Buyer Broker Chicagoland Extends Real Estate Commission Rebate Offer to Active Duty and Retired Military, Veterans, Reservists, and National Guard
Buffalo Grove, IL (PRWEB) March 08, 2012
Rick Hauser, Managing Broker / Realtor® for Buyer Broker Chicagoland, and US military vetaran, is extending an offer for a $ 1,000 commission rebate to active duty and retired military, veterans, reservists, and National Guard personnel. An Exclusive Buyer Brokerage Agreement must be signed by April 15, 2012, and the rebate will be credited to the servicemember when they close on a home.
Buyer Broker Chicagoland made this announcement to coincide with “Joining Forces” — an initiative created by the federal government designed to bring attention to the unique needs of America’s military families.
The offer is open to active duty and retired military, veterans, reservists, and National Guard personnel looking to buy a home or condo in the Chicago metro area, including Cook, DuPage, Lake, McHenry and Will counties who become a client and close on a property.
Mr. Hauser, states, “People want to know that they have someone fully on their side – with 100% loyalty. As a veteran, I can relate to what military personnel deal with when they are moving, and I know the best lenders for a variety of loans, including VA loans. We are currently representing a military client based at Great Lakes Illinois who is purchasing a new construction home. We are protecting them in the negotiation phase, the home inspection phase, and all the way to closing. So far, we have saved them over $ 55,000. We not only save people money on the purchase price, and getting good home inspection credits and fixes, but also by helping them shop for the best lender.”
Buyer Broker Chicagoland’s exclusive buyer agency agreement protects buyers by aligning the company’s interests with the buyer’s interests, instead of the opposite – as is typically the case when a traditional brokerage collects the “cooperative compensation” payout, plus any bonuses. Accepting various payouts can lead to home showing biases or “pushing a property” based on the amount of commission paid out, or bonuses. Buyer Broker Chicagoland eliminates home showing biases based on what is being paid out, by contracting with the buyer at a fixed rate, and giving any advertised bonuses, or excess amounts to the client. And clients may opt to have the company make less when their price goes up, and more when their price goes down – thus aligning interests.
For active duty and veterans, Buyer Broker Chicagoland can refer them into the “Welcome Home Heroes program, available to all qualified Illinois veterans, active military, reserves and Illinois National Guard members via the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA.) The program features a $ 10,000 forgivable loan over two years for down payment and closing cost assistance subject to qualification on income and purchase price limits. The program enhances the existing affordable home loan program, called SmartMove, which provides 3% of the purchase price up to $ 6,000 for first time homebuyers subject to minimum credit scores.
ABOUT THE COMPANY
Buyer Broker Chicagoland has been serving home buyers and investors in the Chicago metro area for almost ten years. The company is always on the home buyer’s side, and measures success in dollars saved, not dollars sold. Buyer Broker Chicagoland never “sells” anyone on a property, but rather, points out the negatives, and serves as the buyer’s advocate and coach during the most important transaction of their life. Buyer Broker Chicagoland represents purchasers of property in Cook, DuPage, Lake, McHenry and Will counties in Illinois. They also actively make referrals to Exclusive Buyer Agents for home buyers that are looking to purchase real estate outside of these counties or outside of Illinois. The company is a member of the National Association of Exclusive Buyer Agents (NAEBA). Exclusive buyer agents are home buyers advocates who focus their skills and knowledge to benefit home buyers exclusively, rather than working for both sellers and buyers. Exclusive Buyer Agents (EBA’s) avoid dual agency conflicts of interest by supporting the fiduciary needs of home buyers only, and give home buyers 100% of their loyalty.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Contact: Rick Hauser ABR CNE GRI, Realtor®, Managing Broker
Company: Buyer Broker Chicagoland
Phone: 847-566-7558
Company web site: http://www.buyerbrokerchicago.com
After a Tale of Two Cities year in commercial real estate that gave lenders and borrowers alike the best of times and the worst of times, the outlook for 2012 is both positive and encouraging. According to “Commercial Real Estate: Back in the Saddle?” – the latest podcast produced by John B. Levy & Company (available online at http://www.jblevyco.com) – early indicators suggest that CMBS is back with a force.
