June 2009

Case-Shiller Housing Index for Chicago Flat From March to April!

Thumbnail image for Case-Shiller Housing Index for Chicago Flat From March to April! June 30, 2009

Standard & Poor’s Case-Shiller Housing Index for the Chicago Metro Area for April was just released this morning. The April index of 122.30 remained essentially unchanged from the March index of 122.34. This is the smallest month to month drop in the index since it peaked in September 2006 at 168.60 and remained essentially unchanged Click to continue...

Basement says “water problem” not “quality & care”

June 27, 2009

This morning I showed houses in Wheaton and Glen Ellyn. The remarks in the listing for one of the homes included “quality & care”. Shown below is the “quality & care” we found in the basement. Several floor tiles were missing and the cord in the photo was for a large fan running in the Click to continue...

The definitive source on whether home buyers need flood insurance!

June 24, 2009

If you’re thinking about buying a home and want to know if you’ll need to purchase flood insurance, the definitive source is: a. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) b. The county the home is located in c. The seller d. Your mortgage company FEMA – FEMA has lots of great information on flooding, flood Click to continue...

In search of FHA approved condos in Andersonville and Rogers Park

June 21, 2009

Yesterday I talked with a buyer at Caribou Coffee in Boystown. He’s interested in buying a condo in Andersonville or Rogers Park using Federal Housing Administration (FHA) financing. FHA mortgages allow down payments as low as 3.5%. Unlike houses, not all condos are FHA approved. In Andersonville and Rogers Park most condos aren’t FHA approved. Click to continue...

Relocating tougher now for dual income couples

June 19, 2009

Relocating recently got tougher for dual income couples. Chicago’s Daily Herald reported today that Fannie Mae “no longer will permit mortgage applicants to count the income of so-called “trailing spouses” toward the household income needed to qualify for a loan. A trailing spouse is the one who joins his or her spouse or partner in Click to continue...

Numerous Chicago homes built with split-face concrete block have problems

June 18, 2009

I just listened to a story on WBEZ 91.5 (Chicago Public Radio) about numerous Chicago homeowners facing huge repair bills for their homes constructed with decorative split-face concrete block that wasn’t installed correctly. Even through City of Chicago inspectors had approved the construction, the homeowners are on the hook for repairs since they now own Click to continue...

$16M foreclosure lawsuit in Barrington Hills

June 17, 2009

Even Chicago’s wealthiest aren’t immune to foreclosures! Today ChicagoRealEstateDaily.com reported that Amcore Bank has filed a foreclosure lawsuit for almost $16M on a 400 acre estate and horse farm in Barrington Hills. The couple who own the estate bought it for $19.3 million in December 2006 making it the most expensive Chicago Metro Area home Click to continue...

Great time to buy a condo in downtown Chicago, if you’re careful

June 15, 2009

Last week at Baird & Warner’s “Out of the Office” networking event in Chicago for gay pride month, I talked with my friend, Scott, who’s been thinking of buying a condo in or near the Loop for a few years now. He asked me if I thought now was a good time to buy. There Click to continue...

Realtor Asleep on the Job

June 12, 2009

First, let me say that there are a lot of professional, hard-working Realtors. Unfortunately, there are also a few Realtors who are asleep on the job. Such was the case in a recent sale where I represented the seller. A young man attended an open house I hosted. A couple of days later without bothering Click to continue...

Des Plaines Bungalow Has Kitchen Cabinets with Built-in Table

June 8, 2009

On Saturday I showed houses in Des Plaines to a woman wanting to take advantage of the $8K first time home buyer tax credit. She’s owned a home before, but not in the past 3 years, so she qualifies as a first time home buyer. One of the houses, a 1924 bungalow, included the built-in Click to continue...

Bathroom Ranks Among the Worst

June 4, 2009

A house in the west suburbs sure looked nice online. Priced in the $300Ks it even featured a private tennis court. My buyers and I were intrigued, so I scheduled the showing first on our list of homes to see that morning. The basement bathroom (shown below) left us speechless. Yes, that’s pieces of wood Click to continue...

Don’t miss out on the $8K tax credit! Less than 6 months left is less time than you think!

June 3, 2009

The $8K first time home buyers tax credit expires on November 30th. Buyers have less than 6 months left to find, negotiate and close on the purchase of their home! Both conventional and Federal Housing Administration (FHA) insured mortgages are taking longer to process this year due to tightened lending guidelines, a spike in FHA Click to continue...

Home Selling Tips Are Back!

June 1, 2009

At the end of 2007 I focused this real estate blog on just the needs of home buyers. However, since then several people have still asked me to sell their homes and I did. I actually did pretty well last year selling every home I listed with an average market time of 61 days. Some Click to continue...