How important is the housing story? Important enough that the Chicago Tribune put it on the front page of the Sunday newspaper.
From the Tribune:
“I’m so thankful,” said Mark Zipperer, a Re/Max Edge agent in Chicago, as he ticked off his busy schedule of appointments last week. “It’s like after a drought, it’s raining. Not only did I have a lot of people sitting in my car [last weekend] but one of my oldest listings sold.”
In the past few weeks, agents say an undeniable scent of sales is in the air, and data released Thursday gave credibility to their talk.
March sales of previously owned single-family homes and condominiums in Illinois posted their second consecutive month-over-month gain, and for the first time since June, the statewide median price for a home rose from the prior month.
Realty agents are taking pains to not get too giddy. After all, that 38 percent one-month gain in sales in Cook County translated to 2,409 properties sold. In March 2008, 3,432 homes sold in Cook County.
“We’re starting up from a very low base,” said Pat Callan, a Wheaton real estate agent and president of the Illinois Association of Realtors. “We’re starting to baby step off of that and it’s good. It gives me confidence we’re heading in the right direction.”
First time homebuyers appear to be fueling the recent surge in sales, as 53% of March sales nationally were from first time homebuyers (however, I haven’t seen any data on how many buyers in the Chicagoland area were first time buyers). Record low interest rates combined with the $8,000 tax credit are pushing some buyers off the sidelines.
An $8,000 tax break made the decision easier for Naperville renters Chad and Michelle Gargrave. After saving for five years, the couple began looking for their first home in early March, shortly after the tax credit was announced. They zeroed in on a 2,400-square-foot Woodridge house that went on the market a few weeks before at $337,500.
After negotiating, the seller accepted their $320,000 offer and they closed on the purchase Thursday, having locked in a 4.75 percent interest rate on a 30-year mortgage. Chad, a telecom industry lawyer, and Michelle, a 4th-grade teacher, had reservations about taking such a big step, but friends and family pushed them forward.
“Everyone we talked to was like, yeah, this is the time,” Chad said. “Housing prices are low, mortgage rates are low and with the tax credit, it was almost too good to pass up.”
Hinsdale renter Alan Reck, 24, said his father’s advice was similar, and he began shopping for a one-bedroom condo in Lakeview or Lincoln Park. With a maximum budget of $250,000, he’s found “there’s just tons to look at.”
With the market stirring, agents are telling serious sellers to offer their homes at prices lower than they would have sold for at least two years ago. Advice for buyers? “I’m telling them the seller doesn’t have to be bleeding on the floor for them to get a good deal,” said Todd Szwajkowski, an agent at Keller Williams Realty.
Home sales in the Chicago area start to show more signs of life [Chicago Tribune, Mary Ellen Podmolik, Apr 26, 2009]