“After the European debt crisis and US government bonds gave us a rocky ride in 2011,” says John Levy, founder of John B. Levy & Company, “commercial real estate is back in the saddle for 2012. The conduit business gives us a perfect indication of what we can expect. First of all, rates are cheaper. Ten-year fixed-rate money is 5 percent or less, which is 100 basis points better than what it was this past fall. In addition, second- and third-tier cities are now in the mix. Deal-making has moved from cities like Washington, New York, and chicago to a broader array of markets . . . Albuquerque and Amarillo, Nashville and Richmond.”
“While CMBS is expected to make a strong statement in 2012, preferred equity and mezzanine debt will continue to bring additional leverage to transactions,” according to Levy. In fall 2011, as well as earlier in the year, mezzanine debt and preferred equity fell in the 13 to 15 percent range, if not higher. Those prices are currently in the single digits, the result of low interest rates on US Treasurys. In no uncertain terms, current Federal Reserve policy is playing a significant role in the pricing of preferred equity and mezzanine debt.
“Perhaps nowhere is it more clear that the Bernanke fiscal policy is working than in the preferred equity, mezzanine debt arena,” says Levy. “Look at the 5-year Treasury note. It’s 1 percent. So if you secure mezz debt at 9 percent over five years – which sounds cheap by historical standards – you’ll still get a return that’s 800 basis points over Treasurys. By keeping interest rates extremely low for at least three years, Fed policy penalizes investors for parking their money, and it forces them to invest in the market. The result? Higher leverage is cheaper.”
While the multifamily housing market has performed well over the past several years, Levy believes that trend may be nearing its end. Several factors account for the success of that sector and, as such, hint at its easing. First, the market for single family homes has been abysmal, so people rented rather than bought. Second, multifamily housing has been the beneficiary of extremely cheap government-sponsored mortgages.
“Multifamily housing has been the darling of commercial real estate, and it owes a huge debt of gratitude to a single-family market that has been in the tank for years,” says Levy. “But what has really driven the success of multifamily is cheap money from Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and FHA. That’s my money, your money, government money. It’s puzzling as to why the government provides mortgages for less than what the private market charges.”
Firm Background
John B. Levy & Company, Inc. is a real estate investment-banking firm headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. Since John Levy founded the company in 1995, the firm has structured over $ 3.5 billion in financing for developers and owners of commercial and multi-family projects nationwide, often investing its own proprietary funds into transactions with its clients.
Mr. Levy is an expert on commercial real estate financing and the effects of interest rates on commercial real estate markets. He is the originator and author of the Barron’s/John B. Levy & Company National Mortgage Survey, which Barron’s published for 23 years, and co-creator of The Giliberto-Levy Commercial Mortgage Performance Index (sm), the first and pre-eminent index to measure and analyze the performance of investments in the commercial mortgage industry. Additionally, he is a former member of the Board of Directors of Anthracite Capital Inc., a New York Stock Exchange REIT managed by BlackRock, Inc. and a former director of Value Property Trust.
A seasoned speaker, Mr. Levy has presented nationwide to major real estate associations and key industry groups, including the Mortgage Bankers Association and the Urban Land Institute. He has also appeared on Bloomberg and CNBC. Mr. Levy also appears regularly as a guest commentator on FoxBusiness.
For more information about John B. Levy & Company, please visit our website at http://www.jblevyco.com or call Julia Grant at 804-644-2000, extension 258. You can also follow us on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/jblevyco and become a fan on Facebook.
Chicago Real Estate Executive Anthony Rossi, Sr. to Receive NHL’s Lester Patrick Trophy
Anthony Rossi, Sr. President of RMK Management Corp. and M&R Development
Chicago, IL (PRWEB) November 03, 2011
Chicago real estate executive Anthony Rossi, Sr. has been selected as a recipient of the prestigious Lester Patrick Trophy, an award presented annually by the National Hockey League(NHL) to honor outstanding service to ice hockey in the United States.
