Archive for August, 2009
MY APPRAISAL CAME IN TOO LOW!
August 31st, 2009 categories: Buying, Market Trends, Selling
OK, so what do I do? We’re working through a lot of difficult problems in the real estate market right now and one of them is the appraisal process. It has changed drastically over the last year. There are all sorts sof new rules that make appraising much more time consuming than it used to be. In the typical pendulum effect–we were too far one way before and we’re too far the other way now. Remember that appraisal is not a precise science–it is much more an art. For estate purposes, a low appraisal is usually desirable. For re-financing, a high appraisal is what is wanted most of the time. Ideally the appraisal for a sale l should be the fair market value–what a buyer is willing to pay for a property. Lou Sichelman has an article in the Tribune that contains the gist of what to do about a low appraisal after you get over the shock and dismay of it being so low. Please do read the whole article because there are some excellent suggestions for a variety of ways to handle a low appraisal.
If you would like a real estate expert to help you–just call me at 312-607-1306 (direct) or my cell phone, 312-607-1306. E-mail is fine too.
Here are some other articles you might enjoy:
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IS YOUR HOME A MONEY PIT, SINKHOLE, OR DRAIN?
August 28th, 2009 categories: Buying, Market Trends, Selling
Bill Cunniff wrote an article for the Chicago Sun-Times last Sunday that brings up a very good point. How do we know when it is better to move than to keep on fixing up our old home? Here are the three categories we all need to avoid:
- Money Pit–spending more than 2 per cent of the home’s value on annual repairs.
- Sinkhole–spending between 1.6 and 2 per cent of the home’s value on annual repairs.
- Drain–consistently spending 1 to 1.5 per cent of the home’s value on annual repairs.
The average home owner spends about 1 per cent of their home’s value on repairs each year. Spending much more than that gets to be an old story if it goes on for several years. Of course we all are attached to our homes and might be tempted to over spend on repairs. We need to realize that the roof needs replacement now and again, the water heater goes out, the furnace or the air conditioner stop functioning, you have to paint and put down new carpet or refinish wood floors–these are just part of owning a home of any kind. We just pray that it doesn’t all have to be done in one year. At least Bill Cunniff’s article gives us a formula to be used as a guideline if we are thinking about selling our old place and buying a new one.
Need help getting out of your money pit–just call me at 312-981-2360 (direct) ir 312-607-1306 (cell). My e-mail is another good place to find me.
Here are some articles that you might find interesting:
5 Things Buyers R, Really, Don’t Like
Thinking of Buying Chicago Real Estate?
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SWEET DREAMS? NO! A BIT KOOKY? YES!
August 27th, 2009 categories: Buying, Market Trends, Selling
Can our dreams tell us where we should live? Can they open the door to the right home? The stress of today’s economic climate and housing market is really causing nightmares and anxiety about where we live. Today’s New York Times has an entertaining article, The House of Your Dreams, about how people’s dreams have influenced their housing needs. One woman used her dreams to influence her choice of a home and even the decision to buy a home–was it an appropriate thing for her to do financially was the question. One man’s dreams influenced him to leave a rental in one city and return to a city he and his wife had lived before where they are now looking for a home to buy. Another person had persistent dreams of being homeless that ended when she and her husband remodelled their home and she realized that it was the home she had always needed to feel she had a home. Interesting thoughts! What are you dreaming about these days?
This is tooooo obvious but here we go anyway–if you need someone to help you look for a dream house–I’m your person–312-981-2360 or cell phone, 312-607-1396. E-mail works too!
Some other articles that might help you with your dream home:
Vacation Home, Retirement Home?
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words
Chicago Association of Realtors? Why?
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REAL ESTATE AGENT SECRETS
August 26th, 2009 categories: Buying, Selling
In spite of some popular misconceptions, Realtors are people, genuine living breathing people with husbands, wives, children, grandchildren and a life outside of real estate. Here are a few insider tips about agents.
- We do not get paid until a sale closes. All of our time, marketing expenses, car expenses, etc., etc. are up front.
- We do have limitations–frequently an agent can’t just pick up and show you a property on 30 minutes notice. We may have another buyer, a listing appointment, a doctor’s appointment, a closing–any number of things can prevent us from being on call with little notice. This is especially true in the downtown Chicago market where most sellers expect us to be present at all showings.
