This past week October 5th through the 11th is National Fire Prevention Week. Joining in on the event was the Cary Fire Department. On Tuesday, October 14th from 6:30-8:30 pm they held an open house inviting the public to the station to learn all about fire safety. My dad, Bill Hauck, is a Cary Fire trustee so he has had this particular event in red on the calendar for weeks, if not months. I thought what a great opportunity to bring my 3-year-old son, Georgie, to the fire station to meet the firemen and hopefully learn some great safety tips. So my husband, our son, and I met my parents at the fire station to check it out.
My son wore his fire hat all the way to the station and all throughout the night so we called him "Fireman Georgie." His eyes lit up as we arrived and walked up to the fire trucks parked outside all sparkling clean and ready to go. He was very excited to be so close that he could finally touch one. It was like a child's dream come true! To his surprise there was even more to see inside. There was an ambulance that the children could walk through and inside it there was a friendly paramedic answering the children's many questions.
They could also view the truck used to carry all of the under water diving equipment. Georgie, along with so many other kids, excitedly walked through each with the biggest smiles on their faces. There was a jeep hauling the boat used for water rescues, which was a big hit with the kids who pretended they were boating. Of course what open house would be complete without games and treats too!
Included in the event were also several demonstrations to teach the importance of fire safety without being scary for the kids. One in particular that I thought was great was a fireman who put on all of his gear, his coat, hat, mask, everything and crawled up to the children in the circle to show them what a fireman would really look like. He made a point to tell the children and their parents that often times a child will be scared when they see a fireman in full uniform and they run and hide, which is extremely dangerous. It opened up the dialogue to teach your child not to be afraid of a fireman; they're there to help.
A favorite demonstration among the children was one in which they were able to hold a fire hose with a fireman and spray a tree with water together. There was also a real life controlled fire that showed everyone how they would put out a fire.
One of the best parts of the night was when the Flight For Life helicopter landed on the property. It was like a scene from a movie, being so close that you could feel the wind on your face and could see the leaves flying all around as the helicopter landed. After the helicopter was turned off they allowed everyone to go see the inside.
What a great time had by all and it was such neat experiences to be in the presence of so many that make a living helping people. So many families were able to make memories that night and teach valuable life saving lessons at the same time. Shortly after we discussed fire safety with our son and developed a plan at home and Fireman Georgie knows just what to do if there is ever a fire in our home. This time next year we will be back at the fire station for another great family event! Mark your calendars and check it out next year if you missed it this time!
One of our favorite Cary Restaurants is called The Tracks. Throughout the year it is definitely one of our favorite stops for a great hamburger or basically any sandwich you can think of. We have traveled all over the world and always laugh that we can not wait to return to our favorite burger restaurant in Cary, Illinois. We have now shared Carys best little kept secret for great food and service. We especially enjoy sitting outside in there patio area as the weather gets warmer and visit with family and friends. We hope that you check this family owned restaurant out the next time you want to have some good food close to home. Please do not forget to mention that Bill & Luanne sent you! Enjoy!
The following is a copy of a blog entry by my friend Kelly from the Lake Zurich ReMax office. I could not have said it better and she certainly writes better then me. I asked for premiision to copy it because I really think this is very important to both buyers and sellers and puts a spotlight on the current market.
Kelly Sibilsky, a Sales Associate with RE/MAX Unlimited Northwest in Lake Zurich, Ill., posted this blog entry on her Active Rain site on March 30.
Will 2008 be the year you wish you'd bought real estate?
With lower interest rates and plenty of homes to choose from, now may be the right time for you to purchase real estate. Today's lower interest rates may not be around when prices flatten out, so trying to time the market rarely works to your advantage. Another problem with trying to time the market is that it requires a rising market to know just where the bottom was ... hindsight is always 20-20, isn't it?
In many cases, purchasing a home may be cheaper than renting. In my market area, it is difficult to find a decent rental unit for under $1,300/mth. That's $15,600/year that could have gone towards your own mortgage, instead of paying your landlord's mortgage for him. Your landlord loves you, by the way, because you're making him rich. You are literally buying his property instead of your own. Think about it.
Then there is the distressed (foreclosure) property market. While many of these properties have condition issues and other challenges, in many cases they are priced below market value and offer opportunity for those willing to put in a little sweat equity to make a profit. If you are considering purchasing a distressed property, I suggest you consult a real estate agent who specialized in the foreclosure market to assist you. It can be tricky to navigate.
