Blog

It’s estimated that one million millennials will buy a home each year for the next ten years! Homeownership is STILL the American dream, and though millennials may want smaller, more environmentally friendly homes, they are NOT going to sacrifice the perfect walkable location. The rate scare has subsided for now, prices have dropped, and inventory […]

ROI can be positive or negative, you just have to catch him at the right time. ROI-Return On Investment. With the losses on 401k’s, company pensions and stock heavy annuities many of our newest clients over the last 5 years or so have been Investors looking for a positive ROI through Real Estate. One of […]

Here’s some practical inspiration for your new year’s resolutions, your 2019 goals, your focus. I read this in a business magazine as the “new” characteristics desired by employers: INITIATIVE and IDEATION. It sounds new, fantastic and, like, “Oh ya, I’ve got to improve on my ideation skills.” Of course we all know these as the […]

Certainly, the market slowed the second half of 2018. There are numerous explanations and all have contributed to the drop. Yes, rates and prices went up simultaneously to make affordability a challenge. Yes, consumer confidence dropped and trepidation regarding international tariffs rose to cause some buyers and investors to take pause. Yes, there has been […]

4 decades is a long time to do ANYTHING! During that time I have experienced a ton of changes in the Real Estate industry. The last 5 years have brought hyper changes, high speed evolution. At the start of my career we had fat volumes of property pages with tabbed areas. The massive books were […]

Devon Thornsby writes about and reports on Real Estate for US News&World Report. At the beginning of 2018 she somewhat predicted a slower second half when she elaborated on a survey that “…Just 25 percent of respondents believe 2018 will be a better time to buy a home than 2017…High rents hinder would-be first-time buyers’ […]

It has been 10 years since we have seen two straight months where 25+% of all sales were of properties with price reductions. We have had months of a drop in existing home sales and in new home sales. We have had months of increases in market times. It sounds rough. It’s not. It’s a […]

Should we let interest rates determine whether we purchase or not? Let’s look at rates and their effect on the Real Estate market. When I started in the industry rates were 18-20%! Closings occurred with owner financing/land contracts almost exclusively. It was a slower market but by no means completely dead. On the contrary rates […]

Well you’re not alone! The national average of property tax here in the United States is 2.7% of the value. This includes ALL property types(as land is taxed customarily at a higher rate). For ALL countries in the OECD the United States pays above average taxes. Our English friends are taxed the most at 4.2%. […]

In the past few years our clients have added these items to their must have criteria in a search for the ideal home: Walk to transportation, coffee shops, restaurants, schools, parks, shopping(specifically daily groceries) Easy access to Metra , the “L”, Expressways, O’Hare High rated schools Suburban amenities with urban conveniences…”SURBAN” My wife and I […]