News Release. Illinois Association of Realtors Contact:
Mary Schaefer/Ann Londrigan
217-529-2600

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Illinois home sales have been trending positive month-to-month since February 2011 and median home prices have moved up for the last three consecutive months, all good signs for a market working to recover amid lackluster job creation and a restrictive lending environment. According to the Illinois Association of REALTORS® (IAR) latest report, statewide home sales (including single family and condominiums) in May 2011 totaled 9,736 homes sold, up 13.9 percent from 8,546 sales in April 2011; sales were down 16.8 percent from 11,705 homes sold in May 2010.

The median price in May was $140,000, up 2.9 percent from $136,000 in April 2011 and down 10.8 percent from last year in May when it was $157,000. The median is a typical market price where half the homes sold for more, half sold for less.

“The trend in rising home sales and median prices is a positive direction for the housing market as a whole as the strong buyer’s market and high affordability conditions continue. Also of note, this year there is no tax credit incentive yet home sales remain above 2009’s accelerated sales from the stimulus program,” said REALTOR® Sheryl Grider Whitehurst, ABR, CRB, GRI, president of the Illinois Association of REALTORS® and the Development and Operations Coordinator for Traders Realty in Peoria. “Brokers across the state are reporting the biggest road block for getting a home loan today is lending requirements that are too strict for even qualified buyers. A return to more robust yet responsible lending will result in more closed transactions and a stronger economy.”

Adds Whitehurst: “The economic impact of a healthy housing market cannot be discounted. Just one home sale in Illinois generates $28,581 in direct expenditures made by both the seller and the buyer, according to a study by Chicago-based RCF Economic and Financial Consulting. The resulting ripple effect across multiple industries for home improvements, moving and warehousing and others adds up to $7.9 billion a year in direct and indirect expenditures fueling the Illinois economy plus 85,677 jobs.”

In the Chicagoland Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area (PMSA), home sales (single family and condominiums) totaled 6,608 homes sold, up 15.7 percent from 5,710 sales in April 2011 and down 12.8 percent from May 2010 sales of 7,580 homes. The median price in May 2011 was $169,900 in the Chicago region, up 4.6 percent from $162,500 in April 2011 and down 10.8 percent compared to last year in May when it was $190,500.

The monthly average commitment rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage for the North Central region was 4.67 percent in May 2011, lower than 4.87 percent during the previous month, according to the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation. Last year in May it averaged 4.91 percent.

“According to our forecast, annual sales rates will turn positive for both Illinois and the Chicago region in July and August, a 22-25 percent increase statewide and 25 to 36 percent for Chicago,” estimates Dr. Geoffrey J.D. Hewings, director of the Regional Economics Applications Laboratory (REAL) of the University of Illinois. “This means the effect of the homebuyer tax credit will finally fade out in Illinois during the summer. Median prices for June, July and August are expected to be higher than May in both Illinois and the Chicago region.”

In the city of Chicago, May home sales (single family and condominiums) totaled 1,705, up 16.5 percent from 1,464 sales in the previous month and down 17.1 percent from 2,057 homes sold in May 2010.

The city of Chicago year-over-year median price for single family and condominiums in May 2011 was $238,450 up 3.7 percent compared to $230,000 in May 2010; it was 16.0 percent higher compared to the previous month of April 2011 when it was $205,500. For condominiums specifically, the median price reached $299,000 in May 2011, up 10.3 percent year-over-year from $271,150 in May 2010.

“Chicago’s condo sales in May outpaced single family homes by nearly 30 percent, a strong indicator that the condo market is re-emerging as a viable and affordable housing choice.  We continue to monitor the impact of condo financing options and distressed condo units and how they will shape sales in the remainder of 2011,” said Mabel Guzman, president of the Chicago Association of REALTORS® and a REALTOR® with Envision Real Estate LLC, Chicago. “Sellers this summer have the opportunity to position their home with a compelling sales price, and leverage low interest rates on the purchase of their next home.”

Thirty-six of 100 Illinois counties reporting showed year-over-year median price increases or no change for the month of May including Grundy, up 3.2 percent to $150,100; LaSalle, up 11.0 percent to $102,125; Macon, up 1.2 percent to $87,500; Sangamon, up 10.4 percent to $139,900; Stephenson, up 23.4 percent to $97,500 and Whiteside, up 4.1 percent to $82,500.

Sales and price information is generated from a survey of Multiple Listing Service sales reported by 35 participating Illinois REALTOR® local boards and associations including Midwest Real Estate Data LLC for the period May 1 through May 31, 2011. The Chicagoland PMSA, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, includes the counties of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will.

The Illinois Association of REALTORS® is a voluntary trade association whose 44,000 members are engaged in all facets of the real estate industry. In addition to serving the professional needs of its members, the Illinois Association of REALTORS® works to protect the rights of private property owners in the state by recommending and promoting legislation that safeguards and advances the interest of real property ownership.

Find Illinois market stats data at www.illinoisrealtor.org/marketstats. To view the RCF economic impact study, go to www.illinoisrealtor.org/economicimpact.

This Townhouse is Loaded with upgrades; hardwood floors, granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances. Large sun deck with Arcadia doors from Master B.R. & kitchen. Master B.R. Suite with Deluxe Bath. Side by side laundry and hvac room and attached garage.

Great south loop location near Museum Campus, Soldier Field, McCormick Place, fine Restaurants and Entertainment, Expressways,Chinatown, Mercy Hospital, and much more.

Eastgate Village features two- and three-bedroom condominiums and Townhomes. The prices have been cut by $86,000 to $100,000.  A two-bedroom / one-bath originally listed in the $280s is now priced in the $180s, representing a 34-percent reduction, while a three-bedroom / two-bath listed in the $380s is now priced in the $290s, or 22 percent lower.

