Buying and Selling Tips

Stylized Decorating in Lakeview Historic Single Family Home

November 22, 2011

We all love vintage homes, but would you choose bare bones decorating or stylized period wallpaper and furnishings? The gorgeous home at 1048 W Oakdale was listed for sale at $ 3,900,000 in 2008 – it returned to  the market in June, starting at $ 2,750,000 and reduced today to$ 2,575,000. Most would agree it’s [...]

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Home Insurance Checklist

June 22, 2010

It can be easy for home buyers to overlook home insurance costs. Most buyers tend to focus on factors such as quality of neighborhood, property taxes, school districts and available recreational and cultural outlets. But the seemingly mundane detail of home insurance can add up to a big investment. The size, location, construction and overall [...]

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22.1 is not for Buyers Only!

March 3, 2010
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Section 22.1 of the Illinois Condo Act lets buyers demand certain information from the seller prior to committing to the purchase. This makes sense!  After all, buyers should have… A copy of the Declaration, by-laws, other condominium instruments and any rules and regulations. A statement of any liens, including a statement of the account of [...]

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Real Estate Ownership – Benefits of Buying Your Home

February 26, 2010

What are the reasons for owning real estate?  In a nutshell here are 7 reasons for home ownership… 1. Tax breaks. The U.S. Tax Code lets you deduct the interest you pay on your mortgage, your property taxes, as well as some of the costs involved in buying your home.  If you buy before April [...]

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Best Time to List Your Home for Sale

January 10, 2010

Traditionally, Chicago’s real estate market kicks off after the Super Bowl.  Our market is usually busiest between February and April — ahead of the suburban market. Why?  Probably because of the traditional May 1 – Oct 1 lease renewal dates.  Why and how that started is a mystery to me, but it makes sense that [...]

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Dog Friendly Neighborhoods in Chicago

April 1, 2009

Which neighborhood is best for dog owners?  Are dogs welcome in condos? Dogs are welcome in Chicago condos most of the time, but there are often limits to the number and size of the dogs, as well as some neuter requirements.  Make sure your Realtor works diligently to find out the condo rules for the [...]

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2009 First Time Buyer Tax Credit Explained

March 28, 2009

This video from Pat Callan, President of the Illinois Association of Realtors, discusses key housing provisions in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.   In it, he talks about how Illinois residents can benefit from the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit, increased Illinois FHA loan limits and energy-efficient housing tax credits. Links: Tax Credits for Energy [...]

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Digg — Save time by bookmarking relevant articles

March 26, 2009

I include a Digg widget in my blog (see block in the 2nd column) because I know my readers don’t have a lot of time to thumb through online articles. I add articles from time to time from my Google Reader that I think you’d be interested in seeing. Digg does not mean “I agree” [...]

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5 Steps to Negotiating the Best Real Estate Deal

March 5, 2009

This week, I enjoyed an afternoon lecture by Steven Briggs of DePaul University’s College  of Commerce.  Dr. Briggs is an expert in negotiating and arbitration, and his MBA class on Real Estate Negotiation was open to guests.  Always looking for new tricks in representing my buyers, I stopped by. While the lecture described Dr. Briggs’ [...]

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