Champaign, IL

In a recent listing appointment in Cherry Hills I discussed the local absorption rate with the home owners as a component of their overall pricing strategy. More details on that example and how the it is calculated can be found here: Home Update for Cherry Hills - Champaign, IL

In establishing the market value and recommended list price for a home I incorporate the following 3 components (at a miminum).

1. The Absorption Rate - What is the overall supply and demand of homes for this segment of the market?
2. What is the general range of $/sqft for sold homes? This is used as a 'reality check' but not as a true guideline. The goal here is to make sure that the house doesn't extremely stand out from the competition unless there is added value in the home.
3. Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) - The tried and true method of comparing a home to similar homes in similar or identical subdivisions that have sold in recent months.

Using these 3 components requires balancing the "sold" information with the active competition and pending sales. In a buyers market that is continually shifting a home seller needs to make sure they don't get caught looking in the past.

How is your home positioned in the market when you compare it to the competition? If there are 20 similar homes for sale will yours be one of the 5 to sell in the next 4 months?

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Five years ago after many years of being in real estate, I wanted to find a way to give back to the community that helped make me so successful. This year marks our 5th Annual Coat the Community Fundraiser. With the help of many sponsors including the Salvation Army, County Market grocery store, WCIA news and 92.5 The Chief radio station each year we gather to collect as many gently used coats as possible to donate back to our city of Champaign. The Salvation army is always there with their hot coffee and donuts helping us sort through the many coats and then with the distribution afterwords. In October 2008 we collected close to 1000 coats and we hope to surpass that amount this year.

Information for the 5th Annual Coat the Community:

Sponsored by Scott Bechtel & The Bechtel Group

Saturday, October 17th, 2009 * 9:00 a.m. until 12:00 noon

Location: County Market at Kirby Ave and Duncan Rd, Champaign

There are many people in this community that will appreciate your donation! Please save your extra coats and help keep a family warm this winter.

For anyone donating coats this October you also have a chance to win gift certificates from Buffalo Wild Wings, Monica's Pizza, and County Market grocery store.

According to analysts, home prices may fall in the near-term and rise only in 2012. "We expect prices to drop for another year and then stabilize before starting to rise with incomes," says Standard & Poor's Chief Economist David Wyss. The S&P/Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index, which tracks the movement of home prices, will fall about 16% this year before stabilizing. Fiserv, a research firm, has forecasted the 2012 home prices in 50 largest metro areas across different states.
In some states such as Wisconsin, Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan, home prices will see a rise by 2012. However, in states such as Florida, California, New Jersey, and New York, prices will fall until end 2012.

Elliot Eisenberg, a senior economist with the National Association of Home Builders says there's still pain to come in states where there's oversupply. "Prices will have to come down further and it will take a while to burn off the excess inventory that's floating around there," said Eisenberg. So what should home buyers do now? Is it a good time to buy? "To generalize, yeah, it is a good time to buy a house. I don't think there's any urgency because I think it'll still be a great time to buy a house a year from now," says economist Richard DeKaser of Woodley Park Research.

According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), home sales rose 2.9% in April from March. While sales in the low-end properties segment have risen, the market for high-end properties is still sluggish. Sherry Chris, chief executive of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, says, "We're looking at a dual market right now." Mortgage for expensive properties is getting difficult to obtain on account of lenders tightening their lending standards. The government controlled mortgage companies such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac cannot purchase loans above $730,000, which are commonly referred to as "jumbo" loans. Jumbo loans which accounted for 17% of the mortgage market two years ago, now account for just 5%. In most places, there is no significant interest for properties over $1 million. Ben Coleman, owner of Century 21 Hartford Properties, says, "That's where we're really feeling the pinch." Lawrence Yun, chief economist at NAR, has urged the Federal Reserve to buy up jumbo loans in order to restore liquidity in the high-end mortgage market.