Archive for the 'Chicago Info/News' Category
Expecting A Better Chicago Economy In 2012? Think Again
January 6th, 2012 categories: Chicago Info/News, Chicago Neighborhoods, Chicago News, Chicago Real Estate News, Economic Recovery, For Buyers, For Homeowners, For Sellers
Crain’s Chicago Business gave Chicago residents hoping for a better economic year in 2012 little reason for optimism. According to Crain’s, the Chicago economy will improve in 2012, but at a slower-than-optimal rate.
Crain’s quoted numbers from Moody’s Analytics saying that the Chicago-area economy should grow by about 1.6 percent in the first half of 2012 and by about 2 percent for the full year. These numbers sound positive until you consider that six months ago Moody’s predicted that the Chicago-area economy would grow by about 4 percent in 2012.
Crain’s points to the economic uncertainty caused by unstable financial markets and European debt worries. This, the story says, has made employers overly cautious when making new job hires.
Because of this, Moody’s is predicting that the unemployment rate in the Chicago area will jump to 11.4 percent in the first half of 2012. That’s up from 10.6 percent in the second half of 2011. Six months ago, Moody’s predicted that the Chicago-area unemployment rate would stand at 9.2 percent in the first half of 2012.
This is bad news, too, for the Chicago housing market. Buyers won’t be as willing to invest in a new home if they’re still worried about losing their jobs. And as Moody’s numbers show, Chicagoans have little reason to be optimistic about the safety of their jobs.
Just because a new year has started, it doesn’t mean that Chicago, and the rest of the nation, don’t still face serious challenges. Until unemployment finally falls, expect the Chicago housing market to struggle.
This latest news points out once again how important it is for home sellers to work with a skilled REALTOR® to set the right price for their condominiums or single-family homes. Buyers today are smart; they won’t overpay for a home. Those sellers who do set an unrealistic asking price will see their residence sit on the market for months, ignored by today’s savvy home buyers.
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Sears To Keep Chicago Stores Open
January 3rd, 2012 categories: Chicago News, Chicago Real Estate News, Economic Recovery
It’s never easy to see a long-time retailer suffer financially. Seeing the struggles of Sears, still one of the most important retailers in the country, has been downright painful.
But there is some good news regarding the retail giant: Of the store closings the company recently posted on its Web site, none are located in Chicago or Illinois.
GlobeSt.com reported that Sears, in late December, listed 79 of the 100 to 120 stores it plans to close. Not one of these stores is located in Illinois, and GlobeSt.com wonders whether the large tax break that the state recently approved for Sears had something to do with this.
Also in December, Gov. Pat Quinn signed a law to give Sears a tax cut of $150 million during a 10-year period. This move came after Sears threatened to move out of the state.
This hasn’t been a good year for Sears. GlobeSt.com reported that the retailer saw its comparable store sales fall 2.6 percent for the year and 5.2 percent since late October. The 100 to 120 stores that Sears closes should save the retailer about $170 million, according to the GlobeSt.com story.
It’s possible to argue the merits of giving companies such large tax breaks. It’s possible, too, to debate whether Sears’ recent tax cut played a role in its decision to not close any of its Illinois stores.
But it’s not possible to argue that Sears’ decision to spare Illinois and Chicago any store closings is a boon to the area. And, remember, anything that helps the local economy also helps the Chicago-area housing market.
Buyers are more likely to spend money if they feel more confident about the local economy. And confident buyers are essential to the health of the Chicago housing market.
So there’s one thing to agree on here: The fact that Sears is keeping its Chicago stores open is good news for everyone in the city.
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Housing Foreclosures Rise Again In The Chicago Area
December 22nd, 2011 categories: Chicago Info/News, Economic Recovery, For Homeowners, For Sellers, Foreclosures, Housing Market
The number of housing foreclosures fell throughout the United States. But locally in the Chicago area, housing foreclosures actually rose.
According to a recent feature story in the Chicago Tribune, the number of homes in the foreclosure process rose 20 percent in November in Cook County when compared to one month earlier. The Tribune said that much of this increase stemmed from a jump of 57 percent in the number of homes in the county that were sent to court-ordered auctions.
Citing data from online foreclosure company RealtyTrac, the Tribune reported that foreclosure filings were reported on more than 224,000 properties across the United States in November. That’s a drop of 3 percent from October.
