Are you prepared for home ownership?

Reblogged from mortgagemaestro:

There is so much more to consider when buying a home besides finding a good lender and realtor.  Have you prepared yourself for what exactly home ownership will cost you, outside of your monthly mortgage payment?  For most first time homebuyers the thought of home ownership is so exciting and this energy and excitement can sometimes put a glaze over your eyes that prevents you from seeing the "big" picture of home ownership. 

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This is a well crafted breakdown of what may be needed as a first time home owner on Chicago's North Shore or anywhere. Gloria Matlin is among the highest performing Realtors on the North Shore of Chicago. Producing client centered results for well over 25 years; she prides herself on making real estate dreams come true.

Stunning Chicago North Shore Open Houses-Exquisite Glencoe Real Estate History

The North Suburban area became popular with the affluent wanting to escape urban life, beginning after the Great Chicago Fire, and grew rapidly before and just after World War II. Large estates were built, along with lavish homes with well established architects. North Shore-Glencoe remains one of the most sought after and highly educated areas in the United States.

The term Chicago North Shore became common for businesses in numerous nearby inland Chicago suburbs. in the Evanston, Maine, New Trier, Niles and Northfield Townships and in southern Lake County, Illinois, it was common to name themselves “North Shore,” and for real estate and other marketers to use the term for North Shore communities as a frame of location; which caught on and became a confirmed reference to the area. More information HERE and HERE

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Glencoe-North Shore Market Trends: Update April-May2012

As of April2012, North Shore-Illinois real estate home sales reports reflect the best housing conditions in four years according to the Illinois Association of REALTORS®!

Statewide home sales including Chicago’s North Shore-Cook County area (single-family homes and condominiums) in March 2012 totaled 9,575 homes sold, up 21.1 % from 7,904 home sales in March 2011. This was the best March real estate performance since 2007 when 11,979 homes were posted as being sold.

“Sales volumes are up, time-on-the-market levels are down significantly from a year ago and prices appear to be stabilizing in Illinois although continuing to fall in Chicago. Further, in the last month there was a more even spread of sales prices compared to previous months where homes sold for less than $200,000 dominated the market;” according to said Dr. Geoffrey J.D. Hewings, director of the Regional Economics Applications Laboratory (REAL) at the University of Illinois.

The monthly average commitment rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage for the North Central as well as the North Shore region was 3.99 percent in March 2012, down from 3.91 percent during the previous month, according to the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation. Last year in March it averaged 4.86 percent.

In the nine-county Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area (PMSA) which includes Chicago’s North Shore, home sales (single family and condominiums) in March 2012 totaled 6,590 homes sold, up 23.8 percent from March 2011 sales of 5,323 homes. The median price in March 2012 was $151,850 in the Chicago PMSA, down 3.9 percent compared to last year’s data in March when it was $158,000.

Distressed properties-foreclosures which were once backed up in the court system are beginning to be resolved, interest rates continue to be at near-record lows and prices are attractive; mentioned Alonzo Loretta president of the Illinois Association of REALTORS®  . Bob Floss, president of the Chicago Association of REALTORS® stated that “REALTORS® are continuing to see an increase in the number of buyers looking to buy a home today, as rents are going up and interest rates are at an all-time low. I could not agree more!

More than half of Illinois counties reporting showed year-over-year home sales statistics increases in March 2012. Sixty-seven (67) counties showed year-over-year median price increases including North Shore Cook County-Glencoe areas.

Sales and price information is generated by Multiple Listing Service closed sales reported by 31 participating Illinois REALTOR® local boards and associations including Midwest Real Estate-North Shore real estate Data LLC data as of April 7, 2012 for the period March 1 through May 2012. The Chicago-North Shore PMSA, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, includes the counties of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will.

