Buffalo Grove /Long Grove real estate agent Judy Greenberg gives important tips and strategies on how to sell your home in today's market. Stay tuned for my strategya week series....
Strategy 2- Buyer's should hire a localrealtor!
After all that you read in the newspapers, hear 
on the news, you probably are wondering how you can get the best house and the best deal if you are a buyer, or frightened that you will not be able to sell your home in this market if you are a seller.
So I want you to ask yourself , do you want the best realtor for this challenging job?Isn't' your home one of your largest investments? In this tough market, I feel that hiring a local realtor, instead of a third cousin who lives 1 hour from your home would be one of the wisest financial moves you will ever pursue.
In this post I'm going to address why you want to hire a local realtor if you are a buyer in today' s market and in my next post, I'm going to address why you should use a local realtor if you are contemplating selling your home. Sounds too obvious, maybe to you and me, but not to all the past disappointed past sellers and buyers I have met.
If you are a buyer, your buyer's agent needs to be a true expert in the communities you are interested in purchasing. Your agent should be completely versed in the schools, school districts, boundary lines, commuting, type of water the home uses, conservancy laws, etc.
Let me give you an example. Suppose a school district changed boundaries within the last few years. Many listing realtors are relying on old school information, and submitting incorrect schools or incorrect spelling of schools on the MLS sheets. This is happening more frequently today, especially with the influx of foreclosures and bank owned property on the market. The seller's bank hires the Realtor and this realtor may live and work hours from the property. Unfortunately, these Realtors may never have visited the property, and clueless of the school boundaries. 
Unfortunately, these unintentional mistakes in turn affects the buyer's realtor. Thus, the buyer's realtor who is not familiar with the area will either miss good homes (in their search) in the school district their client prefers, or advise their client to purchase a home in the wrong school district. Even if the listing realtor has the right school district but spells the name of the school incorrectly, you may miss a home in your search. To the right, I have copied a portion of the MLS of an active bank owned property located in Kildeer, Illinois. If you are looking for a home in district 125, Stevenson High School- you will pass over this home since the lister used the wrong district. They didn't even bother putting the name of the High school in the listing either. If a buyer's agent unfamiliar with the area used this information, it would be like the blind leading the blind!
Another important reason to hire a local realtor is that they are familiar with the nuances of the specific neighborhood, ordinances etc. One time a friend of mine moved in to a neighborhood and didn't realize the maintenance involved to purify the well water. Her realtor wasn't familiar with this, and in turn didn't inform her of the necessary upkeep. A local realtor would have been knowledgeable about these issues.
When you are negotiating on behalf of your client, it is always better to be the one who is more knowledgeable about the area. If you are representing the buyer and the seller won't budge on the price, you always have the advantage if you have seen the inside of the comparables and the reason that they sold for the price they did. A local realtor has the upper hand in the negotiations.
The last benefit I am going to address in hiring a local realtor in purchasing a home is that they may be aware of the best homes before they even hit the market. Many times when I have a buyer in a specific price range and they can't find a home that they are truly in love with, I go the extra step. I ask the realtors in my office, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, if anyone has a listing that they know that is coming on the market soon. If this networking proves unsuccessful, I take it one step further and ask my close friends and colleagues I trust in the other offices in town to see if they know of any listing that is going to meet the needs of my buyers. Although inventory is high, and you are probably laughing to yourself that a person can't find a home in today's market, many times the best homes do not even hit the market. It's the local agents who know of these homes first.
Caveat; if for some reason you do choose to hire a realtor that is not local, make sure they do their homework and learn all about every aspect of the home and communities you are buying....
Last week's strategy- Contemplating selling soon... Take pictures of your home now!
If you want more information regarding specific real estate sales in the Buffalo Grove, Long Grove, Vernon Hills, or Lincolnshire area please do not hesitate to call me at 847-602-5435 or email me at info@buffalogrovehomes.com . I am available 24/7 to make appointments!
Visit my website www.buffalogroveareahomes.com or www.movetolonggrove.com and you can search for more information on any listings
Let me introduce Coldwell Banker's National 10 day home sales event.... If you are looking for a great buy on a great home in the Chicago Northwest Suburbs, please take advantage of this wonderful opportunity.
Hundreds of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage homes will be offered at specially-reduced prices from October 10 - October 19. In order to participate in this event, seller's have reduced their price by 10 percent.... Don't miss this unique opportunity to find a new home during this unprecedented home sales event.
During this national promotion a comprehensive list of participating home can be found on ColdwellBankerOnline.com. If you are looking for a spectacular home in the Long Grove area, my seller in Royal Melbourne is participating in this unbelievable event....
Contact Judy Greenberg at 847-602-5435 today to find a home during this phenomenal sales event. Homes in all price ranges, as well as foreclosures and reo's are included in this sale
If you want more information regarding other activities happenning in Long Grove this fall or winter, please do not hesitate to call me or check out my websites at www.buffalogroveareahomes.com or www.movetolonggrove.com
Buffalo Grove /Long Grove real estate agent Judy Greenberg gives important tips and strategies on how to sell your home in today's market. Stay tuned for a strategy a week!
