Leave a comment »

I just wanted to take a minute and say thank you to all of my clients and blog readers this holiday season.  This year in real estate has been difficult to say the least, but knowing that I can continue to do what I love, with people that I enjoy working with, makes the prospect of a Happy New Year even brighter!

May you be wrapped in the warmth of the season, and the comfort of good friends and family.

Happy Holidays from the Ferenzi’s!

 Leave a comment »

As I often do, I spent some time analyzing some data on Plainfield in the MLS today from the last 3 months.  I actually looked at all of the pending and contingent sales for all of Plainfield and what I discovered, while not surprising, confirmed what Ive been preaching for months now.

There are two factors that seem to affect market time in dramatic ways:

1. Price. Price. Price!
2. The condition of the home.

This is what has been happening in real estate in Plainfield over the last 3 months:

Its kind of depressing to be in real estate in such a… well, depressing market.  Well Im tired of being discouraged  and melancholy about this whole situation.  When I was combing through the MLS today, it really all started to make sense.  Over-priced listings wont sell and the only way to get an offer on a home is to “drive it to market value” over a period of 60 days.

I used to say “no thank-you” to over-priced listings, but if Im willing to try it your way… but you have to be willing to try mine.  If you have not had any activity (showings, inquiries, offers) after 2 weeks, its time for a 3% price reduction.  After 2 more weeks if nothing happens its time to re-assess the situation again with another 3% reduction.  “Driving it to market value” is a sure fire way to find out what your house is really worth.  When you finally have interest in the property you know its priced correctly.  I have no interest in hanging a sign up in your yard in this market.  I will however, pour my heart into selling your house… if you are willing to do what it takes to get it to sell.

The market time in Plainfield is about 4 months right now for all closed 3-4 bedroom single family homes in Plainfield.  Thats really great news.  (Surprising huh?  Lol.)  Those homes also closed at 94-95% of their asking price.  That is fantastic news!

Here is the reality of situation right now though; nearly 50% of all the homes in Plainfield that were listed on the MLS over the last 3 months had their listing expire before their home sold.  The other cold hard fact about those homes was that for the Plainfield 3-4 bedroom single family homes, the asking price of the homes that did not sell were approximately $50,000 more than the average list price of similar homes, and approximately $60,000 above the average closed sale price.  Im not surprised at all that they did not sell, especially since todays savvy buyers are out there looking for a deal.

People will always need a place to live.  If you want them to choose your house, you better make it the sweetest deal in the market!

Julie Ferenzi | Realtor
Plainfield Real Estate
630-673-6233

 Leave a comment »

In the news again is more real estate gloom and doom sprinkled, with a (small) silver lining…

The Illinois Association of Realtors posted a 21.2% decrease in home sales statewide which includes single and attached family home sales.  Total sales were reported as 31,451 compared to 39,904 for the same quarter in 2007.  The median home price also dropped 8.2% from  207,000 in 2007 to 190,000 in 2008.

In a the 3rd quarter report from the National Association of Realtors, 28 of the 152 metropolitan areas reported increases in median home sales for existing homes from 2007.   4 were unchanged and 120 metro areas experienced declines.  Decatur and Bloomington Illinois median home prices were up 8.7 and 8.1% respectively.

The good news is that as the market continues to decline, homes are becoming more affordable for buyers who were pushed out of the market 3 years ago due to rapidly increasing home prices.  First time home buyers, newlyweds, and recent college grads all have great opportunities to purchase a home in this market at a great price.

Short sales and REO (bank owned) homes present even better opportunities to head off the curve of the steady decline of home prices.

As homes become more affordable, and the economy begins to stabilize, buyer confidence will also begin to rise.  Many first time home buyers are nervous that they could get a lower price further down the road, and thus end up paying too much for their new home today.  The fear of many buyers is getting into a negative equity position in their first year of owning their home if they were to buy now.  The other problem with getting buyers to the closing table has been the elimination of zero down financing and the lack of available credit.  FHA loan guidelines were revamped as of October 1st of this year to require a 3% down payment on all purchases with the elimination of all seller assisted down payments, and restricted family gifting guidelines.

Oh, real estate is a mess right now…but so is the economy.  Ill be waiting with everyone else, looking for the light at the end of the tunnel.

 Leave a comment »

2 Bedrooms / 1.5 Bath Condo - $124,900

1/2 bath in master bedroom, generous room sizes, new flooring in kitchen, in unit laundry… all appliances stay! Lots of perks to this 2nd story unit including garage spot and assigned parking lot space! Priced below other similar units in the area!

 Leave a comment »

In order to get a really good grip on what is going on in real estate right now here in Plainfield, it becomes necessary to compare apples to apples.

I got a little curious this afternoon about how the Plainfield real estate market in September 2008 compared to the real estate market of September 2006 and also of 2007.

With all the doom and gloom of the economy in recent weeks, the obvious question becomes…

How is Plainfield fairing through all of this?

Well, heres the breakdown of Plainfield Real Estate for September 2006-2008:

In hopes of putting these numbers in proper perspective, its obvious that the number of closed Plainfield properties dramatically declined between 2006 and 2007, but that the minimum home price peaked at the same time.  And while home prices have declined steadily since 2006, the volume of closings seems to be on the rebound in September 2008.

In September 2008:

The minimum home price is down 25.2% from 2006.
The minimum home price is down 31.9% from 2007.

The maximum home price is down 18.5% from 2006.
The maximum home price is down 29.2% from 2007.

The volume of home closings is down 45% from 2006.
The volume of home closings is up 25% from 2007.

Tracking short sale closings is a recent feature of the MLS so the only data available is for 2008, but only 16 of the 76 properties sold this month were short sales.  This is a good sign that we may be heading out of dark days when it comes to Plainfield real estate.

The key trigger to a hopeful upswing to Plainfield real estate is that the volume of single family home closings is up 25% from this time last year.  Yes, prices have taken a dramatic dip since 2006, but the biggest factor in reaching the bottom of this real estate black hole is that people are still buying!

No, you wont get top dollar for your Plainfield real estate, BUT all things are relative… and you wont pay as much either

If you want to know more about what is happening in Plainfield real estate, or need someone to help you decide if this is a good time to move, call me at 630-673-6233.  I can help you, and I always answer my phone.  Hey, who else gives you this info for free?!