Find Illinois housing stats data and the University of Illinois REAL forecast at www.illinoisrealtor.org/marketstats or HERE

Our Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate office, (located in Glencoe’s downtown district-640 Vernon Ave, 60022) is a wealth of North Shore real estate information. Our award winning realtors can answer questions about real estate reports, market conditions, statistics, projections and real estate history.  Stop in today for a free market summary.

Glencoe-North Shore Market Trends: Update Feb-March2012

The good North Shore real estate news remains consistent! Illinois-North Shore saw a 16.1% increase in home sales. This is the strongest Illinois Association of REALTORS®. January home sales data since 2007!

Statewide home sales including North Shore-Cook County (single-family homes and condominiums) in January 2012 totaled 6,435 homes sold, up 16.1 percent from 5,543 home sales in January 2011. The statewide median price in January was $122,500, down 9.3 percent from $135,000 in January 2011. The median is a typical market price where half the homes sold for more and half sold for less. Chicago Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area (PMSA), home sales (single family and condominiums) in January 2012 totaled 4,447 homes sold, up 15.7! The city of Chicago median home sale price for January 2012 was $149,000, down -0.7 percent compared to January 2011 when it was $150,000.

Loretta Alonzo, CRB, GRI, president of the Illinois Association of REALTORS® stated “Whether you’re a seller or a buyer, there are positives to this data. He continued by saying that “After years of standing on the sidelines, buyers are finding this is the right time to get into affordable housing. While sellers may not be getting all of the money they want for a house, they are getting traffic and interest at levels that haven’t been seen in several years.” “Motivated buyers and sellers moving in what has been a mild Chicago winter has helped move both distressed and traditional properties.

Based on the current North Shore market report, the month of January gave 2012 a solid surge in North Shore real estate home sales as well as the city of Chicago. The average commitment rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage for the Chicago North Shore region was 3.92 percent in January 2012, according to the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation. Last year’s commitment in January averaged 4.80%. History has shown that low mortgage interest rates, low property prices, along with a consumer and employment gains in the month result in strong North Shore real estate home sales.

North Shore home sales and property price information is generated by Multiple Listing Service closed sales reported by 31 participating Illinois REALTOR® local boards including Chicago’s North Shore and associations including Midwest Real Estate Data LLC data as of February 7, 2012 through to March of 2012–for the period of analysis for January 1 through January 31, 2012. The Chicago PMSA, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, includes the counties of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will.

For more information on this information visit: housing statistics data and the University of Illinois REAL forecast at www.illinoisrealtor.org/marketstats.

or visit  http://www.illinoisrealtor.org/

Select a Realtor With These 10 Tips: North Shore-Chicago Real Estate

Sure, Realtors can facilitate a great deal, when it comes to selling or buying a North Shore home. But to help with one of the largest transactions in your life,  you should do a little homework before engaging in a business relationship for such an important purchase. An effective Realtor can assist in determining an appropriate asking price, stage a house to sell and market the property properly.

It’s recommended that sellers interested in using the help of a real estate agent or a Realtor (the proper name of an agent who is a member of the National Association of Realtors) should interview at least three top agents before choosing one.

To find these potential Realtors, first ask neighbors for references, or attend open houses in your neighborhood. Strike up conversations with colleagues who have recently sold homes nearby. Once you have a list of Chicago-North Shore Realtors, set up interviews with individual agents.

Below are a 10 questions to ask before choosing a realtor:

1. How well do you know the neighborhood?
2. What are your plans for marketing my house?
3. How much do you think I should ask for this house and how do you justify that price? Can I see the data?
4. Will you be going to the closing with me or will you send an associate?
5. With whom will I communicate in the office?
6. What have you sold lately?
7. How much experience do you have?
8. What percentage of sales have closed?
9. What is the average time the homes were on the market?
10. How do you plan to market this house among your colleagues?

Look the agent up by name on the Internet, check their websites and reviews/feedback. Look for Realtors who not only give information, data, reports and statistics about their listings but also can provide valuable data about their region — both the good and the bad. You want an agent who knows their primary selling locations.

