The State of Chicago’s Condo Market
The Chicago Tribune reported on the Chicago housing market today. The news regarding the downtown condo market isn’t all that positive.
The Chicago metropolitan region “isn’t as bad as Florida and California, ground zero in the housing recession, but we have the same problems,” said economist Diane Swonk of Mesirow Financial.
The ills ailing the new-home market here include too much speculative building and soaring mortgage default and foreclosure rates, she said.
Especially hard-hit are Chicago’s inner-city neighborhoods and growing communities like Joliet, Swonk said.
“Unfortunately, about half of the people having problems with subprime mortgage loans could have qualified for prime loans,” she said. “This reflects greed all around.”
“I worry about the second shoe falling on the downtown condo market,” Swonk added. “Chicago came late to this housing boom so there still are a lot of units in the pipeline due for delivery in the next 18 months.”
“This year will be a big test,” she said.
Housing market’s freeze deepens [Chicago Tribune]