In my opinion, timing and knowledge are the keys of selling your home quickly and for the highest possible price. My goal is to educate the seller and buyer to take full advantage of the present market.
Seller-Strategy One- Take pictures of your home in all seasons- especially those that emphasize the beauty of your home.
Let's say you want to put your home on the market in early spring, one of the times most people ultimately first think about selling their home. Imagine what the photos of your home would look like at the time of year. If you live in Chicago's suburbs, your pictures would either include dirty snow or ugly barren trees. (Sometimes not a pretty site and one that does not make a good first impression.)
According the National Association of Realtors, nearly 80% of homebuyers start their home search on the Internet. This number is increasing on a daily basis. The potential buyer narrows his list of homes he would like to see by looking at pictures on the internet. 
My suggestion is that if you are comtiplating putting your home on the market in early spring - take your pictures now. Everything is very green ,especially after the week of rain we had a couple of weeks ago. Fall is a beautiful time of year and it would be a good idea to show the potential buyers what your home looks like in different seasons. To your left- this backyard in Long Grove will not photograph as well in the middle of winter as it does in the middle of the fall.
In my opinion, it's the photos -- and good photos -- that gets a potential buyer in your home, and you only get one chance to make a first impression. A good picture is worth a 1000 words, a bad picture on the other hand may result in the consumer skipping over your home in their internet search and ultimately lose the sale.
For all of you realtors who are reading this blog... would you take a client to a home which had no pictures on the internet? What about one that had bad pictures? What about potential buyers, what do you think?
If you want more information regarding other activities happenning in Long Grove this fall or winter, please do not hesitate to call me or check out my websites at www.buffalogroveareahomes.com or www.movetolonggrove.com
Don't miss the 2008 Long Grove's Apple festival
When?
October 3, 4, & 5
Friday 10:00am-6:00pm
Saturday 10:00am-9:00pm
Sunday 10:00am-6:00pm
Where?
Long Grove
1165 Old McHenry Rd
Long Grove , IL 60047
Take I-290 West to I-294 North to I-90 West, or take I-90/94 and stay on I-90 to 53 North. Go to the end of 53 and take the west exit, which will put you on Lake-Cook Road. Go to the traffic light (Rte 53/Hicks Road) and turn right. Go to the second light and turn left onto Old McHenry Road and into the village. The Municipal Archer parking lot will be on your right.
Who should come?
Everyone who loves apples!
What's Happenning?
Village restaurants and outdoor food booths will carry a wide range of delicious apple treats, including the very popular "make your own taffy apple" booths.. You don't want to miss Long Grove's famous brown bag 
apple pies,apple cider donuts, hot apple cider, caramel apple lattes, apple martinis, and more. I better walk to the festival so that I can have as many apple martinis as I desire
MUSIC, MUSIC AND MORE MUSIC 
Bring the Kids!
The Apple Jam Kids' Expo will include activities and informational booths for children and their parents. Additionally, pony rides, kiddy rides, and a kids' craft tent will provide fun for all ages. Don't forget to visit the Baby Contest and Princess Contest for girls, plus Johnny Appleseed Contest for boys, run by Illinois Pageants Galore on Saturday, October 4 in the Mill Pond lot. Registration is from 11:30 to 12:30; pageant starts at 12:30 pm.
If you want more information regarding other activities happenning in Long Grove this fall or winter, please do not hesitate to call me or check out my websites at www.buffalogroveareahomes.com or www.movetolonggrove.com
As part of a program to go Green, northwest suburban school districts in the Buffalo Grove and Long Grove area are attempting to go paperless and rely solely on email for communication to parents. At the forefront of this initiative is School District 96, which serves portions of Buffalo Grove and Long Grove. According to Betsy Fresen, public information coordinator, they are using broadband rather than backpacks to send school newsletters.
District 96 has estimated that this initiative has saved the school between $20,000 and $22000,. Additionally, going paperless will save the environment. That to me is Priceless! Less important reasons include- my kitchen won't get cluttered with papers, and my kids don't have to show me the monthly newsletter on Sunday night at 10:00 pm , just when I'm ready to go to bed.
This paperless initiative is a win win for everyone!
What can you do to go Green?
A friend of mine, sent me this link and I think this is a great way to start going Green . This is a link to a company where you can enter catalogs that you get that you do not want to recieve anymore and it removes you from their mailing list. http://www.catalogchoice.org/#optouts
That's all for now.... If you have any other Green ideas, please let me know and I will include them in my future blogs. Remember to go Green
with Greenberg! Please call me with any of your real estate needs
If you want more information regarding specific real estate sales in the Buffalo Grove, Long Grove, and Lincolnshire area, please do not hesitate to call me at 847-602-5435 or email me at info@buffalogrovehomes.com I am available 24/7 to make appointments!
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Serving the Northwest Suburbs of Chicago, You'll get the advantage of my in-depth knowledge of the neighborhoods in the area, my work ethic and tough negotiating skills.
