One Trillion Dollar Depreciation

Feeling overwhelmed by the big numbers we hear in media all the time? How about 1 trillion dollar depreciation? Experts estimate that the total loss of residential home equity in the last 2 years was around 1 trillion dollars. An average U.S. home lost almost 100,000 of its value. So, are you $100,000 poorer than 2 years ago? Evidently, some of feel so. It is enough to talk to car dealers, travel agents, even baristas to get the picture. The business is slow because people feel less rich and keep cutting on both large ticket items and discretional spending.

Apparently, not everyone is quite convinced by the real estate bust. According to some studies, 49% of U.S. homeowners believe their homes are worth at least as much now as a year ago. In fact, close to 75% percent of homes nationwide have lost value in the past 12 months. Number of foreclosure skyrocketed too. Almost 280,000 homes received some kind of foreclosure-related notice in October 2008, an increase of 5 % over September. It puts the downward pressure on existing homes’ prices but also creates enormous opportunities for savvy real estate investors. Foreclosure sale became the favorite way of getting best deals around. Here is the list of foreclosed houses in Arlington Heights advertised by Town & Country GMAC.

On the other hand, extremely low prices foreclosed homes get to be sold for, lower the price expectations for entire neighborhoods. Sellers quite often face a dilemma: should they lower the price of the home to the level banks sell for, or, compete with other features the property has to offer. Luckily, some homes are unique and not easily found on the market, even with skyrocketing inventories. For example, it’s quite difficult to find a true 3-bedroom condo in Arlington Heights for less than $200,000. Property at 2616 N. Windsor Ave. offers also 2 full bathrooms, dinning room and eat-in kitchen. Please visit our condos for sale in Arlington Heights website for more details.

Homes are still selling in northwest suburbs of Chicago

In case you were wondering if homes in the northwest suburbs are still selling, the answer is YES :-) . Surprisingly, the prices are holding steady, around 10% below last year's figures. For instance - in Arlington Heights 30 houses have been sold last month, at an average price of $450,908. That is 5 houses fewer than in September but, per average - $41,500 higher! In Des Plaines the difference is even bigger: 33 houses sold in October 2008 at $306,345 average price compared to only 23 houses sold in September at $273,633.

For complete information about October 2008 home sales in northwest suburbs of Chicago (including condos and townhouses), please visit one of the following web pages:

• Arlington Heights Real Estate
• Buffalo Grove Real Estate
• Des Plaines Real Estate
• Mount Prospect Real Estate
• Palatine Real Estate
• Schaumburg Real Estate
• Wheeling Real Estate

Do you know that you can get a great deal on a foreclosure property? Bank-owned houses, condos and townhouses sell from $20% to 50% BELOW the average prices of similar properties in the area. Please visit our website about cook county foreclosures for more details.

Please do not hesitate to contact me at peter@a1agent.info if you have any questions or would like to receive a customized sales report of properties comparable to yours.