow their REALTORS® to enter green and energy efficiency data in their home listings. That’s not a lot of services when you consider how many dot the country.
I don’t think it will be much longer, though, before we see an increase in green information on home listings. The reason is a simple one: It’s something more buyers are looking for.
I’m not naïve enough to believe that environmentally friendly features will trump price, location and construction quality. But a growing number of my clients are interested in living in homes that are environmentally friendly. If they’re looking at two houses that are mostly equal, these clients will go with the home that boasts the greener features.
Here’s some advice to the sellers out there: If your home does have some nice green features, advertise them prominently. In today’s tough residential real estate market, sellers need every advantage that they can get. Green features are just one more tool they can use to help move their homes.
PLEASE CLICK HERE TO VIEW PROPERTIES NOT YET ON THE MARKET.
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Combining High Tech with High Touch: Benefits of a Feedback System
July 14th, 2010 categories: Chicago Info/News, Mario in the News
“Clients want constant and immediate feedback, even if nothing is going on,” says Mario Greco, Senior Broker and Vice President of Sales with The Mario Greco Group of Prudential Rubloff Properties in Chicago, Ill. “The biggest complaint I hear is, ‘the previous agent never communicated with me,’” he says.
And, with a team of 18, Greco, who finds that 80-90 percent of his business is listings, says it’s even more important to have a system set up for feedback. “We use the Leap RE software (www.leapre.com) which allows us to track and coordinate activities of all team members.” The system isn’t cheap. “There’s a $500 set-up fee and it costs a couple hundred dollars each month, but that’s peanuts compared to the $25,000 a year you would have to pay a person to do what the system does.”
While each of Greco’s team members has specific duties, he or she is also required to fill in on the spot. Because of this, and the fact that they close about 200 transactions a year, he wanted a software system that allowed every team member access to schedules, showings and property information.
The benefits are many, says Greco. “The client knows what people are saying about the property—pricing, condition, etc. This helps if we need to reduce the price or have things repaired.” In addition, he says, the client has access to the feedback and can see that Greco is working hard to sell the property.
Here’s how he uses the system to organize his business.
1. Sync schedules. With the Leap RE system, Greco can schedule a showing by email. “The software pulls data from the MLS system, so, if someone calls in for a showing, one or two clicks and you can set up the showing through email,” he says. “Then it automatically sends a confirmation email to us and to the other agent.” A few hours after the showing, the system then sends to the buyer’s agent a request for feedback. “If it doesn’t get a response, it automatically tries again the next day. I find that 60 to 70 percent of all buyer’s agents send back the feedback.”
2. Stay in touch. “Every one of our team members must know what prospective buyers and agents are saying about our listings. Each of our schedulers can easily look things up without me there,” says Greco. “We all have a BlackBerry, and we create memos by property address so if a question comes in by email, I or someone in the group can reply and/or answer objections, even if it’s not my listing. The system is centralized. Anyone can answer questions about the listings even the marketing person who’s never been [at the property].”
3. Follow through. While Greco finds that more than half of all showing agents do provide feedback, he says it’s important not to ignore the ones who don’t. “Your feedback is only as good as your reputation for getting it. Just because it’s automated doesn’t mean you don’t have to do anything else,” he says. Greco personally contacts showing agents who don’t answer the automated response to get their feedback. Also, he says, “When you do get feedback, you might not get exactly what you need. For example, prospective buyers may say they don’t like the style, but that’s vague. It may actually be the paint color or furniture, so I try to get more details.”
“Sellers love feedback,” says Greco. “I can see a potential seller’s eyes light up when I tell him or her about the feedback we offer, explain our system, and show the detailed feedback spreadsheets we keep for each listing.” And, says Greco, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. “There are a thousand different things the system can do. We focus on the feedback and meshing the personal touch with the technology.”
Other similar products:
* Showing Suite: Showing Suite® is an all-in-one real estate productivity software suite to help real estate agents, real estate teams, and real estate offices harness their full sales potential by automating time-consuming tasks to allow more focus on sales.
* Real Estate Success Tools (REST): REST can handle up to 250 users simultaneously. Users can share access from anywhere in the world because REST uses the Internet in a more private way.
Greco is ranked No. 26 in the Nation by The Wall Street Journal and LORE Magazine’s 2009 Top 400 Real Estate Professionals
Written by Tracey C. Velt and reprinted with permission of REAL Trends. Copyright 2010
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