Getting Real

November Home Sales Finally Show Meaningful Improvement In Chicago

When the Illinois Association of Realtors releases the November home sales numbers for Chicago and Illinois in two weeks they will once again show a significant increase in closings over last year – this time approximately 20.3% higher. However, as I’ve pointed out on numerous occasions, it’s not really appropriate to compare 2011 sales to... Read more »

By Gary Lucido,
December 7, 2011 at 3:19 pm

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Fewer Condos To Choose From Could Support Prices

As I’ve mentioned before Chicago home sellers have become so frustrated with the record low home prices that many have just abandoned the idea of selling any time soon. They have either decided to stay put under less than ideal circumstances or they are becoming landlords – even if it means losing money every month... Read more »

By Gary Lucido,
September 12, 2011 at 7:07 am

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Realtor Association Cleans Up Their Housing Data

Today, and two days after the originally scheduled release date, the Illinois Association of Realtors announced the June home sales statistics for Chicago, the greater metro area, and all of Illinois. The reason for the delay was that the IAR was working on getting to the bottom of some pretty serious data errors that led... Read more »

By Gary Lucido,
July 22, 2011 at 3:35 pm

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Is Chicago's Housing Market As Bad As Detroit's?

I find it hard to believe that Chicago’s real estate market is anywhere near as bad as Detroit but I was shocked to learn that the serious delinquency rate for first liens in the broader Chicago metro area at the end of 2010 was in excess of 11% and actually slightly higher than Detroit. I... Read more »

By Gary Lucido,
May 13, 2011 at 8:42 am

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Will Chicago Home Prices Start To Rise As Sellers Hold Back?

Although I just posted on how Chicago home prices continue to fall at a very rapid rate there is a positive sign on the horizon. It would appear as though Chicago home sellers have finally had enough of falling prices and are refusing to put their homes on the market – they’ve drawn a line... Read more »

By Gary Lucido,
May 10, 2011 at 9:05 pm

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More Chicago Agents Leave The Real Estate Business

Well, it’s not really any surprise is it? About this time every year I check to see how many real estate agents are left in Chicago and since I’ve only been doing this since the real estate market has been in the dumps I’ve seen a pretty steady decline in that number. From last February... Read more »

By Gary Lucido,
April 27, 2011 at 11:21 pm

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Chicago Home Sales (Half Distressed) Still Lagging In January

Even though the Illinois Association of Realtors won’t be reporting on January home sales in Chicago for another 2 weeks I can give you a pretty good idea of what they will tell you right now: home sales were down 17% from last year. Actually, that won’t be the headline. As we often see they... Read more »

By Gary Lucido,
February 6, 2011 at 8:54 am

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When Is The Best Time To Sell Your Home?

I’ve always wondered what kind of data exists to provide a recommendation to home sellers as to when the ideal time is to try and sell their home and to tell sellers how much of a difference timing makes. It would not be trivial for me to come up with this analysis on my... Read more »

By Gary Lucido,
January 21, 2011 at 1:01 pm

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Are Foreclosures Really Getting Worse In Chicago?

Late last week the Tribune ran a story with the following headline Chicago area foreclosures soar 20% in 2010. While their story is based upon the same data source that I use (RealtyTrac) I’m not sure the story sends the right message. First of all it’s based upon foreclosure data for a very large area... Read more »

By Gary Lucido,
January 15, 2011 at 11:07 pm

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Chicago Real Estate Market: Early Signs Of Improvement In November

In about a week and a half the Illinois Association of Realtors will be releasing the home sale statistics for Chicago, the region, and the state. Once again the actual closings will be abysmal relative to last November. I estimate that they will report sales down about 40% from last year – with their usual... Read more »

By Gary Lucido,
December 12, 2010 at 7:29 am

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