The Fed decided today to keep the target range for the federal funds rate at between 0 and 1/4 percent. In a report released earlier, the Federal Reserve stated that they intend to keep the rate at these unprecedented lows “for some time.”
. . . credit conditions for households and firms remain extremely tight. The Committee [...]
Archive for January, 2009
Filed under buyers
Federal Reserve Keeps it Low, Low, Low
Comments Off Laura on Jan 28th 2009
Filed under buyers
Prepare to Wait for a Mortgage
Mortgage companies are falling behind on mortgage and re-financing applications. Historic drops in interest rates have prompted homeowners across the nation to apply for re-financing. Low demand in the fall, however, caused many companies to lay off workers, so downsized offices are now struggling to keep up with an overflow of applications.
Fast closings, e.g. in [...]
Comments Off Laura on Jan 28th 2009
Filed under barrington, market stats, palatine
2008 Chicago Metro Area Stats Summary
The 2008 home sales and price statistics for the Chicago metropolitan area* have been posted by the Illinois Association of Realtors.
While 2008 total sales were down 26% in the region compared to 2007, the 2008 median home price was down just 5.5%. In the city of Chicago proper, the 2008 median price was off by [...]
Comments Off Laura on Jan 27th 2009
Filed under sellers
A Bit of an Uptick in Internet House-Hunting
Check out Robert Darrrow’s post, People are Looking at Houses on the Internet Again, on his local blog YourWindyCityGuide. He has an interesting report on a recent increase in Realtor.com views of his listings. I have noticed the same data on my Realtor.com listings.
BarringtonLocal.com’s traffic has increased about 20% this month compared to last month [...]
Comments Off Laura on Jan 22nd 2009
. . . strangely enough, not in spring. Traditionally, Realtors think of the spring market as beginning after the Superbowl. The weather, of course, is still cold, but that time period marks the start of increased activity in the market.
After the Superbowl, open house traffic increases because the football season is over. Moreover, people start [...]
2 Comments Laura on Jan 14th 2009
Filed under sellers
Preparing to Sell: the Basics
I sometimes see dark, messy houses on the market in Barrington, Palatine, Inverness, Lake Zurich, -all over the area and in every price range. Keeping your home clean and bright is challenging, but it is a requirement for having your home on the market. This is just one basic that this funny video covers. I [...]
2 Comments Laura on Jan 5th 2009
Filed under buyers
A Buyer’s First Step
If you’re a buyer, when should you get a pre-approval from a lender? Buyers ask me this a lot. Today, it is important to get a pre-approval or pre-qualification letter from a lender right away, i.e., as soon as you begin looking at homes.
Talk to a Few Lenders
You’ll want to talk to a few lenders [...]
Comments Off Laura on Jan 5th 2009
