cook county: Cook County puts together a Land Bank - 05/28/13 10:36 AM
At the end of 2012, the Cook County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously on creating the largest land bank in the US to begin solving issues in communities regarding the over populated nature of abandoned and vacant properties.
Their sole purpose will be to restore life into these communities by bringing distressed and foreclosed properties back to active tax paying status.  They will not only acquire these properties but also fix and manage them.
Currently, there are 85,000 pending foreclosures in Cook County, a number that is concerning to the land bank commissioner Bridget Gainer, and 90% of those filings will … (0 comments)

cook county: Chicago sees a burst of foreclosure activity in the auctions - 05/24/13 08:56 AM
April was one the busiest months Cook County has seen in Foreclosure activity since August of 2010.  A whopping 3000 residential units came through the auctions just last month.  When compared to the 1500 in March and the 1800 from a year ago, that tells us one thing.  There is STILL a lot inventory out there.
Of course not all properties scheduled to go to a foreclosure auction actually make it all the way the through, but this surge of activity is movement in the right direction to stabilize Chicago’s real estate market.
"For Illinois as a whole, we've now seen … (0 comments)

cook county: How Accurate Is Zestimate by Zillow? - 06/13/12 09:49 PM
 
So, when was the last time you walked into a listing appointment and after you had presented your educated insight on the client’s property based on years of experience in the local market then heard the client say, “but Zillow says it is worth this”?
  Zestimates: How Accurate Are They? 
  Whether Realtor or Appraiser, this question will continue to come up as more companies are moving to harness vast amounts of data to predict home values.
  So, the next time you need to explain the difference in your Market Analysis of a client’s property and the … (6 comments)

cook county: Sale Prices Decline In Northern Illinois - 03/26/12 11:29 AM
Based on information reported last week about sales prices in Northern Illinois, some counties experienced bigger drops in prices than others.
The median selling price last month dropped almost 16% in Lake County and 13.7% in McHenry County from year-earlier comparisons. In Cook County, sales rose 9.5%, to 2,441 homes sold but the median price of $125,000 was down 12% from a year earlier.
So, volume rose but prices fell.  Economics 101.
Michael Hobbs, PahRoo Appraisal & Consultancy
 
(1 comments)

cook county: Year-end Foreclosure Auctions Soar - 01/23/12 01:01 PM
Chicago-area foreclosure auctions soared at the end of 2011 based on information reported from Bardan Azari at Cherry Picker Investments who represents real estate investors and rehabbers at auctions.
According to data released in December by ILFLS.com, The Illinois Foreclosure Listing Service, the quantity of properties sold at foreclosure auctions in December increased by 81% compared to December 2010 and increased by 13%, compared to November 2011. 
As noted in earlier posts, one of the main reasons for this huge increase in auction activity is banks have resumed foreclosure sales as the robo-signing dust has continued to settle.  As news of … (2 comments)

cook county: That is not a love note in your mailbox, Cook County - 10/06/11 11:33 AM
If you receive mail service like the rest of the residents of Cook County, then that colorful envelope showing up is not a love note.  Oh no, quite the contrary, it is your second installment of the Cook County property tax bill.
And if your in a similar position like most individuals, your property taxes are going up as your property values are going down.  The best thing to do is go to www.cookcountyassessor.com and look at the assessed value for your property, then take the total assessed value and multiple by 10 for residential properties...that will give you the estimated … (2 comments)

cook county: More Foreclosure Investing Opportunities From Chicago & Suburbs: August 8-12, 2011 - 08/22/11 01:50 AM
 
For eager investors in Northern Illinois, properties in Gurnee, Evergreen Park, Elk Grove Village, Glendale Heights, Chicago, Midway, Edgewater, and Grand Crossing were acquired at real estate foreclosure auctions in Cook, Lake and Dupage Counties which are sure to make other's mouths water. 
Our client, Cherry Picker Investments, has a proprietary database which identifies all distressed properties in the metro Chicago areas, including Cook County, Lake County, Dupage County, Kendall County, Kane County, McHenry County and Will County.  Because these properties are distressed (notice of foreclosure has been filed), most of them eventually end up at a foreclosure auction.  Due to … (0 comments)

cook county: More Foreclosure Investing Opportunities From Chicago & Suburbs; August 1-5, 2011 - 08/14/11 11:47 AM

Well, as parents and families are preparing to send their little ones (and not so little ones) back to school and off to college, vacation season is wrapping up across many parts of the country. Maybe that is why from areas such as Wicker Park and Lincoln Park and Elmwood Park in the city of Chicago to Niles and Oak Park, there were some opportunities to invest in foreclosures which may make you salivate because others are too busy preparing for the back-to-school surge. 
For a number of clients of Cherry Picker Investments, parcels of real estate were acquired … (0 comments)

cook county: Chicago City Council Says Lenders Liable For Vacant Homes - 08/04/11 03:35 AM

Just this week, it was announced that Chicago City Council voted on a local statute that makes lenders liable for vacant properties, even when they don't have title.  Granted, Chicago has a major issue with vacant properties in blighted neighborhoods and they are making efforts to address this.  The quantity of bank-owned, foreclosed, and abandoned properties in Chicago is not a pretty sight.  Yet, making a lender liable for a vacant property that they don't even have ownership in seems like a well-intended action that will likley be overturned if and/or when appealed in court.  The new statute applies to homes … (0 comments)

cook county: The Week In Review: Chicago Foreclosure Investment Highlights For July 2011 - 07/24/11 02:39 PM
Following is a summary from our client, Cherry Picker Investments, and the properties their customers researched that resulted in real estate investments / acquisitions so far in July 2011. 
 
 
Foreclosure Investing Success in Illinois:5341 S. Christiana, Chicago1337 Sunnyside, Highland Park1134 N. Waller, Chicago1306 S. 49th, Cicero2222 N. Knox, Chicago600 N. Leclaire, Chicago8243 S. Manistee, Chicago540 Spruce, Bolingbrook4027 Vernon, Brookfield3500 W. 59th Place, Chicago4917 West End, Chicago4720 W. 184th, Country Club Hills7420 N. Crawford, Skokie (This one appears to be quite the attractive investment)1753 N. Lorel, Chicago1961 Hicks #212, Palatine6024 N. Keating, Chicago
full article at:
http://www.cherrypickerinvestments.com/blog/144-the-week-in-review-chicago-foreclosure-investment-highlights-for-july-2011
 
Enjoy the … (2 comments)