No matter how you look at the numbers there are too many housing foreclosures in Chicago and the United States. This is unfortunate because foreclosure has such a devastating effect on families.
If you’re struggling to pay your mortgage bills each month, call your mortgage lender immediately. The sooner you call your lender, the better your chances of working out a new payment arrangement, a reduction in your mortgage loan’s interest rate or some other way to avoid losing your home through foreclosure.
I understand that this is no easy thing, calling your mortgage lender and explaining that you’re struggling to pay your monthly housing bills. But lenders will often work with you to find some solution to your mortgage woes.
Foreclosures remain the number-one deterrent to a housing market rebound, both in Chicago and across the nation. Foreclosures make it more difficult for sellers to get the prices they want for their homes. Buyers would rather pay $50,000 less for a similar home down the street that’s gone through the foreclosure process.
If you don’t want to become the latest foreclosure statistic, call your lender. Ignoring your mortgage problems won’t help them go away.
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National Association of Realtors Adjusts Sales Figures for 2007-2010
December 19th, 2011 categories: Chicago Info/News, Chicago News, Chicago Real Estate News, Housing Market
Earlier this year, the Illinois Association of REALTORS® reported that its much-watched monthly home-sales statistics were incorrect. The number of homes being sold each month in Chicago and the rest of the state were actually lower than what the local REALTORS® association had reported.
Now comes word that the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) has made its own mistakes when it comes to reporting the number of homes sold each month across the United States.
According to a story by MSN Real Estate, the national association over-reported the number of homes sold from 2007 to 2010. This means that even fewer homes were sold last year than the 4.91 million — the lowest number already in 13 years — that NAR reported.
The association says that it will release its new updated numbers on Dec. 21.
It looks like the errors could be large. The national association began looking at its past numbers after CoreLogic, a real-estate analysis firm, challenged the association’s numbers, saying that they could be as much as 20 percent too high.
According to MSN Real Estate, CoreLogic’s analysis showed that there actually should have been 3.3 million homes sold in the United States in 2010. That’s a big drop from the national association’s 4.91 million number.
After looking at their numbers, officials from NAR said that they have counted some home sales twice.
This is an unfortunate time for NAR to be proven wrong about its sales numbers. Many consumers already have negative feelings about the real estate industry. A mistake like this will only provide more fuel for this distrust.
But no matter whether you use the numbers from CoreLogic or those from NAR, one piece of information remains true: The number of home sales across the country remains far too low, especially when compared to the big home-selling pre-2007.
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Buying A Chicago Condo, Single-Family Home More Affordable Today
December 14th, 2011 categories: Chicago Info/News, For Buyers, Housing Market, Mortgage Info
Mortgage interest rates continue to hover near record lows. This is the best holiday present Chicago home buyers can receive: It gives their dollar more buying power as they search for city condominiums or single-family homes.
According to a recent story in the Wall Street Journal, interest rates in the United States on 30-year fixed-rate mortgage loans averaged 3.99 percent for the week that ended on Dec. 8. That’s down just a bit from the 4 percent average interest rate of one week earlier and down significantly from the rate of 4.61 percent a year earlier.
Interest rates on 15-year fixed-rate mortgage loans were even more impressive, according to data from Freddie Mac. This rate stood at 3.27 percent for the week that came to a close on Dec. 8. That’s down from 3.3 percent from a week earlier and 3.96 percent from a year ago.
The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage interest rate is also just a tick above its all-time low of 3.27 percent, which it hit in October.
This is, of course, great news for consumers interested in purchasing a Chicago condominium or single-family home. Low interest rates mean that it is less expensive for buyers to borrow money. Buyers today, then, can save hundreds of dollars a month on their mortgage loan payments compared to the days when interest rates of 6 percent or 7 percent were considered solid.
On the downside, the process of applying for a mortgage loan isn’t easy today. Buyers will need to send their mortgage lenders paperwork proving that they make enough money each month to afford their new mortgage payments. They’ll also have to produce documents showing lenders how much they pay each month in debt.
Borrowers will also have to submit to a credit check. Lenders today reserve their lowest mortgage interest rates for those borrowers who have FICO credit scores of 740 or higher.
But for those buyers willing to submit their paperwork, and who have strong credit scores, buying a single-family home or condo today is more affordable than it’s been in a long time.
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