All investments carry some level of risk, and purchasing real estate is certainly no exception. This is not the time to make decisions that have not been carefully analyzed. What is a good purchase for an investor may not be a good purchase for a typical homebuyer. This is why you should always work with a real estate agent who can guide you in the right direction and provide the information you need to make an educated decision based on your individual circumstances.
Many people wish to wait "until next year, when prices may be lower" which of course, is a risk in and of itself. Prices may be lower, or may be higher. How many times have you waited for that special sweater at your favorite store to be marked down, only to discover that it was snapped up by someone else before you had the chance to purchase it? It may be a simple analogy, but the principle is the same: sometimes you snooze, you lose. If that's okay with you, then go ahead and wait it out. Hopefully you won't want to kick yourself a year from now.
The truth is, none of the experts can accurately predict the real estate market any better than the experts can accurately predict the stock market or what gas prices will be a year from now. If you purchased real estate in 2006 or 2007, you most likely got a great home at a terrific price with a low interest rate. Provided you stay in your home for several years (something I always recommend), you will benefit when property values eventually rise again.
I actually purchased my own home when the market was so hot that homes were selling in just days and for full list price. My home is now worth about $100,000 more than it was when I purchased it. Had I purchased a few years earlier, my home may be worth $25,000 more than that. Had I purchased just two years ago, my home may be worth about what I paid for it. That's the nature of real estate. Values go up, values go down, and when you purchase and sell makes all the difference.
For the typical homeowner, purchasing real estate should be a long term investment as well as a good little tax deduction, a place to live and make memories that will last a lifetime. Would I be comfortable selling my home in today's market and purchasing a new home? You bet your booties. In fact, I wish I could do just that, because I feel this market offers tremendous opportunities. The problem is, it's not the right time for me to do so because my youngest son has three more years of high school. If the market values are higher in three years, I will make more money on the sale of my home. Of course, I will also be paying more money for my new home. Therefore, I will not have gained anything by waiting and may actually lose money because of the higher purchase price on my new home and potentially higher interest rates. But that's life, folks. Sometimes you need to make decisions based on what is right for you and your family instead of making decisions based solely on the financials.
So will 2008 be the year you wish you'd bought real estate?
See what I mean I could not have said it better. If you have any comments please let me know.
Very quickly a short sale is something negotiated between the bank, current seller and a buyer to take less money then a seller owes. If successful the debt is erased and is less costly to the lender then a foreclosure. Takes time and effort.
A foreclosure is when a seller walks a way and lets a bank foreclose on the amount owed and sells the home to the highest bidder. The seller is still responsible for the debt if there is a difference. The bank can attach any other property or future earnings.
Both affect personal credit for a period of 4-9 years.
Note: Seek the advice of a attorney and CPA and a good real estate agent!
How you approach this declining market, sub prime lending fiasco and liquidity meltdown is the key. I can only relay what we have found here in our local market as we study recent past sale data. Do not confuse what you hear on the national news programs with what is happening locally. Locally what we have seen are some foreclosures and some homeowners that are in some financial trouble. Not every home with a "for sale" sign is in foreclosure. As a very general rule our local market has lost approximately 5% last year.
Gone are the days of using your home as an ATM machine. A lot of the population would if their spending practices or a need for a major purchase out weighted their income would just call the local finance guy or gal, refinance and the cycle would begin again. What has happened is this, 2 years ago if we sold 100 homes in a year 25 of those sales were investors or home remodelers, they are all gone now and out of the real estate investment game. 25 of those sales were sub prime. People who can afford a home as long as interest rates never go up and appreciation continues and if the need arises refinance and start the cycle again. Appreciation has not only stopped but as a general rule gone down by 4-5 percent this year. ( some neighborhoods more, some less, consult a good real estate agent.) So now we have ½ of the buyers we had before and the same, if not 10 percent more homes on the market now then at its peak. Over the last several months we had noticed that the inventory of homes on the market their numbers had gone down and contracts taken had gone up. With the Spring market around the corner we expect this cycle to reverse leading to a downward pressure on sellers again this Spring and Summer, but a good sign that things may be changing. We have also noticed that buyers are experiencing some very unexpected trouble obtaining loans. A good experienced full time agent should be able to navigate these waters. I expect a very trying market again this year.
