Crystal Lake Real Estate Market Trends – Illinois

News for Crystal Lake, IL - March 9th, 2011 9:49pm
Q. Are internet home appraisal sources reliable?

A. The goal of an appraiser is to estimate the true market value of a property, so that a lender can make an informed decision when providing a loan.

That is typically accomplished by using recent sales of comparable homes in the area, along with a physical inspection of the house and neighborhood, to deduce market value.

When using an online appraisal service, a key factor to consider is that internet appraisal sources are not in the neighborhood.

The data they rely on is general in nature and does not typically take into account factors that can greatly affect the value of a home. Things such as the proximity to busy streets, schools, power lines, shopping, vacant land, run-down homes, etc.

And even though they all seem to use similar information databases, all of them interpret the data differently. Some may take into account the change in value of all houses in a zip code, or the city in general.

Or they may differ in what properties they consider to be comparable sales by zip code, by distance, size, or age. And they seem to weigh physical factors differently, such as the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, and square footage.

As a result, I've found that you can input the same data to several different sources and you will get back a wide range of values, which makes these sources iffy at best.

If you want to get the most accurate idea of your home's value, it's best to employ the services of a recognized, local appraiser.

Local is the key word. They work in the area and understand all the variables that can affect the true value of your home.

I'd be delighted to discuss this in more detail or answer any other questions you may have about real estate. Feel free to call me!

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News for Crystal Lake, IL - January 12th, 2011 12:29pm
Q. Will I pay less taxes by owning a home?

A. Your home is, by far, the biggest single tax saver you'll ever own. Nothing else even comes close.

First, you get to deduct all the real-property taxes you pay. That includes all state or local taxes for the general welfare. There's no limit on the number of properties on which you can deduct taxes paid. If you have 10 homes, you can deduct the taxes on all 10.

Interest paid on the purchase of your principal residence is deductible. You can even finance the purchase of additional land adjacent to your home and deduct the interest. You can also deduct the interest you pay to buy a second residence or vacation home.

You can also deduct the interest on as much as $100,000 worth of home-equity debt. As long as the house has the equity and the debt is secured by that equity, the IRS doesn't care what you do with the borrowed money.

If the property was your principal residence for any two of the five years prior to sale, you can exclude from taxes $250,000 in capital gains (or $500,000 on a joint return). This is no one-time exclusion. You don't have to buy a new house to get it. It can even be repeated with another home.

Let's not forget the credits! From time to time Congress enacts credits such as those for first time home buyers. You can also get tax deductions for various kinds of 'green' home improvements, such as energy-saving windows.

You can also deduct the percentage of your home in which you conduct business. For example; if you use 20% of your home for business you can deduct 20% of the home expenses.

I'd be delighted to discuss this with you in more detail or answer any other questions you may have about real estate.

Feel free to give me a call!... [ + Read Full Article ]

News for Crystal Lake, IL - December 11th, 2010 11:00am
Q. Should I have my home "staged" before putting it on the market?

A. When you put your home on the market you naturally want it to show to the best possible advantage. First and foremost it should be spotless and clutter free inside and out.

After that you can consider whether or not your furniture really compliments the home. Is it the right size? Is it in good condition? Is there too much of it? Is it out of date?

These are the kinds of questions to consider before you make the decision to have your home staged by a professional. One way to get the most objective opinions is to ask your family and friends for their input.

There is no doubt that home staging works and can boost the selling potential of any home , however, the question is how much should you pay for it.

You must decide whether or not the amount you spend and the effort put into it is worth your investment.

If you hire a professional, staging could easily cost $3,000 to $5,000 or more and some stagers even ask for a percentage of the sale.

One way to make this decision is to get input from your real estate agent. There is no real formula for this but most agents have enough experience to give you an educated guess as to how much more your home will sell for if it is well-staged.

It doesn't make sense to spend big bucks on staging if it doesn't reflect itself on your bottom line.

I'd be delighted to discuss this with you in more detail or answer any other questions you may have about real estate.

Feel free to give me a call!... [ + Read Full Article ]

News for Crystal Lake, IL - September 13th, 2010 9:49pm
Care Take of Your Credit Score
As lenders tighten credit standards your credit score has become especially important when considering large purchases, such as a home. Without a good credit score it is virtually impossible to get a loan these days.

You don't have just one score, but many. Your FICO score, the one developed by Fair Isaac Corp., is the most looked at and runs from a low of 300 to a high of 850. It varies depending on which credit bureau is reporting it and the kind of lender that requested it.

Your score doesn't reflect your income, employment history or your assets. It also doesn't show whether you pay your rent or utilities on time.

You can pay off your credit cards every month, but that won't affect your score. That's because the credit bureaus don't have a clue whether you pay your bill in full or carry a balance on your cards each month. All they know is the amount you owed on your most recent statement.

Instead, the crucial fact is how much available credit you have used. You should keep your credit use to less than half your credit limit to minimize the impact on your score.

Unfortunately, about 30% of your FICO score is based on "credit utilization," a broad term that includes how much you've used of your credit limit, how much you've borrowed as a percentage of your total available credit and even how big the dollar balances actually are.

If you charge groceries, charitable contributions and just about everything else to get points on a reward card, you may be jeopardizing your score.

The single most important factor in your score, accounting for 35% of the total, is whether you have paid your bills on time. One late payment will ding your score for up to a year, very late payments can hurt you for two or three years, and collections and bankruptcies can penalize you for up to seven years.

What counts as late? Just one day. But because credit-card companies know that people move, get sick or misplace their bills, they commonly wait to report your late payment to credit bureaus until about 30 days have passed, or you have missed two due dates. (You will likely be assessed a late fee right away, however.)

If you have missed a payment, pay it as soon as possible and consider calling and doing a lot of groveling. Many companies will waive or reduce fees the first time a good customer makes a mistake, and they may even agree to withhold reporting the infraction to the credit bureau.

Bad news will stay on your report for seven years. But good news hangs around and pays dividends a lot longer. In addition, closed accounts in good standing will stay on your record for a decade. Both old and closed accounts can help your score because the length of your credit history is another, if smaller, piece of the formula.

You don't have to get new credit to show a so-called hard inquiry on your credit report. If you have opened a new checking account, the bank may have checked your score. If you bought a car, the dealer may have checked your credit. One inquiry can knock up to15 points off your score-and that's typical.

For that reason, you should ask up front if a bank, insurer or car dealer plans to check your credit record. Luckily, shopping around for a car or education loan or mortgage counts only as one inquiry as long as you do it within a few weeks. Otherwise, multiple inquiries may knock your score back for a year.

You may think a score of 800 or more will make you more attractive to lenders or anyone else. True, every 20 points in your score can mean a slightly lower mortgage rate or better car loan, but only up to the mid-700s.

That means it's worthwhile to take steps to improve a score in the 600s or low 700s, and in the high 700s, you'll have plenty of room for score fluctuation. Beyond that, a higher score is meaningless.

There's a lot more to consider when it comes to your credit score. If you are contemplating the purchase of a home, make sure you know your score and fully understand your credit history and all that can affect it before you go shopping for a house. Even though you may think you have good credit, you may discover that you have to do some credit repair before you can get a loan.
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