The trophy, first awarded in 1966, is named after Lester Patrick, a legendary developer of ice hockey who had a lifelong history with the NHL as New York Rangers player, coach and general manager.
Chicago real estate executive Rossi, Sr., president of RMK Management Corp. and M & R Development, is being recognized for nearly 50 years of volunteer service to USA Hockey. He began his volunteer career in the 1970s and was later elected to the USA Hockey Board of Directors. In 1995, Rossi, Sr. was elected to the USA Hockey Executive Committee, and currently serves as vice president and international council chair for USA Hockey and as a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation Council. Rossi, Sr. is also credited with helping form the USA Hockey Foundation, a non-profit that provides financial support for USA Hockey.
“Tony has had an enormously positive impact on hockey in the United States and is most deserving of being honored with the Lester Patrick Trophy,” said Dave Ogrean, executive director of USA Hockey. “He genuinely cares about the advancement of the game and has graciously given of his time over the past 40-plus years to help make our sport better.”
“Hockey has been such an important part of my life for so many years, so to have my name among the NHL legends who have received this award is truly incredible,” said Rossi, Sr.
Past recipients include NHL greats Bobby Hull, Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux. The other individuals being honored this year include former player and coach Mark Johnson, former coach and assistant to the commissioner of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, Jeff Sauer, and Bob Pulford, Hockey Hall of Famer and coach and executive for the Chicago Blackhawks for the past 30 years.
The Lester Patrick Award celebration to honor the 2011 recipients will take place October 26th at the RiverCentre in St. Paul, Minn.
About RMK Management Corp.
Chicago real estate management firm RMK Management Corp. manages more than 8,000 apartment homes in the Chicago, Minneapolis and Merrillville, Indiana areas. The company’s Chicago real estate portfolio spans a range of apartment types, from high-rise and mid-rise buildings to two- and three-story walk-up apartments, garden apartments and affordable housing. RMK also develops, builds and renovates communities. The 22 Chicagoland communities are located in Aurora, Barrington, chicago, Downers Grove, Evanston, Libertyville, Naperville, Oakbrook Terrace, Oswego, Palatine, River Grove, Round Lake, Schaumburg, Waukegan, and Zion. Communities in Minnesota are located in Minneapolis and Edina. For more information on RMK Management Corp. and its portfolio of properties, visit http://www.rmk.com.
About M&R Development LLC
M&R Development LLC is a Chicago real estate development firm specializing in luxury multi-family properties. Over the last 12 years, M&R Development and its predecessor company, Bristol/Moran, and its partner, Bristol Chicago Development, have completed construction of ten apartment communities, totaling more than 3,300 luxury rental apartments. For more information on M&R Development, visit http://www.mandrdevelopment.com.
RE/MAX Reports Home Sales Activity in Metro Chicago Real Estate Market Rose 19.3% in the Third Quarter after Posting 12.6% Gain in September
Elgin, IL (PRWEB) October 21, 2011
Home sales in the seven-county metropolitan Chicago real estate market continued their third-quarter surge in September. RE/MAX reports that home sales for the month were 12.6 percent higher than in the same period of 2010, while sales for the full third quarter of 2011 were up 19.3 percent from the same period last year, based on an analysis of sales reported by Midwest Real Estate Data, LLC (MRED).
Sales of detached homes rose 11.1 percent in September, and the median sales price was $ 175,000, a reduction of 6.8 percent from the median of $ 187,750 achieved in September 2010.
In the category of attached homes (primarily condominium apartments and townhomes) sales were 15.4 percent higher than the same month last year. The median sales price was $ 133,000, representing a decline of 14.7 percent since September 2010.
The average time required to sell a detached home rose six days to 158 days, while the average market time for those attached units that changed hands was 184 days, an 11 day increase from September 2010.
For the full third quarter, the RE/MAX analysis shows that sales of detached homes rose 18.4 percent to 12,927 units, and sales of attached homes rose 21.1 percent to 6,879 units.
The median price of detached homes slipped 5 percent for the quarter to $ 190,000, compared to a median of $ 200,000 in the third quarter of 2010. The market for attached homes saw a greater downward trend, with the median price falling 15 percent to $ 142,000 from $ 167,000 a year earlier.
