Turnberry Ridge Subdivision - Champaign, IL

Turnberry Ridge Real Estate Market Update:

The following data was compiled from the CCAR MLS as of 8/22/2008

Closed Sales of Single Family Homes

Urbana, IL - Real Estate Market Update (August, 2008)

What better time than August to give an update on Urbana's real estate market?  As the end of the 'prime-time' months for real estate draw to a close (May, June, July & August) let's take a look at what has been going on compared to the previous year.

Take a minute to review the chart and you'll find my take on the local market below.

Overall, the home sales in Urbana, IL have held strong this past year as national real estate trends continue to decline.  Urbana continues to build out new subdivisions and start plans for new additions in the ever expanding edge of the city.  

The Good:    Home prices in Urbana increased 5.7% thru August.  This is a pretty remarkable number when you consider it along with the drastic losses you hear about throughout the country.  Urbana's absorption rate is 5.2 months.  The absorption rate is a statistic used to compare the outstanding inventory in a given market.  To sell all the actively listed homes in Urbana it would take 5.2 months.  Most real estate pundits make 6 months the benchmark or breaking point to move from a Buyer's Market to a Seller's Market.  It may not feel like it for some home sellers in Urbana but we are technically in a Seller's Market.  The main difference is many homeowners (and Realtors) got used to stories of fast and easy homes sales from the past 2-3 years.  To sell your home in today's market you need effective pricing and professional marketing to get the job done.

The Bad:    The average days on market for a home has increased 19% to almost 3 months.  This is directly related to the 32% decrease in the number of home sales in Urbana.  The List Price to Sale price ratio has also dropped.  Home owners are now getting 96.7% of their asking price on average.  On a $100,000 home this equates to a loss of $900 compared to the prior year.

The Interesting:    It's interesting to note that the number of sales has dropped, it's taking longer to sell a home and the average LP to SP ratio has fallen BUT... the average and median home prices continue to increase.  Why?  In a nutshell, Champaign/Urbana offers a bit of an insulated economy that has not been severly impacted by national trends. The constant in and out of University employees provides a steady demand for real estate in this area.  We are also supported by a strong employment base (Carle, Christie, Kraft, Amdocs, Yahoo, Wolfram, Canadian National, etc.).


If you are thinking about buying a home in Urbana email or give me a call to learn more about the area and what you can expect for your price range.  You will receive up to date information on our local market that can help you make a a solid investment as well as learn how to find a home you will love.

www.ChampaignExperts.com

Real Estate Market Summary - 1/1/08 thru 5/13/08 The following data is taken from the CCAR MLS as of 5/13/2008

Looking at Glenshire as an individual market is a little tough to do because of the small number of sales every year so these statistics need to be incorporated with a view of the overall real estate market in Southwest Champaign. (if you are interested in that info please contact me)

In general, Glenshire has followed the general trend in the local real estate market with longer days on market following 2005. The average sale prices have remained strong with a dip in 2007 that can mainly be attributed to 9 of the 13 homes that sold that year being smaller than 1900sqft in size. Another sign of strong demand in Glenshire is the tightening of the List Price to Sale Price Ratio. This is the average percentage of asking price that a home seller is receiving in Glenshire Subdivison.

The item that really caught my attention so far this year is that there are no closed sales in Glenshire for 2008. I think this is an anomaly from the relatively small size of the subdivision but it will be interesting to watch for the remainder of the year.

There are currently 11 homes in Glenshire actively marketed through the MLS averaging 76 days on the market.

The information listed in this post was writtten by my real estate mentor Randy Hughes. Land trusts are a great way to protect yourself. Take some time and read the info it will be worth your time!!

