Open Houses for the Weekend of April 17-18, 2010 First Time Buyer Tax Credit Opportunities Townhomes and Single Families: Coops All Listings Can Be Shown By Appointment As Well Chicago Area Open Houses Hosted by Sudler Sotheby’s International Realty
I sat in on the Virtual Real Estate Bar Camp and walked away with some great social networking best practices and tips most of which you will see on my Facebook Page and if you follow me onTwitter. What had the most impact on me was what Rob Hahn said. I cannot quote him verbatim but the essence of his words were first we sell real estate everything else is secondary. If you are spending the day learning how to be a better tweeter, spend 2 days learning about the real estate market. How can I learn to better to serve my clients as Realtor®. After all that is the goal: To best represent our clients in the sale and purchase of real estate.
As my listing inventory continues to grow and I am running around with more buyers, I am optimistic about the last 6 weeks of the year. Momentum is gaining. I don’t understand something: Why are agents taking their listings off the market until after the new year?
If It Is Not Listed…..
The home buyers that are out there looking right now are among the best qualified and most motivated. If the home is not on the market there is no opportunity to show it to them. Market time numbers are what they are and there is no way to hide it. Taking something off for 45 days is not going to make the property worth anymore in January or February. Based on reports of a new influx of short sales and foreclosures coming on the market in 2010 it could be worth less. Residential resale pricing is going to continue to feel the impact of distressed properties as well as ongoing price reductions by developers to get their product sold.
According to the Illinois Association of Realtors, 37% of homebuyers are relocating to Chicago. They are not putting off their home search. They look at what is on the market when they are in the city. If you remove your listing, you are missing one in three of your potential purchasers. 45% are first time homebuyers. When this buyer closes on their home there is probably someone who has to move quickly to move to their next home. None of these people are concerned if it is the holiday season or not and they will buy.
With very little inventory coming on the market right now this is your best opportunity to sell your home at the best and highest price for what the market will bear. If your home is not listed there is no opportunity. Buyers and agents will not look a home if they do not know it is for sale.
Holiday Mode
I am feeling a sense of defeat from some agents who encourage their clients to remove their homes from the market because they have decided it is going to slow. Being a professional Realtor® is like being a professional ball player. If you take your eye off the ball for one second you miss the pass and can lose the game. Real estate is a 24/7, 365 day a year business. I do take vacations but I always make sure I am covered. I am sure there are many agents out there who would be happy to service your clients. You cannot sell a secret!
Originally Posted on the Chicago 77 Real Estate Blog October 27, 2009
Being that it is the fourth Tuesday of the month, today is the day Standard and Poor releases its Shiller-Case housing numbers. They looked at month to month numbers versus the Realtor® Association who basis their findings on a year over year period. According to their statistics, this month's Case-Shiller home price indices is reporting improved readings for seven months in a row. Essentially, this new report reflects similar data to last month's figures.
What this means for the Chicago Real Estate Market
When Case Shiller talks about "Chicago" they are using the Chicago Metropolitan Statistical Area or MSA which, defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, includes the counties of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will. Keep in mind Chicago's 77 neighborhoods are thrown in with Joliet and Rockdale Junction in terms of these statistics. With that being defined, they are reporting that Chicago saw an increase in home prices from July 2009 to August 2009 of 1.7%, but a 12.7% decline of year over year prices.
No matter who is pulling the data and how they chart it, the message is the same - first time buyers and jobs. "Broadly speaking, the rate of annual decline in home price values continues to improve" says David M. Blitzer, Chairman of the Index Committee at Standard & Poor's. "While many of the markets remain down versus this time last year, the relative rate of decline has shown some real improvement. We see this general trend whether you look at the as-reported data or the seasonally adjusted figures." But Blitzer cautions that "We do want to remind people of the upcoming expiration of the Federal First-Time Buyer's Tax Credit in November and anticipated higher unemployment rates through year-end. Both may have a dampening effect on home prices."
Sales Up - Prices Down
This morning the Illinois Association of Realtors reports that for the month of September 2009 the number of residential sales were up 3.3 % but the median sales price was down to $160,000 statewide, a 9.3% decrease compared to September 2008. Following the state's trend, in the City of Chicago the number of units sold were up 5.8% to 1,918 sales compared to 1,813 homes sold in September 2008. Chicago's median price in September 2009 was $225,000 down 16.2 percent compared to $268,600 a year ago in September 2008. The City of Chicago's numbers must distinguished from the Chicago PMSA, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, which includes the counties of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will where the median sales price was only $199,000.
Why the Increase in the Number of Sales but the Decrease in Pricing?
For the traditional homebuyer pricing is at levels we saw in 2004. Short sales and foreclosures have been impacting property prices giving buyers the opportunity for good value without having to buy distressed homes or deal with the short sale process. Interest rates have been hovering around 5%. The first time home buyer tax credit has been an incentive for some. Home buyers have repositioned themselves to meet the new lending guidelines by saving money for a down payment. It is not unusual to now see buyers putting 20% down.
What the Next Months Will Bring
Just like the numbers, it will be a mixed bag. Distressed properties will continue to impact market pricing for months and even years to come if unemployment does not go down. Banks inventory of REO properties continues to grow. Many homeowners are opting to wait it out in their current home for a while if they can, especially those who have only owned their properties for the last few years. Just have buyers need to be qualified to buy, sellers need to be qualified to sell. The median sale price will rise only if financing becomes jumbo financing becomes more readily available. Chicago's $500,000 - $1,000,000 market is crippled by having a much lower conforming loan number of $417,000 than in many other areas of the United States. We will consider to see qualified buyers entering the market as a result of relocation and buyers who have financially readied themselves to move forward with a home purchase.
Hot Property® Chicago EVERYWHERE: Sales and marketing of residential real estate
ActiveRain Corp. is not responsible for the accuracy of the site's content (which is written by members of the ActiveRain Real Estate Network) and does not endorse the views of the real estate agents, mortgage brokers, and others listed here.
Powered by the ActiveRain Real Estate Network
© 2012 ActiveRain Corp. All Rights Reserved