The good news. This year over 5 million resale homes will be sold. Homes are selling but gone are the days that a seller can just add 5 percent appreciation a year, do nothing and realize a sale and profit. There are to many homes to choose from that have upgraded staged and have great curb appeal that will sell first and there are only ½ the available buyers.
The bad news. Some houses are just not going to sell. The reasons very. We will go into these on our next blog. Stay tuned. Any questions please ask.
As we grow older and reflect on being parents and also the lucky ones who know the true blessings of being grandparents, we are entering the time of the year for giving and sharing. We feel truly fortunate of the so many good things we have in our lives. We always try our best to remember to give thru out the year but it always seems more special during the Christmas holiday season. As the year comes to an end and we celebrate with friends and family it is also a great time to remember the less fortunate. Every year our office located at 445 Park Avenue in Cary collects "new toys" that are "unwrapped" for the purpose of donating to the children for Toys for Tots and Childrens Miracle Network. In the past the ReMax Unlimited NW offices in the 5 different locations has had to use our moving truck to make the deliveries because of the great response. Which is a very fulfilling feeling for us. Lets make sure that we need to use the moving truck because of all of the generous donations of toys again this year. Yes, the truck is used for more than moving families!! We wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy, prosperous New Year! Sincerely, Bill & Luanne Hauck
Whenever you go on vacation do you ever wonder why we do not make the time and do it more often. We always say that we do not have enough money but we always seem to find the way. With real estate sales in our area down alot from what we are used to, we find that we are working twice as hard for half as much pay. We all seem to get frustrated and it certainly takes a toll on our health mentally and physically. We decided that after 2 years we really needed to get away. So we did, we just returned from a 7 day cruise to the Southern Carribean where no one moves very quickly. Everyday we would stop at a different island where the sun continually shines, the aqua water and sandy beaches are everywhere. The islanders offer their crafts and never seem to hurry anywhere. We found ourselves enjoying every minute floating in the ocean, checking out rain forests, botanical gardens, and swimming in some remote cavern to see a waterfall. I thought my heart stopped when I hit that 60 degree water to check out this special place. I kept thinking my kids would not believe that I just jumped into this icy water after riding some sort of all terrain vehicle that went up to the top of this island. They certainly have no guard rails or seat belts for safety. If you have ever gone on a cruise you know that it is a floating 24 hour a day Country Buffet. I really prefer the nightly dinners where we are really spoiled by people from all over the country. These people have devoted their lives to entertaining, sharing family stories about themselves and waiting on everyone to provide for their families that they only see every 8-10 months. I could not imagine not seeing my kids, grandkids and family for that long. Wherever you go people are basically all the same. We all work hard and make sacrifices. After 7 days, I was very ready to get home. Like they say it is great to get away but it is always good to get back home and count our blessings.
I was talking to several realtors about how they write articles on just about anything for others to read and they call it blogging. I decided that I really should look up the term to find out what it really means. So in otherwords a "blog" is an abbreviated version of "weblog". It can be information of a personal nature, a diary-type commentary and really can just focus on whole range of subjects. I thought it sounded like something I would like to do but really was not sure what I could talk about. I realize that real estate is truly my life and being in business with my husband it is what we truly live and breathe. But some how I wanted to write about something else. Do not get me wrong, both of us love what we do and it is very rewarding and we have made some wonderful friends thru clients we have met along the way. But I guess my first attempt should be on a personal level of something that truly has made me reflect on what is it that makes me happy. The more I thought about it I guess I can safely say, alot of things. One of the first thing that comes to mind is my grandkids. Yes, the dreadful grandma that carries numerous photos and smiles from ear to ear when someone politefully asks about them. You know that they are just being polite but you just do not care and you always pull out mountains of pictures for you to show off, but it is only really you that sees each of their unique personalites and remembers the story behind each picture. Who would of thought that they could be so much fun and how your heart melts when your new found name is "Grammy" and you gladfully answer. My house becomes a mountain of tupperware from cabinets and toys thrown from the end of one room to the next and you simply are on the floor playing and not caring about the mess. You allow them to wear their princess dress to the grocery store and ignore the children pointing and laughing that it isnt Halloween. You let them eat cookies for breakfast, lunch and dinner. At the end of the day and when all is said and done, does it all really matter that we are not serious all the time and follow the rules? I think the best statement of all is that we all sometimes get caught up in our busy lives and we truly forget that the simplest of things can make us laugh and be really happy. In the last 3 years my husband and myself have been blessed with 5 grandchildren, 4 girls and 1 boy and they truly have made us relect on our lives and what is important. Afterall, if "Grammy" isnt happy no one is!! So you see my real estate career will be my life for a very long time because who says I have raised my kids, put them thru college, paid for weddings and I am done. Remember, how can I ever say "no" to my grandkids.
