First-Time Buyer Mortgage

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Short Sales for Buyers – October 29, 2011

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Basement Foundation Cracks

When you go through a house everything is looking fine and good throughout your viewing. Then you go down to the basement and you see vertical cracks in the concrete foundation of the house. What does this mean? Well, some of these cracks may be benign in that water from a rain storm or from a winter thaw...

A TRUE STORY…BUYING A BANK-OWNED FORECLOSED HOUSE IN CHICAGO

Some pitfalls to be aware of. I represent a buyer who made an offer on a bank-owned house. It took us 3 weeks of negotiating with the bank to come to agreement on terms. They signed the paperwork within 5 days after it was sent to them. So far so good… The house was sitting vacant and had been...

Buying a Bank-Owned Foreclosure – a true story

A timetable and description of events from an offer made on a bank-owned foreclosure condo in Chicago and the outcome. I recently represented a buyer for a condo on Chicago’s northside neighborhood of Edgewater/Rogers Park. It was listed below $80,000 which seemed extremely low given the fact that upon my...

Buying Short Sales in Chicago

Buying Short Sales in Chicago Real Estate. Foreclosures…Short Sales…Bank-Owned…What do these terms mean? Definition/Terms . Let me make it simple: Short Sale: When a homeowner has stopped making mortgage payments and is trying to sell their home which is worth LESS than what they owe on their...

Profile of a First-Time Buyer

About 12 years ago I had the privilege of helping what was for me the oldest first-time buyer of my career. She was 71 years old and had been renting the same apartment for the past 25 years. Her building was being sold and she had to make a decision about what she was going to do about her housing...

Looking for Defects

A concern for any buyer is being faced with a serious defect in the property you’re buying which could affect your safety or health, but more importantly, your pocketbook. While some defects may be corrected at a nominal cost, it is important to understand the categories of these defects: building...

Home Buying Confidence is Only a Click Away!

The real estate market in Chicago is changing rapidly, more so than ever before. There is a bewildering array of information out there right now, some of it conflicting and not all of it makes sense. Yet, you also probably been hearing how this is the perfect time for people like you who are tired of...

How to Find Your Perfect Home

Whether you are searching for small personal space or a starter family home, this tool can help you find a property to fit your needs. The Multiple Listing Service is composed of hundreds of database computer systems located throughout the USA for real estate agents to showcase their available real estate...

How Much Money Do I Need to Buy?

Obviously, there is a down payment required to start with. With a FHA loan the down payment is 3.5% of the purchase price. In addition there are closing costs. In today’s real estate market it is not unusual for the buyer to ask the seller to pay the buyer’s closing costs which would be included in the...

Selecting a Neighborhood

Location preferences are driven by what is most important to you. However, you must qualify that by what you can afford. Firstly, you need to decide what type of property you’re most interested in (i.e. single family house, townhouse, condominium, 2-4 flat, etc). Then, given your price range the...