If you are looking for a new home and own an iphone, there are some new mobile applications available to help with your home search. These new applications will make it possible for you to search and view local homes for sale right from your phone.

The following are some of the latest real estate related iphone applications:

Trulia iPhone has already been downloaded more than 70,000 times. This application gives special attention to open houses, which is handy for anyone who is out and about and wants to find homes nearby.

HomeFinder provides users with listings from for-sale-by-owner websites as well as feeds from MLS’s and brokerages.

Don’t own an iphone?  You can still search the MLS!  Click here to set up your own MLS search or email me if you would like me to set up a personalized search for you based on your specific needs.

Joe Stacy of Koenig & Strey GMAC Real Estate Services in Schaumburg participated in an intensive, three-day Listing Specialization course in Atlanta, GA, learning with a select group of REALTORS how to dramatically improve the services they render to real estate sellers, thereby enabling sellers to obtain the home value that they’re looking for in less time and with fewer hassles.

Stacy, who ranks substantially above the average Realtor, helps over 50 homeowners move per year. The typical agent in the U.S.A.  averages less than 12 transactions per year.

According to Stacy, “The practice of listing specialization has created an opportunity for sellers to receive an unmatched level of professional service, and I’ve made a commitment to serve my clients this way.”

Stacy learned new strategies, systems, and techniques for enhancing a powerful, effective home selling side of the real estate business, focused on helping sellers obtain the best price for their home in the shortest possible time.

According to Howard Brinton, founder and CEO of STAR POWER Systems, participants in these events are part of an elite group of agents. “The quality of the learning experience and the depth of the practical knowledge and skills acquired by participants is unparalleled.”

Brinton claims it is rare in any industry, and certainly in real estate, to find this level of commitment to clients and employees. “Joe has demonstrated a deep commitment to better serve his clients. His dedication is evidenced in his investment in this course, and the substantial expense involved to be here. Joe is something special, and the clients and employees who are served by him are fortunate indeed,” he said.

Koenig & Strey GMAC Real Estate’s Schaumburg office is located at 2570 W Schaumburg Rd. Schaumburg, IL 60194 and can be reached at 847-874-6731. Koenig & Strey GMAC has 28 residential brokerage offices and over 1,250 sales associates serving Chicago, the North Shore, Lake County, and the northwest and western suburban areas. Koenig & Strey GMAC Real Estate is an exclusive affiliate of Christie’s Great Estates. For additional information, please visit www.joestacy.com .

“What do you need a fancy suit for Charlie, you got no job to wear it to”. From the 1984 movie, The Pope of Greenwich Village. And there are a lot of fancy suits not being used, due to the massive job losses of late.

The Labor Department reported that 240,000 jobs were lost in October, which was worse than the expected loss of 200,000 jobs. In addition, the Unemployment Rate jumped to 6.5%, up from last month’s read of 6.1% and reaching the highest unemployment rate since 1994. And if the current numbers weren’t bad enough, there were heavy downward revisions to August and September numbers, which erased an additional 179,000 jobs. So far in 2008, a total of 1.18 million jobs have been lost, with 651,000 job losses coming in just the past three months. Look for things to get worse before they get better, as the unemployment rate will likely top 7% soon.

Friday’s Jobs Report was brutal and would typically nudge the Fed to cut their benchmark rates in an effort to spur on the economy. But with the Fed Funds Rate already at 1%, the Fed doesn’t have much more room to cut. This means that Stocks, which worsen on poor economic news, will likely continue to struggle as a result. Read the rest of this entry »

In a more "instant gratification" society, recent studies show a trend among today's first-time homebuyers. Compared to just ten years ago, 93% of all first-time homebuyers are now not as likely to consider the "fixer-upper" type home. Recent buyers polled cited that "affordability" is their number one concern, but at the same time also consider the "move-in condition" of the home to be very important as well. Homes that may only need basic face lifts such as fresh paint, carpet, landscaping or even just window treatments can come with very large savings, adding instant "sweat equity" to a buyers home. Financial experts suggest purchasing a fixer-upper to build equity over time and later consider moving up to a second-stage home, which may then meet "move-in condition" expectations. Another advantage to purchasing a fixer-upper is that many sellers of this type of home are generally more motivated in selling quickly rather than attaining top dollar for their home. Good savings may also be found on homes that have been listed for over 180 days, homes owned by long-term owners, and house-flipping investors that may be eager for a sale. Click here for a list of homes that have been on the market for more than 180 days. Are you interested in setting up your own MLS search? For a customizable MLS search that we automatically email you daily updates, click on the above link or visit my Chicagoland Northwest Suburbs Real Estate site.