- If you do call an agent for a last minute showing, they may not be able to fit you in. And don’t feel offended if the agent questions you to determine your motivation. You may be asked about a pre-approval letter from your lender. This will help the agent determine how serious you are about purchasing–are you a tire-kicker or a genuine lead? Remember–all we have to sell is our time.
- People who are serious about buying a home should first contact a lender, or several. to determine which one they feel will serve them best, and then contact a Realtor. Talk to a few agents, find out how experienced they are and how well they know the area. Also ask friends, relatives, co-workers, anyone who has bought recently about their agent and if they were satisfied with that agent’s service.
- An agent may appear unresponsive and uninterested if they can’t operate like a McDonald’s drive through window and jump to show you a property on the spur of the moment–this isn’t necessarily true.
- A good agent’s priorities are their own buyers and sellers first. Obviously a call to show one of my listings to a caller is more important than showing another agent’s listing to someone I have never met.
- The way Realtors work is not important to you–you just want to see that home when you want to see it! Please do remember that we are really human beings–we do have priorities. Just simply recognizing us as non-monsters–a great beginning!
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HELP WANTED–LOAN MODIFICATION
August 25th, 2009 categories: Market Trends
Sunday’s Chicago Tribune (8-23-09) had an excellent article by one of the best real estate writers I know of, Ilyce Glink. According to the article, loan modification is just not working. Ilyce feels that lenders are not listening or responding appropriately in a timely fashion. President Obama had a meeting with top mortgage lenders several weeks ago and supposedly told them to get going with loan modifications. The lenders said they would do 500,000 loan modifications and there was no time mentioned for doing them. Delays can and will affect an individual’s credit history and their credit scores. The article goes on to give concrete suggestions about what to do if you just can’t get any response from your lender–with a web site and a hot line that might help you get some attention. This must be one of the most frustrating experiences a homeowner can encounter–hope has been held out that something can be done and then you are not be able to get it done. If you need a loan modification, read the article–you just might find some fresh ideas. Click here for the full story.
Questions about Chicago real estate? Just call me, 312-981-2360 (direct) or 312-607-1306 (cell). I like e-mail too!
Here are a few articles that might interest you:
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SULLIVAN SAVED AND RESTORED
August 24th, 2009 categories: Lifestyle
Chicago has seemed to almost systematically destroy the work of one of the great architects who worked in our city. Louis Sullivan’s Stock Exchange building, the Garrick Theatre and many others have been demolished in the name of progress. Many art historians believe that his Transportation Building at the Colombian Exposition was the beginning or modern architecture. It was refreshing to find an article in the Chicago Tribune last week about Sullivan buildings on Wabash Avenue being restored. The buildings are at 18 and 22 South Wabash and they are part of the $190 million renovation of the old Carson Pirie Scott building. That building was built for Meyer and Wade as a department store. If you have ever looked closely at the ornament it is curiously vacant in the center–originally the large oval openings had “MW” in Sullivan’s organic ornament in the middle. In my long and checkered past I was an art history student with a special interest in Chicago architecture–in case you couldn’t tell! To read the entire story, just click here.
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A NEW SCAM–INTERNET MOVING BROKERS
August 21st, 2009 categories: Buying, Lifestyle, Selling
Let’s pretend you have just sold your house and are moving half way across the country–of course you will be getting quotes from several moving companies. Let’s also pretend that you receive an e-mail from a “moving broker” saying that the company works with a large number of moving companies and wanting to help you find the best possible price for your move. Is this a legitimate concern or not?
Moving brokers work a lot like a mortgage broker–they promise you the best deal available. They are compensated in several ways. You may be asked to pay up front or the broker may be paid with a referral fee from the moving company they suggest or the compensation may be a combination of both.
There are legitimate moving brokers–unfortunately the American Moving and Storage Association, a trade group with some 3,000 certified moving companies across the country, found that a great many are not. A worse case scenario is making a move with the cheapest mover and having your belongings held hostage until you pay more than the agreed upon fee.
There are some things you can do to protect yourself from a bad moving experience:
- The American Moving and Storage Association has a good Web site, moving.org. You can search for a company that is licensed by the Department of Transportation for interstate moves. There is also a free online referral service that can give you a number of in-home bids from companies that agree to abide by the association’s code of ethics. These companies also have to pass the association’s background check.
- Check with your local Better Business Bureau–ask if there have been complaints and how were they resolved–to the customers satisfaction or not.
