Industry Insider: Sharron Kelley, Coldwell Banker
Housing inventory in popular communities with top-notch schools is becoming scarce and in recent months prices throughout the area have finally been holding steady, said Sharron Kelley of Coldwell Banker in Buffalo Grove.
“If you want to buy a house, now is the time to do it. Prices and interest rates are low and if you think you can kill the Golden Goose by waiting for more foreclosures to go on the market, you are going to be waiting a long time,” Kelley said.
“The banks are still settling things with the government over that robo-signing that took place and they also aren’t letting go of houses at such low prices anymore. They have found that it is cheaper for them to foreclose than to do a short sale. So short sales are hard to find and so are foreclosures in desirable areas because banks are collecting bids on them and sometimes aren’t listing them at all, waiting for prices to increase,” she said.
Consequently, Kelley said, you are not going to get better deals than you will get today. “Good houses in the suburbs, priced at the market, are moving in less than 30 days now. There is no question that things in our real estate market are on the upswing and prices are stabilizing. So I expect prices to start slowly climbing again.”
What are you seeing in the current Chicago area market?#147;Today#146;s buyers don#146;t have the cash to update a home because they have to come up with a 20 percent down payment, in most cases. So they expect any house they buy to already be updated or they won#146;t make a bid. They aren#146;t looking for a fixer-upper because no one today has the time to devote to fixing up a house.#147;Time is a commodity today and most people don#146;t have enough of it. In addition, unless they get a special FHA (Federal Housing Administration) loan aimed at helping rehab fixer-uppers, most lenders won#146;t allow buyers to put funds for repairs into their mortgage.#147;In other words, sellers who want to sell must update their home and then make sure that it is well priced for its market #8212; a double whammy. Houses that have not been updated and are not in pristine condition generally languish on the market unless they are purchased at a very low price by an investor who is willing to do the necessary work and then flip the house.#148;How do sales currently differ between single-family and multifamily units?Kelley said the single-family market is much stronger than the condominium market, with townhouses falling in the middle. Buyers for suburban condominiums are #147;few and far between#148; and for a condo to have a chance of selling, it must be updated and priced well, she said.How is the market in the city?#147;The market is very hot in the city with both homes and condos selling again. The only exception is in buildings where the owner occupancy rates are too low and prospective buyers cannot get mortgages. And the rental market in Chicago is crazy.#148;How are gas prices affecting where people will buy?#147;Even now people want to be near public transportation like the Metra and near their jobs. They hate fighting lots of traffic and they want to be closer to home for their kids. If gas gets to the $5 per gallon that some are predicting, that could become even more of a factor.#148;Are first-time buyers with no home to sell taking advantage of the low prices and interest rates?#147;Yes, they are finally jumping in and, (some buyers), after getting rejected by a couple of sellers for their extremely lowball offers, most are getting the message that they have to make reasonable offers.#148;What needs to happen for the residential real estate market in this area to permanently recover?#147;Illinois has one of the worst records of job losses in the nation. So we need an influx of jobs here in order for people to feel secure enough to make that big purchase decision. Unfortunately, companies are leaving this state and taking their jobs with them.#148;Sharron Kelley can be reached at (847) 465-3638 or visit www.northernillinoishomes.com.