Happy St. Patrick's Day, everyone!Properties Pending Sale and Average Sale Price numbers stable this week - let's see if things pick up in the coming weeks with warmer weather. It seems, from our personal experience, listings traffic is beginning to pick up. Average Days on Market still high, bu
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03/17/2008
More and more, as the Chicago Real Estate Market continues at a comparatively sluggish pace, several of our seller clients are considering renting their existing homes - rather than risking vacancy, or becoming more frustrated, in their opinion, continuing to try to sell them.For some, not inclin
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03/16/2008
Enjoying Sunday, folks! Good!As for me, I'm posting on my AR Blog. You?As a real estate practitioner, we learn early to take nearly every sale with a grain of salt. Negotiate a contract? I bet you don't figure out your compensation until inspection and loan commitment are complete, right?If
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03/16/2008
Oooooh - this one is loaded!Please, folks, no political, evangelical, or red-state-versus-blue-state tirades here.But now, bearing unforeseen circumstances, we're down to one of three 2008 Presidential Candidates that will be the Leader of the Free World this time next year.Which Presidential can
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03/15/2008
Hope you're enjoying the weekend, folks!Effective April 1st, a new, higher Chicago Real Estate Transfer Tax takes effect. Under the new law, the tax here increases from it's current $7.50 per thousand of purchase price, up 40%, or $3.00, to $10.50/M. For many years, this Chicago Tax has been th
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03/15/2008
THE CHICAGO IL REAL ESTATE MARKET, AND OTHER THINGS CHICAGO, FROM THE POINT OF VIEW OF A LITTLE WHITE DOG!I bet you didn't know this Little White Dog is an avid cyclist, just like Chicago Mayor Rich Daley! It's true, during the spring and summer, I often ride 10 or more miles a day. I'd go furt
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03/14/2008
This is very disturbing, folks - but I'm sure it also happens where you live and work.Here in Cook County, the county which includes the City of Chicago, as well as neighboring suburban Du Page County, scam artists are beginning to record forged Quit Claim Deeds to transfer properties to themselv
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03/13/2008
Everything goes up, right? Gasoline? Heating Oil? Groceries? Home Prices (well . . . )?Well, here in Chicago, the cost to turn on your computer, to run your shredder, to cut your plywood, and to flip on that reading light, is going up, once again!Commonwealth Edison, or, as we call them here
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03/13/2008
Hey, Gang - hope all is well!One aspect of today's buyer-oriented real estate market, here in Chicago and elsewhere, is the absolute brazen attitude of many buyers toward inspection repairs.You know what I mean, don't you, you Listing Agents?Hard, extended negotiation after long seller market tim
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03/13/2008
Hey, hey, everybody! Hope all is well!Keller Williams Chairman Gary Keller, speaking online and at the Keller Williams Family Reunion Conference last month in Atlanta, spoke again and again about the importance of continuing LEAD GENERATION in weak markets. Those that master the art of CONSIST
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03/11/2008