Sue Fox, @Properties. Direct 773.816.1788
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Archive for January, 2012
Chicago home prices sink again
ANOTHER FORECLOSURE: This 4-bedroom, 2-bath house in Albany Park just closed for $160,000 -- which is roughly the median price these days in Chicago. It was a distressed property, like almost half the sales now taking place in the city.
The latest figures are in for December home sales, and once again, prices have slipped in Chicago as distressed properties gobble up nearly half the market.
The median sale price is now $156,000 in Chicago — a 6.2% drop from December 2010, when it was $166,250. Back in the robust days of 2005, 2006 and 2007 before the housing market crashed, Chicago’s median price stood between $279,000 and $287,000 each December. So you can see how dramatically local prices have fallen.
But the price plunge is deepened by the kind of properties now selling. Nearly half the homes trading hands, about 45%, are foreclosures or short sales. Many people may imagine that these homes are fabulous deals, attractive houses or condos sold well below market value. But as a realtor who actually tromps through these distressed properties on a regular basis, let me assure you that a lot of them are in crummy shape.
Foreclosed homes are vacant, and vacant homes invite leaks, mold, animals, vandalism and occasionally even squatters. They are often missing their kitchen appliances. An angry former owner may have damaged the home on the way out. Stained carpets, holes in the drywall, buckled floors and other maladies are common. Short sales, on the other hand, are still owned by a financially-strapped homeowner, so while they are often occupied, they may have been the victim of deferred maintenance for years. Sometimes tenants live there, and many times these homes are not in great shape by the time a short sale is finally completed.
Every once in a while you do run across a distressed property that is in good condition, but I would say that is the exception in most Chicago neighborhoods. The point is, with so many foreclosures and short sales now in the mix, Chicago’s home prices have been dragged down by the sheer weight of all these lower-end properties.
This phenomenon has made it very tough for ordinary sellers (who aren’t in foreclosure or attempting a short sale) to compete on price, particularly in areas with a lot of distressed homes like Rogers Park, Uptown, or Albany Park. Many people are opting to stay put (or try to rent out their homes) rather than sell in this environment.
Obama refi plan could help housing market
UNDER DISTRESS IN GRACELAND WEST: This 3-bedroom 1908 home is now listed as a short sale for $500,000. It was snapped up by a buyer in just a day, but has yet to close. Like many distressed homes in Chicago, this one bounced on and off the market for several years at much higher prices, starting at $945,000 in 2007.
In his State of the Union speech last night, President Barack Obama proposed a new plan to let all underwater homeowners refinance at today’s super-low mortgage rates — a proposal that could help heal the housing market and inject fresh cash into the economy.
If Congress approves it, that is. And with a Republican-controlled House that continues to block many of Obama’s initiatives, that is a big if.
The Obama administration has already offered a variety of programs aimed at stemming the tide of foreclosures, helping people modify their loans, and promoting refinancing for government-backed mortgages. But so far, the impact has been minimal and more than 3 million homes have been repossessed since the housing boom ended in 2006.
In Chicago, where the median home price has dropped about 30% since the downturn began, thousands of underwater homeowners have either lost their homes to foreclosure or been forced to sell in a short sale. Nearly half of the recent sales here now involve distressed properties. Each year, I meet dozens of people who would like to sell, if only they could get enough to pay off their mortgage.
Obama’s plan would at least help these folks hang onto their homes. Each homeowner could save an estimated $3,000 per year if he/she could refi and take advantage of the lowest rates (around 4% for a 30-year fixed mortgage) in half a century. Then they could pump those savings back into the economy, whose lifeblood is consumer spending. The Obama administration estimates that the program could benefit two to three million homeowners, according to the New York Times.
It’s a sensible plan all around, but some financial analysts are already proclaiming it dead on arrival, saying it won’t get through Congress. The sticking point seems to be a “small fee” that would be imposed on large banks to help fund the plan. Will this prove to be another instance of Congress protecting Wall Street profits at the expense of Main Street homeowners?
Luxury home sales dive in Chicago
MILLION-DOLLAR HOUSE: This nearly new4-bedroom house, located in North Center in the Coonley school district, sold in November after less than a month on the market. The sale price was exactly $1,000,000, though the home was listed for $100,000 more.