After looking on the Web, call Realtors who seem like a good fit. Recap the conversation. Do you hit it off? Do you feel like they’re trustworthy? Can you communicate well? Remember, you might be spending long hours with this individual. Having confidence in your North Shore Realtor, as well as feeling comfortable with him or her, can help you feel like you’re getting your money’s worth.

Gloria Matlin’s office is located at 640 Vernon Ave in downtown Glencoe, Illinois.  Our high-ranking, top performing, Coldwell Banker Real estate office has been providing superb service for over forty years. Let us show you our level of optimal Chicago’s North Shore real estate market expertise. More information on selecting a realtor can be found HERE

North Shore Real Estate Investment Tips: Due Diligence

When buying North Shore real estate, far too many buyers fail to take even the most basic levels of precaution by doing the proper due diligence. This is troubling because real estate is typically the largest and riskiest asset someone will ever buy. We’ve all learned this many times over in the last few years via the housing crisis, and it will continue happening until people better educate themselves on the real estate process and mitigate their risks.

So what issues should a buyer consider? Most of the items are not complicated, however running through the important tasks when you are actually buying property can be time-consuming and tedious. Realize if you fail to do the hard work involved to protect yourself, and something goes wrong, you only have yourself to blame. Doing the proper due diligence to lower your risk is the responsibility of you — the homeowner making the mortgage payment. Finding a real estate agent that can guide you through the maze is key.

Note: There is no risk-free real estate. Even the most diligent of buyers who do all the proper due diligence they know can lose money on some deals due to a variety of unknown, unanticipated, underestimated reasons; or simply bad luck.

Here are 10  tips to help guide you in the right direction with the help of a real estate agent:

1. Purchasing process – Understanding the overall purchasing process

2. Cash flows and returns – Penciling out an investment property cash flows and how much you will earn on your money

3. Rent vs. own – Doing a financial analysis to see if purchasing makes sense for you

4. Tax benefits picture – Understanding the tax benefits of owning real estate

5. Mortgage financing – Properly evaluating mortgage financing options and offers

6. Homeowners associations – Reviewing the homeowners association finances, operations and any litigation situation

7. Home inspection – Using the home inspection information to make better decisions

8. Dwelling and liability insurance – Do you have the proper type and amount of insurance in place

9. Title insurance and escrow – Did you read through your title insurance policy and all the sales and escrow documents and ask questions if you did not understand

10. Non-standard investments – understanding and possibly avoiding non-standard investments like land, second homes, vacation rentals, flipping property, etc…..MORE INFO

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North Shore – Glencoe Real Estate News: Positive Trends For June

“The statewide median price in June was $150,000, up 7.1 percent from $140,000 in May 2011.

“The Illinois housing market was building momentum in late spring and through June and it’s encouraging to see this regular pattern as well as sales at levels higher than the past 11 months driven by high affordability conditions and pent-up demand,” said REALTOR® Sheryl Grider Whitehurst, ABR, CRB, GRI, president of the Illinois Association of REALTORS® and the Development and Operations Coordinator for Traders Realty in Peoria. “Challenges remain for the return to a normalized market and top among them relate directly to the economy.”

“In the city of Chicago, single family homes have made positive gains in pricing due to the competitive atmosphere created by compelling pricing on distressed assets short sales and foreclosures,” said Mabel Guzman, president of the Chicago Association of REALTORS® and a REALTOR® with Envision Real Estate LLC, Chicago. “We are seeing multiple offers on location-specific properties. Chicago condos continue to outpace single family by 30 percent for the second month evident not only in units, also in downward price movement. In the coming months, we will be observing the economic pressures which will likely lead to an increase in distressed assets to the market.”

Find Illinois housing stats data and the University of Illinois REAL forecast at www.illinoisrealtor.org/marketstats.  SOURCE Illinois Association of REALTORS