The two-bedroom first-floor unit features a gated patio, while the three-bedroom has 1,450 square feet and a “huge balcony.” 

The Community also has two-bedroom condos ranging in size from 823 to 1,288 square feet and in price from the $180s to the $250s (all of which have FHA approval), and two two-bedroom townhomes with 2,259 to 2,543 square feet, priced in the $370s and $440s.

Eastgate Village is bounded by 25th and 26th streets, Prairie Avenue, and Dr Martin Luther King Dr. For a tour of these Magnificent Homes Contact:

Ruben Colon 773-425-5934

Three Bedrooms and Two Full Baths.

Don’t miss your opportunity to own one of the finest condo’s in Eastgate Village. This is a Lender Owned unit. We are seeking your best offer for immediate close.  

Loaded with upgrades, HW Floors, granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances. Large sun deck with Arcadia doors from Master B.R. & kitchen. Master B.R. Suite with Deluxe Bath. Side by side laundry and HVAC rm. attached garage. Great south loop location near museum campus, Soldier Field, McCormick place, fine restaurants and entertainment, Expressways,Chinatown, Mercy Hospital, and much more.

Price has been dropped over $100,000

MLS#: 07696210
Price: $292,900 or your best offer will be considered.

Bedrooms: 3
Baths Full: 2
Sq Ft: 1450
Never Occupied

•2.81 Acres located in Darien, Illinois
•Entitled for 66 Condominium Units
•Fully Improved site with Utilites and Offsite Detention
•Previously appraised at $3.3 Million
•Motivated Seller will consider Joint-Venture or Seller Financing
•Other potential uses: Senior Housing, Apartments, Hospitality, Commercial and others

For a complete package of information contact: Ruben Colon 773-425-5934

 As a result, the rental owner needs to start keeping records and obtaining tax identification numbers for the service providers. If you are a rental property owner or a property manager for an owner of rental properties you should visit with your tax professional about this upcoming requirement.

Truly remarkable and stylish home on a family friendly, tree lined street in Randall Park neighborhood. Newer construction luxury details include hardwood floors, crown moldings, granite counters, alum-clad wood windows, paver patio, stainless appliances, Kohler bath fixtures and a finished basement. ADT Security System, Short Walk to Patriot Park, Whittier School, Metra train station and downtown Downers Grove.

Details

MLS#: 07656901
Price: $659,000

Style: Traditional
Bedrooms: 4
Baths Full: 2
Baths Half: 2
Sq Ft: 0
Year Built: 2005

County: Du Page
Subdivision: RANDALL PARK
Lot Size: Less Than .25 Acre
Tax Fee: 7334

School Elementary: WHITTIER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
School Middle: HERRICK MIDDLE SCHOOL
School High: DOWNERS GROVE NORTH
School District: 99
Follow This Link: http://listings.listhub.net/pages/MREDIL/07656901/

Only homebuyers who signed purchase agreements by April 30 will benefit from the extension. The National Association of Realtors estimates that this accounts for 180,000 home buyers currently stuck in closing limbo.

With a national housing inventory of more than 4 million homes, the extension gives little incentive to home buyers entering the market today. After the April deadline, new-home sales dropped nearly 33 percent to a record low of 300,000 in May, the Commerce Department reported. Since its creation in 2009, more than 2.6 million taxpayers claimed the tax credit through April for a total of $18.7 billion, according to the Internal Revenue Service.

Even without the tax credit, though, now is as good a time to buy a home, thanks to the large inventory currently on the market and near-record-low mortgage rates. According to the Tax Policy Center, roughly 85 percent of consumers who benefited from the tax credit would have bought a home anyway.

• Current homeowners, who have consecutively maintained the home they want to sell as their primary residence for five of the last eight years, are also eligible. However, the maximum amount for those homeowners is lower: $6,500 (or $3,250 for married couples filing separately).

• Qualifying buyers must sign a purchase agreement by April 30, 2010, and close before July 1.

• The tax credit may not be used to purchase a home for more than $800,000. Vacation homes are ineligible.

• The income limits to earn the maximum for both tax credits have been raised to $125,000 for single buyers and $225,000 for married couples.

• All buyers who want to get the credit must include documentation of the purchase on their tax returns.

• The credit is extended until May 1, 2011, for members of the military serving outside the United States for at least 90 days.

Now is the time to buy a home:

The management at New Home Executives has represented home buyers and home sellers for over 34 years. We bring a wealth of knowledge and experience as well as extensive negotiating experience. We are well qualified to represent you and look out for Your Best Interests.

When you work with the New Home Executives “team”, you get the benefit of our knowledge and skill in the areas of contract negotiations, financing, due diligence inspections and escrow closings. Having New Home Executives on your side will give you a sense of confidence and peace of mind.

If your desire is a “Superior Customer Experience” contact us:

Rcolon@NewHomeExecutives.com

Current FHA loan limits are as high as $729,750 in high cost areas, and are set to expire at the end of the year and revert to lower amounts, greatly hindering the housing recovery process. FHA is more important than ever to homebuyers in the present market. In the wake of the collapsing private mortgage market, FHA has played a critical role in removing inventory from the market and stabilizing home prices,  Present FHA housing market share is approaching 25 percent, significantly up from 3 percent two years ago.

NAR said that FHA has performed remarkably well through the housing crisis, compared to Fannie and Freddie, because FHA has never strayed from the sound underwriting and appropriate appraisals that have traditionally backed up their loans.

 The National Association of Realtors®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America’s largest trade association, representing 1.2 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries