Evanston IL Real Estate

 Today was a nice sunny day and I decided to go “Touring” properties for sale in Evanston. Here is what I say today:

Price Range:

$217,000- For a little over $200,000 you can buy a 5 room, 2 bedroom, 1 bath condo located on the 3rd floor of a Vintage building in South Evanston. This sunny unit had a lot of space and charm with decorative fireplace in the living room, bay windows, formal dining room, heated indoor garage.

$399,000-For just under $400,000 you can buy a 7 room, 3 bedroom, 1.5 bath Georgian. This home had beautiful hardwood floor, new bay window in living room, formal dining room, lovely backyard garden, finished basement with play room, laundry and storage.

$475,000- Just reduced below $500,000 you can buy a 9 room, 4 bedroom, 3.5 bath recently remodeled  (90% New Construction) frame home. Great open floor plan with new kitchen, dining room, great room overlooking back yard. Upstairs has Master bedroom and bath suite.

$559,000- Will buy you a 9 room, 4 bedroom, 3. 5 bath duplex townhouse with no assessments. This home has 4 level of living space. First floor Living room, Kitchen, Family Room, Master Bedroom and Bath on 2nd level with 2 other bedrooms, 3rd level has 4th bedroom, and finished basement.

$700,000- Will buy you a 9 room, 5 bedroom, 3 bath Co-op in a 1927 Vintage Landmark building which is walking distance to the lakefront. Details include vaulted ceilings, arched room entrances, marble fireplace, plaster cornices and delicate grill work. A truely unique property with word class charm.

$789,000- For just under $800,000 you can buy a Victorian (Italianate) home  and coach house. The main house has 7 rooms, 4 bedrooms, 1.5 baths with wrap around front porch, 12 ft ceilings, country style kitchen, cast iron fireplace. The coach house has been gutted and restored and is currently used as an office.

$1,035,000- Will buy you a 10 room, 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath Colonial home on an extra large 65 X 190 lot in NW Evanston.

$2,400,00-   Will buy you a 10 room, 4 bedroom, 5.5 bath Lannon Stone home with one of the best views of the lake. This home was totally re-designed in 2004 with new Kitchen, heating/cooling, windows, electrical and plumbing. Location, Location, Location. is the reason for the price of this home…

I am happy to announce my new website address to serve you better.

I am all about providing the public with FREE INFORMATION about the Real Estate Market in Evanston, Chicago, and the North Shore. As you visit the site I think you will find it very easy to use. Just scroll down to the picture tabs on the home page to search for listings, school information, featured listings, mortgage information, buyer and seller tips, and a way to contact me personally. If you want to find out how much your home is worth before contacting an agent just go to the Select Page and scroll down to Recent Home Sales. I hope you enjoy the new website and tell others to visit.

It is not uncommon for the Midwest to have a Snow Storm in the Spring. I find the day after a storm is often a good time to take pictures because the white snow against a blue sky is quite beautiful. Following are some pictures I took today in Evanston.

Snow on Tree against Blue Sky

Snow on a Victorian Home

Lake Michigan with View of Downtown Chicago. Guess the names of the Tall Buildings?

Northwestern Continuing Education Building

Evanston Boys Basketball defeated Lockport (56/52) in the Illinois State Basketball semifinals for Class 4 A  Basketball on Saturday..  Evanston lost to Zion  Benton (51/54) on Friday.   Congratulations goes out to the Team for finishing third place  in the tournament and 3rd in the State with a record of 29 wins and 3 losses.

 The other day, a person asked ” How did the North Shore get its Name?   I thought this was a good question and should be answered.

The North Shore represents a stretch of land along the lakefront due north of Chicago and it is made up of nine suburbs located between 13 and 35 miles from the Loop, the city of Chicago’s central business district. The largest community is Evanston and the smallest is Kenilworth. Most of the cities were incorporated between 1860 and 1870. Despite differences to each community the demographics have always reflected the wealth, education and social status of residents. Although many of the most elegant homes face  Lake Michigan this was not always the case. Prior to 1900 sewage poured into Lake Michigan and the spread of disease and polution were a problem. It wasn’t until the Army Corp of Engineers solved this problem by reversing the flow of the Chicago River and forced sewage to empty into the Mississippi that homes along the Lake Front became a more attractive choice. All nine towns that make up the North Shore owe their existance to the development of the Chicago and North Western Railroad in 1866. Chicago Mayor Walter S. Gurnee was president of the Railroad. Gurnee was an ambitious man and became very wealthy when he purchased most of the available land surrounding the railroad stations of Winnetka, Glencoe, Highland Park and Lake Bluff.

If you are interested in learning more history of Chicago I recommend reading ” North Shore Chicago”  Houses of the Lakefront Suburbs 1890-1940 by Stuart Cohen and Susan Benjamin.

As of today’s date there are 227 homes for sale in Evanston, IL and 36 homes under contract since January 1, 2008. According to this information the average time on the market in Evanston is 6 months. Of interest is the number of homes under contract that have Home Sales Contingencies or Homes to Close Contingencies. (Home Sales Contingencies occur when the buyer has a home to sell but has a contract on a new home or a Home on the Market with a Contract but has not closed). According to the MLS there are 9 homes out of 36 homes that have such contingencies. What does this tell you about the real estate market in Evanston? Well in a very active buyers market such contingencies would never exist. Does this mean the Evanston market is slowing down? It is hard to say just yet. We are just entering the Spring real estate market and have had unusually cold weather and lots of snow which has turned many buyers away from the real estate market. It does however appear that Sellers are more anxious to sell and do not want to lose potential buyers and are accepting Home Sales Contingencies for the moment. I suspect when the market improves these contingencies will no longer exist.

Every Tuesday from 9:30 am to 12:45 pm Evanston Br okers Tour Listings which are currently on the market for sale. Today was one of those days. On tour today were 56 properties for sale (16 Single Family Homes and 38 Condo’s).
This is just a small sample of properties on the market. Today I decided to tour properties that are in different price categories to let people know what they could buy in Evanston.

List Price:

$150,000 : You can buy a 5 Room, 2 Bedroom 1 Bath unit totaling 1,600 SF in a Landmark Coop building. Unit needs updating.

$265,000: You can buy a 5 Room, 2 Bedroom, 2 Bath unit in a 1965 Era Elevator building in SE Evanston. Unit again needs some updating but there are only 4 units per floor.

$350,000: You can by a totally remondeled Vintage Condo in SE Evanston which has a total of 6 Rooms, 2 Bedrooms, 1 Bath. Everything has been done including Master Bedroom utilizing hall bath, in-unit laundry with office combo, and gorgeous kitchen with stainless steel appliances.

$445,000: You can buy a 6 Rooms, 2 Bedroom, 2 Bath Townhouse in downtown Evanston.

$500,000: Tired of Condo living!!! Well you could own a 6 Room, 3 Bedroom , 1.5 Bath Farmhouse close to Downtown Evanston, shopping and Northwestern student housing.

$600,000: Sorry. I did not see anything in this price range today.

$799,000: For just under $800,000 you can own a 7 Room, 4 Bedroom, 1.5 Bath home in NE Evanston on a very prestigious street. Great location within walking distance to lake, Northwestern and Downtown. Some updates to this house are needed.

$800,000: Sorry. Did not see anything in this price range today.

$974,000: For just under a $1,000,000.00 you can buy a 8 room, 4 Bedroom, 3.2Bath Townhouse

$1,675,000: For just over $1,500,000.00 you can buy a 14 Room, 4 Bedroom 5.5 Bath Home in NE Evanston which is located East of Sheridan Road and less than a block from the lake. This home has all of the modern amenities a home owner would desire and is in the perfect location.

$2,850,000: Finally, you could own a modern 4 Bedroom, 3 Bath Penthouse Condo in Downtown Evanston with floor to ceiling windows, open floor plan with the most magnificent views of downtown Chicago, Lakefront, and Bahai Temple.

For information on any of these listings or to have other active listings sent you can visit my website and search on your own or with my assistance .

What do I mean when I say your success is my success. Well, every real estate transaction goes through a series of stages ending up with a successful conclusion which is buying or selling a home. Following are the stages I think about when working with buyers and sellers. I…

S- Seek to understand my clients needs, wants and desires.

U-Utilize my Knowledge as a real estate consultant

C- Contract and Negotiate

C- Coordinate the transaction details

E-Establish a Celebration Date

S-Set up a Moving Date

S-Set up a Lifetime Relationship

If you are looking for a realtor that has your interests in mind I hope to hear from you.

I feel it is time to give my opinion about the current real estate market since we are getting close to the holiday’s and look forward to being with family and friends. Real estate typically goes into hybernation during these months and then the anticipation begins for the Spring.

What will the real estate market look like this Spring? I feel the Spring Market in 2008 will remain a buyers’s market because there will still be a large inventory of homes on the market which did not sell in 2007 back on the market again in the first quarter of 2008.

How will buyers and sellers adjust to new challenges? The next big challenge will be how both buyers and sellers adjust to short sales, foreclosures, and bank owned properties. Experts are predicting more foreclosures in 2008 and as a result the real estate market will have a record number of homes for sale in 2008. I do not see the real estate market getting back to a normal market for a couple of years. Short sales, foreclosures, and bank owned properties are creating a new surge of interest in real estate by investors. These investors are looking for deals and these deals are affecting the sale price of homes on the market. I do not believe the market will get back to normal until these investors start selling off their real estate portfolio or there become fewer foreclosures.

If you are interested in learning more about Short sales, foreclosures, bank owned properties or just interested in finding out more information on real estate matters please feel free to contact me personally .

 Are you a pet lover? Do you own a cat or dog or are you planning to have a pet? Are you planning to move in the next 12 months? Would you like a  free list of buildings that accept dogs and cats?

Moving is stressful enough and if you are a pet lover how could you ever think about moving to a building that would not accept your pet. Before you plan your next move here are some things to consider. First, there are certain buildings that do  not accept any pets. Yes there are NO PET buildings. Second, there are buildings that accept cats only. Finally, there are some buildings that will accept cats and dogs but restrict the size of the pet. I hope you don’t own an Irish Wolfhound. If you do good luck.