August 2006

A Walkthrough is an Important Step in Buying a Home

August 27, 2006

Yesterday a couple of buyers and I did a walkthrough of the newly rehabbed Edgewater condo they are buying. A walkthrough is an opportunity for buyers to verify that any inspection issues were resolved and make sure the rest of the home is still in acceptable condition. The buyers found several inspection issues that the Click to continue...

Major Chicago Newspapers Online

August 25, 2006

Thinking of moving to the Chicago area? Here are links to some of the Chicago newspapers online: Chicago Tribune   Chicago Sun-Times   Daily Herald   Crain’s Chicago Business   Chicago Reader Click to continue...

Consult with your Realtor When Negotiating Inspection Issues

August 24, 2006

Yesterday a home seller killed the sale of his house. If he had consulted with his Realtor® before responding to inspection issues, this might have been avoided. My buyer’s inspections revealed several major problems with the house including radon at unacceptable levels and 2 natural gas leaks. Through her real estate attorney, my buyer requested Click to continue...

Unfortunately, Housing Discrimination Still Exists

August 23, 2006

A major national real estate chain was accused of violating fair housing laws in Chicago yesterday according to CBS 2 Chicago. African-American National Fair Housing Alliance Agents posing as buyers in the Lakeview, Lincoln Park and Gold Coast areas were treated differently by Realtors® than white agents posing as buyers. Know your rights. For more Click to continue...

Make Sure your Real Estate Attorney Knows how to Communicate with You

August 21, 2006

My closings that were delayed from last Tuesday (see previous post) took place on Thursday. The delay was caused by a mortgage company that sent the wrong questionnaire to my seller’s condo association and didn’t catch the mistake until it was too late. Unfortunately, the mortgage company wasn’t the only one who messed up. I Click to continue...

An Example Why Your Lender’s Service is so Important!

August 15, 2006

There are a lot of very unhappy people today because a mortgage lender messed-up. One of my sellers was supposed to close on the sale of her home in Palatine this morning and then close on the sale of her new home in Harvard this afternoon. An hour and a half before the first closing Click to continue...

How to Drive Away People From Your Open House

August 14, 2006

Yesterday I met with a woman wanting to sell her house in the Logan Square area of Chicago. While I was there I thought I would check out some of the open houses in Logan Square and Hermosa. One open house especially caught my eye because the listing broker was a well advertised discount broker. Click to continue...

Check Out The Neighbors

August 12, 2006

Want a clue for how well a home’s value will appreciate? Check out the neighbors’ homes. Are they attractive & well maintained or is it obvious that the owners are neglecting them? One of my buyers was ready to make an offer on a house in Roselle this week, but changed her mind after taking Click to continue...

I Must be Doing Something Right!

August 9, 2006

I had a nice surprise late yesterday when I learned that I was named one of the Top 10 Women Real Estate Bloggers by SellsiusRealEstate.Com! Sellsius is a national online real estate community. In its June issue, Metro Chicago Real Estate Magazine said my blog “…has many of the features that characterize the best real Click to continue...

How Buyers Find the Resale Home They Buy

August 5, 2006

To the right is a chart of how buyers find the resale home they buy. It’s based on a survey of buyers by the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The most common way was through a Realtor® (blue), followed by the Internet (purple) and yard signs (yellow). To a much lesser extent they found the Click to continue...

Buyers, Don’t Forget Homeowners Insurance

August 4, 2006

Yesterday I received a call from one of my buyers asking for the cell phone number for her mortgage consultant. Since her closing for a home in Glen Ellyn was today, I suspected that everything wasn’t in place. Indeed, when we did a final walkthrough of the home this morning she shared that as of Click to continue...

“For Sale By Owner” May Be Truer Than You Think

August 3, 2006

Last night after I showed a house in Mount Prospect my buyer showed me an information sheet she picked up at another house on the block advertised “for sale by owner”. The sheet and a sign in the yard prominently displayed the name of the company claiming to help the owner sell the property. My Click to continue...