From the monthly archives:

February 2009

Survived a Badly Staged Home in Lake Zurich, IL

February 28, 2009

This morning I showed houses in the northwest suburbs including a badly staged house in Lake Zurich. Yes, the fake bread and cheese shown left greeted my buyers and I was we walked into the kitchen. Of course, there was also a bowl of small fake fruit on the counter.
I understand that not all sellers [...]

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4 Bedroom Condos Appreciating Better Than 3 Bedrooms in Lakeview, Chicago

February 27, 2009

This afternoon I showed 3 & 4 bedroom condos in the Lakeview area of Chicago. Now median sale prices are a rough measure at best of what’s going on in a market, but 4 bedroom condos have definitely appreciated better in Lakeview over the past 3 years than 3 bedroom condos have when you look [...]

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When Looking at Homes Online Try to Notice What Isn’t Shown

February 24, 2009

This morning I looked at the listing for a house in Lakeview that clients said they were interested in. Priced at just under $800K, it’s gorgeous as one would expect. However, I noticed that out of 9 photos, not one showed a bathroom. I also noticed that the house has 2 1/2 bathrooms with a [...]

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What NOT to Say at an Open House

February 23, 2009

Yesterday I hosted an open house in Palatine for a couple that wants to take advantage of this market and move up to a larger home. As their listing agent, I was thrilled with a turnout of 18 people. If I had been the buyer agent for some of those people, I would have been [...]

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Showings Today in Arlington Heights, Palatine and Schaumburg, IL

February 21, 2009

Today I showed houses in Arlington Heights, Palatine and Schaumburg. The homes for sale weren’t much out of the ordinary with the exception of a house in Palatine featuring a pool table in the dining room and mold in the basement. Needless to say, it’s not on my buyers’ short list!
Home sellers, please reconsider renting [...]

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Try Lupita’s Mexican Restaurant in Evanston

February 20, 2009

Today I toured a 3 bedroom condo in Evanston that the owner will be putting back on the market this spring. I also had lunch at Lupita’s Restaurant in Evanston with a buyer considering Evanston, Skokie and Rogers Park.
I really like the ambiance of Lupita’s. It was quiet enough so my buyer and I could [...]

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How to Buy a Home and Get Your Down Payment Back

February 17, 2009

STEPS
1. Be a first time home buyer and make no more than $75,000, if you are an individual or $150,000 if you are joint tax filers.1
2. Qualify for an FHA loan.
3. Buy a home for your principal residence for $228,500 or less before Dec. 1, 2009 using an FHA loan with a 3.5% down payment.
4. [...]

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Economic Stimulus Package Includes $8,000 Tax Credit for Home Buyers

February 14, 2009

The economic-stimulus package passed by the U.S. House and Senate contains several modifications to the previous tax credit for home buyers. The package provides an $8,000 tax credit available to first-time home buyers for the purchase of a principal residence on or after January 1, 2009 and before December 1, 2009. The credit does [...]

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Buffalo Grove, IL

February 13, 2009

Today’s Daily Herald featured the suburb of Buffalo Grove in the Homes section. It was a good article. Although, I did find it a bit curious that a Buffalo Grove Realtor was quoted as saying, “We have homes 40 years old to brand new construction including maintenance-free single-family homes and townhouses.”
I’m familiar with lots of [...]

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Today’s ForSaleByOwner.com Press Release Misleading

February 11, 2009

Today while I was on Twitter, a couple of tweets (Twitter messages) caught my attention.
~Study from Realtors find that FSBOs sell quicker & for closing to asking price than agent-assisted sellers! http://bit.ly/F6Jc
~Realtors highlight the benefits of FSBO. Yes, I’m not kidding! http://bit.ly/3i0fLU
As you can read from the link in the first message, ForSaleByOwner.com posted a [...]

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