Judy is not your your average real estate agent. From the second you meet her or visit her award winning web site, it becomes very obvious. Judy has to make sure that you have the most information, that you make the best decision and that you are happy with where you live.
Her first year of her career she was Coldwell Banker's Rookie of the Year for the entire 8 office Northwest Region and then has earned the President's award in the subsequent years placing her in the top 5% of agents nationally. She specializes in first -time buyers, relocating families and selling luxury homes. She has built her business through an exhaustive knowledge for the marketplace, tough negotiating skills, marketing savvy, networking,and attention to detail
Her Work Ethic:
She hates to admit, but she's a work-a-holic. Ask her husband and 3 boys. She does not quit until she exhausts all options. She does what it takes to sell your home for the highest price the market can bear. She has been known to stage houses where her clients love her decorating ideas so much, they have been known to reconsider whether they want to move.
Her website has been recognized by Google with a high ranking. If you google most of the suburbs she works in, you will see her website within the first page- that takes persistence and endurance. She is e-PRO Certified, which means she is computer savvy, and will have your advertise your home, on her websites,www.Buffalogrovehomes.com. www.buffalogroveareahomes.com, Coldwell Banker.com, Coldwell Bankeronline.com, Realtor.com, and numerous other sites.
Judy is certified to provide relocation services through Coldwell Banker's relocation services partner, Cartus, as a Relocation Buyer Specialist, Relocation Listing Specialist, and Relocation Inventory Specialist.
Judy specializes in the Chicago Northwest Suburbs including Buffalo Grove, Long Grove, Vernon Hills, and Lincolnshire.
Buffalo Grove Real Estate
Buffalo Grove was recently voted as one of the top 50 places to live for a family. This didn't come as a surprise to the residents of the great town of Buffalo Grove. The city provides both the amenities of a country atmosphere and the convenient access to the cultural, entertainment, and business centers of Chicago. The town offers an excellent Park District, fine arts commission and its own symphony orchestra.
Buffalo Grove, Ill.
Population: 42,909
Median household income: $80,525
Whether you are looking for Buffalo Grove Rentals, Buffalo Grove Condos,Buffalo Grove Single Family Homes,Buffalo grove Foreclosures, my website will provide you with all of the current listings
Vernon Hills Real Estate
Population 24,200
Median Household income $71297
Are you considering a move to the Vernon Hills area?
Vernon Hills prides itself with great schools, a great school diistrict , lakes, ponds, and forest preserves. I don't live in Vernon Hills, but it is just a stone's throw away from my house. I take advantage of all that Vernon Hills has to offer, and have rode my bike numerous times through the Vernon Hills forest preserves, a wonderful place to spend time both for exercise, and to enjoy the beautiful scenery.
Long Grove Real Estate
Real Estate Designations:
Designated Relocation Specialist
Recipient of the prestigious Coldwell Banker International President´s Circle Award
Member of the Illinois Association of Realtors®
Member of the National Association of Realtors®
Member of the Northwest Association of Realtors®
Internet e-PRO designation
We just wanted to express our sincere gratitude for the way you handled the purchase of our home in Long Grove. We appreciated your honesty, professionalism and accessibility throughout the entire transaction. Your in depth knowlege of the community was extremely helpful to us. We will highly recommend you and your services to anyone looking to buy in this area. We love our new house and neighborhood! Thank you again!
The Glazers
Thank you so much for selling my home. You laid out a very thorough plan to market the home and secured multiple qualified buyers in just days. Your attention to detail made all the difference. My only regret is I couldn't take you to Canada to help with the purchase of my next home.
Naveen Kapahi
Thank you for all your help! I truly appreciated your patience throughout the househunting process. You gave me great advice and never wanted to sell me something that was not exactly right for me. I knew that I did not have to worry about knowing about every house that was on the market in my price range. You are truly a professional that cares about her clients. I will definately recommend you to all my family and friends!
Howard Stone
Judy consistently displayed the highest level of professionalism, integrity and dedication in both the sale of our old home and the buy of our new home. On the sell side, she strategically staged our home in order for us to receive the highest sales price. On the buy side, her expertise and contacts in the Long Grove area greatly benefited us. My wife and I were able to see our dream home before it was even on the market. In both transactions they made the entire process as somooth and hassle free as possible. Be assure that I would always recommend Judy to anyone looking for a realtor.
Yogendey Pandey
Recently we were relocated to Chicago and as with all relocations; we had a short fuse to find a home. We got in touch with Judy Greenberg via her website and subsequent phone conversations. We signed on with her based on her knowledge of the area. Judy respected our urgency, took time to understand our needs (and desires) and found us the perfect home in a matter of days.
Judy, thank you again for finding exactly what we wanted; everything you showed us was always the type of house we wanted to see. The showing time spent with you was planned efficiently. You are a true professional with outstanding attention to detail. You are a Realtor that not only listens, but more importantly, understands. We appreciate all of your assistance and are lucky to have you as a friend.
Naveen and Seema
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