The average market time for homes sold during the third quarter was 166 days, 10 days longer than during the same period in 2010. Market time is the period between the date a home is listed for sale and the date it goes under contract.
Distressed properties, a category that includes foreclosed homes and short sales, represented 7,277 or 36.7 percent of all homes sold in the metro area during the third quarter, down from 39.4 percent a year earlier. In September alone, distressed properties accounted for 39.7 percent of the total or 2,378 sales, down from 42.6 percent during the same month in 2010.
Individual Counties.
All seven counties in the metro area registered third-quarter increases in home sales activity compared to 2010. In five counties, the increase in sales for the quarter exceeded the metro-area average. Sales activity for the quarter increased 37 percent in DuPage County to 2,486 units; 27.3 percent in Kane County to 1,469 units; 30.8 percent in Kendall County to 459 units; 25.5 percent in Lake County to 1,917 units and 32.5 percent in McHenry County to 840 units.
Cook and Will counties experienced increases in sales activity somewhat below that of the metro area as a whole. Cook County sales totaled 10,988 units, a 13 percent increase, and they represented 55.5 percent of all sales in the seven-county area. Sales in the City of chicago rose just 9.2 percent for the quarter to 5,107 units. In Will County, 1,643 units changed hands, yielding a 17.8 percent increase.
In contrast to its below average increase in transactions, Cook County delivered the best results in terms of the change in its median home price. The county had a third quarter median price of $ 172,000, 4.4 percent lower than during the same period a year ago, and the City of Chicago saw the median home price increase 2.5 percent to $ 194,800.
Below are third-quarter median prices of all seven counties and the percent change from the same period in 2010:
Cook: $ 172,000 -4.4 percent
DuPage: $ 212,500 -10.7 percent
Kane: $ 150,000 -12.8 percent
Kendall: $ 151,000 -11.2 percent
Lake: $ 200,000 -7.6 percent
McHenry: $ 155,000 -12.4 percent
Will: $ 164,000 -11.4 percent
Year-to-Date Activity
Homes sales through the first nine months of 2011 in the metro area have totaled 52,672, which is 4 percent lower than during the same nine months of last year. However, the third quarter increase in sales activity suggests that by year-end, 2011 is likely to generate total sales exceeding those of 2010, according to Laura Ortoleva, a spokesperson for RE/MAX in the Northern Illinois region.
RE/MAX has been the leader in the northern Illinois real estate market since 1989. The RE/MAX Northern Illinois network consists of 2,200 sales associates and 105 individually owned and operated RE/MAX offices that provide a full range of brokerage services throughout the northern one-third of Illinois. Its http://www.illinoisproperty.com and http://www.remax.com websites are leaders in consumer visits among real estate franchise brands. Its mobile search, m.illinoisproperty.com, allows users to conduct real estate searches on any mobile device with Internet access. The northern Illinois network is part of RE/MAX LLC, a global real estate organization with 89,000 sales associates in 85 nations.
Jameson Real Estate Arranges Bulk Sale of Condo Units On Chicago’s North Side
Chicago, IL (PRWEB) September 10, 2009
Jameson Real Estate proudly announces the bulk sale of 24 Chicago condominiums in a development on the North Side of the city. The Chicago real estate company sold the majority of the five-story building’s 39 units to a local developer, who plans to remarket the condominiums. The property is currently named the Lincoln Park Lofts and is located in the Lincoln Park area near the intersection of Ashland and Fullerton. Previously known as Ashton Lofts, the condominiums are conveniently close to the DePaul University campus, nightlife and restaurants, and public transportation. The transaction was arranged by Lindsey Delrahim of Jameson Real Estate, who represented the seller, Rally Capital Services LLC, with the selling price of $ 3.1 million.
About Jameson Real Estate: Jameson Real Estate is a full-service real estate organization, selling and renting commercial and residential properties across chicago. The Jameson sales team includes over 180 full-time professionals to assist in real estate transactions in Lincoln Park and other various neighborhoods and suburbs of Chicago.