Advantages of Using a Revocable Land Trust

•1. Avoids property being probated (out of court transfer upon death of beneficiary)

•2. Ease of Transferability

•3. Judgments do not attach to the property

•4. No Partition (avoids spouse's "forced share" sale buyout upon divorce)

•5. Easier management with multiple owners (multiple owners do not have to sign docs)

•6. No costs upon transferring beneficiary

•7. No registered agent needed

•8. Legal and Equitable property interest in trustee's name

•9. Income and Expense conduit, not a business with tax consequences

•10. No tax return to file (pass thru entity)

•11. Trustee has no personal liability

•12. No annual fees like other entities, if trustee is an individual or friend

•13. Estate planning - successor beneficiaries

•14. Less expense in grantor creating trust over entity

•15. Avoids the due on sale clause

•16. Privacy of ownership - Helps Avoid Identity Theft of your name

•17. Keep sales price private

•18. Able to fracture interests of multiple owners w/o being partners

•19. Ease of linkage to other asset protection entities

•20. Non-judicial repossessions of real estate sold on installment contract

•21. 1099 not required for transfers (personal property not subject to real estate regulations)

•22. Ease of operating across state lines

•23. Ability to insert poison pills

•24. Lots of case law to support land trust law

•25. Many attorneys do not study this section of the law - not profitable for them

•26. No recordation of the Trust Agreement

•27. To avoid "seasoning" problems (secondary market rules of ownership)

•28. To save title insurance premiums (Trustee-insured-remains the same)

•29. Good negotiating technique in the sale or purchase of property (Disney World used trusts to acquire land prior to construction to avoid price escalation)

•30. To provide non-recourse financing

•31. Lowering of real estate taxes (prevents re-assessment)

•32. Avoids state regulations that apply to corporations and LLC's

As you can see, Land Trusts are a wonderful tool for you to hide your assets, avoid real estate tax increases, privatize your sales transactions, avoid probate and use for many other benefits. Now that you have a basic understanding of why people use Land Trusts, please consider acquiring our Land Trusts Made Simple Basic Home Study Course. You will be amazed at the logic behind how to structure your Trusts Agreement so no one but YOU understands what is going on. At the end of the course we give you all of the forms needed to create and maintain your own Land Trusts. This is available by going to http://www.realestatateforprofit.com/ and clicking on "Shop Online" then clicking on one of the "Home Study" tabs at the top.

Are you working hard to acquire assets? You will spend a life time building your financial estate... spend a little time and money learning how to protect your net worth from the deadbeats and their contingency fee lawyers!

WWW.REALESTATEFORPROFIT.COM

Tom Kachich, a columnist and editor with the News Gazette in Champaign, IL, had an article in a recent edition of the paper talking about Spring, getting outside and places you could take a nice walk in Champaign and Urbana.

A few of his top 10 included:

1. The Boulware Trail in south Champaign. This is a relatively short path at 1.25 miles but very nicely decorated in the Spring and Summer. It is most frequently used by employees on their lunch hours. It runs from Windsor almost to Kirby Ave, just west of Neil Street
2. Meadowbrook Park in Urbana. This is one of my personal favorites. It includes sculptures, prairie landscape, wildlife (including deer), and even playground equipment near one of the entrances. The easiest access is off of Windsor Rd. in Urbana
3. University of Illinois Campus. No specific paths here just a general stroll through campus town. The quad is always interesting to take in and there are plenty of old buildings and architecture to enjoy.
4. Green Street through Champaign and Urbana. This route would let you take in both cities, campus town, big old trees, new commercial/retail development and old architecture.
   
5. Church & University Avenues from Neil to Mattis in Champaign and/or the State Streets area in Urbana, sometimes referred to as the faculty ghetto, albeit jokingly. These areas are full of graceful old homes and some amazing designs.
6. Crystal Lake Park in Urbana. This is Urbana's largest park and a great place to spend an afternoon. You'll find a large woods, lake, creeks, and tons more.

My favorites have always been Meadowbrook Park and the UofI campus area. Meadowbrook provides a very peaceful setting full of nature and wildlife and the UofI campus gives you pretty much the opposite but it's just as interesting. It just depends on your state of mind and what you want to see.

Do you have your own favorites? There are plenty more but I'd love to hear what some others have found.

Interested in other suggestions for things to do in Champaign & Urbana, IL?