Hello everyone and welcome to our first real estate blog on Cary real estate and home sales. Here is our take on the market as it exists now.
Many areas of the country have experienced varying levels of bubble trouble in the real estate market. The legacy left behind by a fading market varies from city to city and region by region. Overall, here's what happens when a market starts a downturn or stagnates:
Home buyers became weary Existing-home sales volume stalls Interest rates nudge up New home construction drops fast Days on market increases Overall home prices slide Mortgage fraud escalates Foreclosures rise rapidly Subprime mortgages collapse Home sellers become desperate Home buyers make low offers Surplus new construction floods the market Builders/Developers go insolvent Property values decline
These steps obviously do not apply everywhere or exactly in this order but living in an area with numerous foreclosures, multiple home buying speculators or even a few ruined developments has a major impact on neighboring existing home prices. On the flipside, certain places had little or no risk of housing price declines due to a strong local economy and a growing job market underpinning that specific housing area.
Now what does all this mean to the Cary market. First lets look at the Cary Remax office market share and sales for the first 6 months of 2007. Our volume was 45% higher this year than last but the total MLS sales volume for the 60013 zip code was down 26%.
Our total company volume which includes Cary, Crystal Lake, Algonquin, Lake Zurich and Palatine was up 18%. So there are 26% less buyers right now and 30% more homes on the market but Remax Unlimited Northwest is increasing sales and market share.
Sellers need to be aware that homes are selling in Cary but not at the previous volume. In order to sell your home you should have an agent with a well know company, a proven written marketing plan and be prepared to make all the changes your agent suggests otherwise you will have done nothing more than help sell someone else's house.
Buyers be prepared. Have your pre-approval letter with you and study the market. Get an agent that is full time and understands Cary. If the stock market continues to go up so will interest rates. Bill or Luanne or George only work with 6 buyers at a time, if you think this is something that you would like please call or email us.
We believe that the Cary market is stable and home appreciation will increase at a yearly rate of 1-3% overall rather than the 5-9% that has occurred.
In the coming weeks I will post community events and past sales and what is for sale in neighborhoods around Cary.
What's new in the real estate market in Woodstock! Bill & Luanne Hauck with Remax Unlimited Northwest present "The Ponds Of Bull Valley". New construction at a very affordable price.
Here's what's available right now in the Pond's including NEW CONSTRUCTION.
INTERNET BLOG SPECIAL OFFER! CHECK OUT THESE FINE HOMES OFFERED AT THE PONDS OF BULL VALLEY WITH US. REGISTER WITH US AS YOUR BUYERS AGENT BEFORE SEEING ANY HOMES AND WE WILL GIVE YOU A CASHIERS CHECK AT CLOSING FOR $1000.00 FOR NEW FURNITURE OR ANYTHING ELSE! CALL TODAY AND MENTION THIS BLOG!
Right now there are 400 homes on the market in the 60098 zip code. In the last 6 months there have been 126 sales.
As a general rule there are 1/3 more homes on the market and 40% less buyers. If you are a seller what does this mean. First, ALL homes sell. Depends on price, condition and location. Having trouble or just thinking about selling give us a call. No obligation
Best advice if you are a buyer, get a buyers agent. They do this 8 hours a day every day. They generally know where the deals are and the best locations. A really good buyers agent will want a signed buyers contract. My wife and George my son in law only work with 6 buyers at a time. If you are interested give us a call.
This is my first blog on real estate in Woodstock. Thanks for stopping by.
Disclaimer: ActiveRain Corp. does not necessarily endorse the real estate agents, loan officers and brokers listed on this site. These real estate profiles, blogs and blog entries are provided here as a courtesy to our visitors to help them make an informed decision when buying or selling a house. ActiveRain Corp. takes no responsibility for the content in these profiles, that are written by the members of this community.
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