MA Interactive Group, an Internet Marketing company with a high degree of specialty in real estate and apartment marketing, recently added another client to their budding roster of apartment and property management clients – Andco Management. Andco selected MA for delivery of a new apartment website design. Andco, also located in Chicago, manages over 45 buildings and 700 apartment units in over 15 Chicago neighborhoods.
As a first step, Andco has selected MA to design and develop their new apartment website. Specifically, the website itself will be developed utilizing a Drupal CMS and will include available apartment listings, apartment applications, Craig’s list, social media, and property management services. “Drupal, for good reason is growing into one of the most popular open-source platforms for website content management and is a great choice for Andco” said Allan Yalowitz Partner at MA. “Drupal provides the client, Andco a simple and easy way to actively manage their website and apartment listings on their own and it gives us the flexibility to design and develop without the limitations of other CMS systems like WordPress or Joomla.” Once the new website design is implemented, MA will continue forward with Andco in the development of a search engine marketing (SEM) strategy to drive qualified traffic to Andco’s real estate apartments listings in Chicago.
“We have been busy in the first half of 2011! Andco will be our fourth apartment related implementation of scale in 2011.” said Mike Templeton Partner at MA Interactive Group Templeton also noted, “For us Andco is the perfect client, because they know what they want, at the same time they are also highly receptive to our expertise in the real estate space”.
In 2011, MA Interactive Group has implemented or is in the process of implementing real estate Internet marketing programs and websites for several clients. These include Paragon Real Estate, SU Partnership, Tricap Chicago, Romanek Residential Properties, and Zeman Homes.
MA Interactive Group, is located in Northbrook, IL. It’s partners, Mike Templeton and Allan Yalowitz have been serving the Internet Marketing needs of Chicago and the nation since 1995. Mike Templeton as Vice-President and Area President for several Real Estate companies and Allan Yalowitz as a Director of Interactive Media and Design for several agencies and now collectively as MA.
MA Interactive Group is a full service digital agency providing branding and strategy, web design and development services, social networking, mobile marketing, search engine marketing (SEM), and e-mail marketing services.
In a survey of real estate CFOs and senior comptrollers conducted by the chicago-based financial advisory firm Grant Thornton LLP, only 12 percent said their company will increase hiring in the next six months and nearly two-thirds, 63 percent, plan to reduce bonuses.
Real Estate companies are also reducing health care benefits, 401k benefits, and stock options. Real estate firms are trimming the fat, even while the real estate market continues to show signs of improvement. Real Estate companies, according to the survey conducted by Grat Thornton LLP are most concerned about the cost of employee benefits.
While the Chicago Real Estate market is improving, these numbers illustrate an extreme contradiction in the real estate industry. While real estate companies remain optimistic about the future of their industry, cost cutting measures reflect a distinct pessimism in their own industry.
Is the real estate industry in a true recovery mode, or is a second micro-bubble emerging. As of right now, it is not clear, but there definitely a discrepancy between internal practices of real estate firms and gauges of the real estate market. Speculation surrounding real estate is always apparent. But is it beneficial when the speculation directly opposes the actions of Real Estate firms and brokerages?
So what can we learn from this contradiction? Is the market over-valued? Is a secondary bubble forming after we slowly emerge out of the recession? Whatever the case, it is clear that the real estate market may still be over-valued, as firms still continue to cut costs, while the real estate market continues to improve.
Rahm Emanuel is back in the mayoral race after a unanimous Illinois Supreme Court decision. Lisa Leiter talks with political columnist Greg Hinz about the impact of the court’s ruling on the rest of the campaign. Distributed by Tubemogul.
Chicago real estate is one of the greatest success stories of the recent boom in property prices. With low, low mortgage rates for Chicago home (http://www.bestchicagomortgage.com/mortgage-calc.html) mortgage loans, demand for real estate is going through the roof as people rush to snap up great homes on the beautiful Chicago lakefront, as well as in Chicago’s many attractive suburbs.