- Have three in-home visits with movers. An in-home visit to see all of your belongings is the only way an accurate bid can be given. This will also give you an idea about the professionalism of the company and its representatives.
Give me a call or an e-mail if you have questions about Chicago real estate–direct line is 312-981-2360, cell phone is 312-607-1306 or e-mail.
Here are several articles you might find interesting if you are a seller:
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TEMPUS FUGIT
August 20th, 2009 categories: Buying, Market Trends
Not only does time fly when you are having fun, it also flies when you are thinking about using the First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit. The program expires on November 30, 2009. Closing on a home can take up to 60 days so you have just six weeks to find a home and go under contract.
In order to qualify for the $8,000 tax credit, these are the conditions:
- You may not have owned a “main home” (primary residence) for the past 36 months.
- You cannot purchase the home from a parent, a spouse, or a child.
- Your adjusted gross income must be under $95,000 if you are single filer and below $170,000 if you file jointly.
Not everyone will get the full $8,000. The credit can’t exceed 10 per cent of the home’s value and people whose income almost reaches the limits may get less than $8,000.
One of the facets of the program is that it is a genuine tax credit. It is not a deduction. If you owe the IRS $5,000, you would get back whatever had been withheld or whatever you had paid in taxes plus $3,000 after your tax return has been processed.
Need someone to help you find that home in the next six weeks–inventory is great, mortgage rates are historically low–I would like to apply for the job of helping you find that tax deduction. Just call me at 312-607-1306 (cell) or 312-981-2360 (direct) E-mail works as well or better than the phone.
Here are a few other articles that might interest you as a buyer:
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PRICE, PRICE, PRICE, PRICE
August 19th, 2009 categories: Market Trends, Selling
In today’s market it is really all about price–a recent Wall Street Journal article makes some excellent suggestions to help you and your agent price your home. I suggest that you read the entire article. If you feel you just don’t have time, I will share with you the points that I feel are most important.
- Ignore all the hullabaloo about the market “turning.”
- Concentrate on past sales and current for sale homes in an area about mile around your home. In metropolitan Chicago I usually search in an eight block range around the listing. In other words, from Ashland Avenue (1600 west) to Western Avenue (2400 west) and from North Avenue (1600 north to Fullerton (2400) north.
- Ask your agent for the difference between the sale price and the list price in your area. This can vary quite a bit depending on how expensive the home is.
- Take a good look at your competition–what will you be competing against? In some areas banks have been waiting for a better market to release foreclosed homes and when they do start to release them, prices could take another dip.
- Think about an appraisal–even though it may cost you several hundred dollars–if it supports a more palatable price it can help you. And–appraisals can be used in negotiating a sale price.
- Remember–setting a sale price is not a precise science it can be tweaked after your home is listed.
Those are the bones of the article–it is still worth reading the entire piece. I would make one other suggestion that is not in the article–tell your agent that you would like to have a weekly update on the market in your area--what has come on the market, what has closed, what has gone under contract. This will help you and your agent monitor your price
Would you like the opinion of a 20 year real estate professional on the price your home would bring? If so, call me. My direct line is 312-607-1306 and my cell phone is 312-607-1306. E-mail reaches me too.
Here are some other posts you might find helpful:
Avoidable First Time Buyer Woes
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LEPRECHAUN DANCES YET AGAIN
August 18th, 2009 categories: Buying, Market Trends, Selling
Here’s another new leprechaun to cheer on our real estate recovery–let’s hope he has more sense than to jump right out of the picture. And according to Terry Savage in her recent article, Economy Finally Turning the Corner, the recession is over so our friendly leprechaun should be jumping. To read the entire article, click here.
Terry gives 10 reasons why the recession is over and to me one of the best reasons is that it is time for the recession to be over–this recession has lasted longer than either of the previous two. I also like her statement that the recession is over because the housing market has started to rebound–and it has–we’ve seen our little leprechaun jumping and dancing frequently lately. Apparently the fat lady has sung on this recession. I don’t want to minimize the pain of the people who are still unemployed, the people who have taken a terrible hit on their home prices–all of those who have been wounded by the economy deserve our sympathy and support. If you have been lucky enough to escape relatively unscathed–be grateful!
And if you think NOW is the time to buy or sell–please call me. My direct dial is 312-981-2360 and my cell phone is 312-607-1307. E-mail works too!
You might also enjoy:
New Leprechaun for Chicago Real Estate
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