Northern Illinois Real Estate - Local News & Tips

Buyers: Don’t Be Surprised by Closing Costs! Many homebuyers think that saving for their down payment is enough to buy the house of their dreams, but what about the closing costs that are required to obtain a mortgage? By law, a homebuyer will receive a loan estimate from their lender 3 days aft...

7 Reasons to List Your House For Sale This Holiday Season     Every year at this time there are many homeowners who decide to wait until after the holidays to list their homes for the first time, while others who already have their homes on the market decide to take them off until after the holi...

Wage Increases Make Home Buying More Affordable   Everyone knows that housing affordability has been negatively impacted by rising prices and increasing mortgage rates, but there is another piece to the affordability equation – wages. How much a family earns obviously impacts how easy or difficu...

Home Sellers in Q3 Netted $61K at ResaleAccording to a recent report by ATTOM Data Solutions, home sellers who sold their homes in the third quarter of 2018 benefited from rising home prices and netted an average of $61,232. This is the highest average price gain since the second quarter of 2007...

Are Homeowners Renovating to Sell or to Stay?  Over the past few years, two trends have emerged in the housing market: Home renovations have shot up Inventory of homes available for sale on the market has dropped A ‘normal’ housing market is defined by having a 6-month supply of homes for sale. ...

    It’s difficult to know when is the best time to sell, or how to get the most money for your house, but you don’t need to go through the process alone. You may be wondering if prices are projected to rise or fall…or how much competition you may be facing in your market. The free eGuide below ...

VA Home Loans by the Numbers  Some Highlights: The Veterans Administration (VA) Home Loan is a benefit that is available to more than 22 million veterans & 2 million active duty service members which helps them achieve their dreams of homeownership. In 2017, $189 billion was loaned to veterans an...

5 Tips When Buying a Newly Constructed Home The lack of existing inventory for sale has forced many homebuyers to begin looking at new construction. When you buy a newly constructed home instead of an existing home, there are many extra steps that must take place. To ensure a hassle-free process,...

2 Myths Holding Back Home Buyers   Urban Institute recently released a report entitled, “Barriers to Accessing Homeownership: Down Payment, Credit, and Affordability,” which revealed that,“Consumers often think they need to put more money down to purchase a home than is actually required. In a 2...

The Difference an Hour Will Make This Fall ... Every Hour in the US Housing Market:  596 Homes Sell 278 Homes Regain Positive Equity Median Home Values Go Up $1.20  Jim StarwaltManaging Broker Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Star Homes783 N Barron Blvd, Grayslake IL 60030 Cell Phone: 224-62...