More than 8 million people now reside in the “Windy City.” One of the few Midwest cities in the last decade to increase in population, Chicago may be well on its way to satiation. There are so few homes available that folks who want to buy Chicago real estate are getting in ahead of the crowd by purchasing pre-construction. Many pre-construction opportunities are available in chicago real estate.
Chicago Suburbs Real Estate Pre-Construction in the Chicago suburb of Palos Hills, 17 different pre-construction properties are available. You can, for example, purchase a 2600 square foot 3 bedroom, 2 bath townhouse for $ 347,700.
While it’s too early in the construction process to offer a photo, many features and details are now available online. Each of the townhouses in the development will have a full basement and an eat-in kitchen with doors leading out to the patio. The very larger master suite (20×19) has a walk-in closet and bath. This unit is being built to be handicapped accessible as well.
Another of the many Chicago (http://www.chicagorealestatereport.com/chicago-real-estate.html) real estate finds available for sale in the pre-construction phase is a smaller town home, 1800 square feet, with an asking price of $ 247,700. This 3 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath unit will be ready in December and will include spacious bedrooms (the two smallest are still 14×10), a basement and granite counter tops with stainless steel sinks in its 13×11 kitchen. The townhouse community provides free parking for its community member owners.
Researching Chicago Real Estate Online
Along with Chicago real estate listings and pre-construction properties, online real estate sites such as Chicago (http://www.chicago-home-for-sale.com/types-of-chicago-area-homes.html) Homes for Sale offer some additional features that could be very helpful to potential buyers, especially those relocating from outside the Chicago area. From this site you can indicate the neighborhood you want to investigate and ask for information on all aspects of Chicago real estate in the designated area.
With Chicago real estate being as glutted as it is, many may be tempted to say the market is overheating. But you can still find real value in the Chicago real estate market by keeping an eye out for undervalued properties and hidden pre-construction homes that very well might prove to be exactly what you’re looking for.
Nick Anderson is a nationally syndicated columnist reporting from www.mychicagoil.us
As the third largest city in the U.S., Chicago has a lot to offer by way of entertainment, employment and housing. With millions of people in the city, there is always a wide variety of housing accommodations for sale in the area. Whether you are looking for a condo, townhome, studio, apartment, single family homes or a mansion, there is probably a home somewhere in the city that can meet your needs. Chicago real estate really differs from area to area though. With Lake Michigan to the east, the city can be divided up into 4 separate sections: Central, North, West and South chicago.
Central Chicago
Central Chicago, which is also known as the Loop, is right in the heart of historic downtown. Consequently, the real estate options available in this part of town are predominantly studios, apartments and penthouses. They are also very expensive because they are so close to all the attractions of downtown city life. The Chicago River serves as a boundary to the west and Lake Michigan borders the Loop to the East. After Manhattan, Central Chicago is the second largest central business district in the US. It is also home to some of the tallest skyscrapers in the world.
North Chicago
North Chicago is the most popular area to buy real estate in Chicago. Despite the nation-wide housing slump over the past couple years, the number of house sales in North Chicago have continued to rise. The area is both quiet and beautiful because it is dotted with public beaches and parks and residents have some of the highest median incomes in the city. Several of the neighborhoods in North Chicago are Gold Coast, Old town, Lincoln Park, Lakeview and lake view. If you want to live in the north section and you want to pay the lower prices for real estate, look into homes that are further away from the city center.
West Chicago
West Chicago is most well-known for its ethnic diversity. Some of the neighborhoods in West Chicago include Wicker Park, Lawndale, Austin and Garfield Park. Crime has risen is some of the western neighborhoods while property values are rising in others. Make sure you do your research if you are looking for a home in West Chicago.
South Chicago
Although South Chicago has a reputation for crime and poverty, there are middle class and affluent neighborhoods in the area as well. South Chicago covers almost 60 percent of the city’s land area and is home to some of Chicago’s largest parks; Jackson and Washington Park. Most of the city’s industry is centered in South Chicago.
No matter where you live, it is pretty easy to get around the city with the public transportation system in Chicago. Consequently, environmental features, school systems and real estate prices will probably be the most important factors to consider while you are looking for a home in Chicago.
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