 

“I’m always making a comeback but nobody ever tells me where I’ve been.” Billie Holiday. Making a comeback was exactly what Bonds and home loan rates attempted last week, after approaching some of their worst levels this year.

While the Bond market was closed last Monday in Observance of Columbus Day, the early part of the week wasn’t short of market-impacting news. On Tuesday, the Bush Administration, announced a plan to use $250 billion of the $700 billion financial rescue bill recently passed by Congress to buy directly into American banks. The government will begin by buying stock in nine of the largest banks including Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, and Citigroup.

Why did the government do this? Because the financial crisis is due to over-leverage…that means the ratio of outstanding loans to capital is too high. If left unchecked, this can lead to the failure of institutions. And it has already taken a great toll. The only way to repair this is by reducing the leverage ratio, or “de-leveraging”. That means sell off loans or increase capital. The Fed’s plan helps this on both sides as they can be a buyer of some loans as well as an investor in some banks. Read the rest of this entry »

TO PASS OR NOT TO PASS? That was indeed the question of the week…and the final answer came on Friday, as the House of Representatives followed the Senate’s lead and passed the $700 Billion rescue plan.

The week began with the House initially voting against the plan on Monday, causing Stocks to plunge in their final minutes of trading to their single worst loss in the 112-year history of the Dow Jones. However, on Wednesday, the Senate passed a revised rescue plan that included some tax breaks and an increase in FDIC protection from $100,000 to $250,000. This was the version the House subsequently passed and President Bush signed into law on Friday.

Why was it important for the plan to pass? Simply put, the plan frees up some of the frozen credit that consumers and small businesses across the country need to survive. As examples, even auto loans were becoming harder for consumers to qualify for…and on the business side, many retail operations have had difficulty in financing their inventory. Credit issues like these are not good for the economy, confidence, and consumer spending, and the rescue plan was passed to help matters. Read the rest of this entry »

Do you have anything that needs to be shredded? We are sponsoring a Community Document Shredding and Recycling Day. The Shred Day is scheduled for Saturday, October 11th, and will be held in our parking lot located at the corner of Schaumburg and Barrington Rd. from 11am until 2pm.

Reasons To Participate:

1. The shredded material will be recycled, helping to keep the environment free of unnecessary waste.
2. You can watch documents and/or CD’s and disks being shredded via a TV on the Cintas truck!
3. We are also accepting old cell phones, used batteries, and ink/toner cartridges which will go to local elementary schools for fund raising purposes.

Please contact me if you have any questions and I hope to see you there!

Date: Saturday September 27, 2008
Place: Vogelei Park - 650 West Higgins Road
Time: 12pm-3pm

Hoffman Estates is hosting the 1st Annual Scarecrow Festival this Saturday!  This is a wonderful opportunity to have a great time with your kids. There will be plenty of food, games and entertainment for everyone in the Chicagoland Northwest Suburbs, so expect to have a good time! Parking will be available at the AT&T Building just one block from the Park.  Have fun!

Housing At Bottom, Recovery Slowed By Financial Turmoil

By Ann Londrigan

09/19/2008

Economist John Tuccillo, president of JTA Associates and former chief economist for the National Association of REALTORS®, told the packed crowd in the closing session of the IAR Convention that the housing market is ahead of the rest of the economy.

“Over 90 percent of residential real estate markets have bottomed out, some are still bleeding, but most have hit the bottom and the foreclosure numbers still coming out are old numbers, what’s happened in the past,” said Tuccillo. “But it the housing market’s recovery will be slower that it should have been due to the stalled economy and the problems in the financial sector.”

READ THE FULL ARTICLE