The highest end of Chicago’s housing market took a beating in 2011, with sales of homes for $1 million or more falling 14.4% over the prior year. Only 539 such properties sold in 2011, compared with 630 homes in 2010.
Luxury condo sales were particularly hard hit, according to a recent story in Crain’s Chicago Business. Sales of million-dollar condos plunged 29% to 259 units, compared with 364 in 2010. The decline was partly attributed to the fact that no major new luxury condo developments were completed last year.
But the uncertain economy and troubled real estate market also certainly played a role. Many people are holding off on big-ticket purchases, and million-dollar homes are taking longer to sell. There’s a year-and-a-half supply of luxury homes sitting unsold throughout the Chicago area, Crain’s reported.
On the ground, I’m seeing some of these single-family homes endure multiple price reductions, occasionally to the point that their original asking price is sliced nearly in half. Often homes priced slightly above $1 million will sell for closer to $850,000 or $900,000. On the other hand, new or recently-built homes in hot school districts tend to sell quickly, with less of a discount off the asking price.
A bright spot in North Center: Single-family home prices up 7.5%
ROSCOE VILLAGE CHARM: This renovated 3-bedroom in the heart of Roscoe Village sold in 2011 after just three weeks on the market. Located in the Audubon school district, it featured large bedrooms, a finished basement and a backyard with a deck. Priced at $669,900, it sold for $625,000.
While home prices in most Chicago neighborhoods have been steadily falling, North Center — a desirable area with good schools and walkable neighborhoods like Roscoe Village — is bucking the trend. In 2011, the median price for a single-family house here rose to $805,000, a 7.5% increase over the year before.
More of these lovely houses are being sold, too. Sales of North Center houses soared almost 23% in 2011.
Condo prices in North Center, meanwhile, have held steady, ranging from a median of $365,000 to $370,000 over the past three years. Considering that condos in many other North Side areas have fallen at least 10-20% in value in recent years, North Center is definitely holding up quite well.
As the new year begins, I have two buyers looking in North Center, both young couples with children interested in homes available here in good elementary school districts such as Coonley, Bell and Audubon. And despite the relatively high median price of $805,000, you can definitely find an updated 3 or 4-bedroom house in North Center for considerably less money. More than 30 houses, many of them century-old homes that have been renovated, sold for $500,000 to $700,000 in 2011.
Buyers on prowl for bargains in 2012
SELLING SHORT IN WEST TOWN: It's been a long road for this short sale, a modern 5-bedroom house located at 1634 W Erie. It was built in 2006 and originally priced just over $1.2 million. But despite being billed as a "smart" house with skylights throughout, high-end appliances and a media room with stadium seating, it never sold. By 2009 it was marked down to $680,000 and offered as a short sale. It's been under contract -- but failed to close -- four times in the last two years. The home is now priced at $615,000 and the listing says it's an "approved short sale" that can close in 60 days.
Happy 2012! Especially if you’re a home buyer.
From what I’ve been seeing over the past few weeks, Chicago buyers are already out shopping for their next home. Even during the height of the holiday season, I witnessed: One of my condo listings go under contract two days before Christmas, two separate buyers (in the Loop and Uptown) who are preparing to make offers this week, and another three new buyers who are starting their single-family home searches (in Bucktown, Irving Park, and Andersonville).
Home sales are on the rise throughout Chicago… but home prices are not. And neither, for the time being, are mortgage rates. That’s why it’s such an incredible time to be a home buyer. At no other moment in the past decade could you find home prices so low in Chicago (the median is now $160,000, nearly back to the levels of 1999), nor interest rates hovering below 4% for a 30-year fixed mortgage. Savvy buyers with solid income and credit scores are seizing the moment — and many people are simply paying cash for their properties these days, if they can afford it.
A major trend in 2012 will undoubtedly be the flood of foreclosed and short sale properties hitting the market; they already make up almost half of Chicago’s home sales. Illinois now ranks fourth in the nation for foreclosure activity, with 12,398 properties receiving foreclosure filings in November alone. In Cook County, foreclosure activity jumped 20% in November, according to a recent story in the Chicago Tribune, which attributed the rise to a 57% increase in homes sent to court-ordered auctions.
Buyers are out there, but they are definitely looking for bargains in 2012. And with homes now selling for about 30% less than what they commanded just a few years ago, bargains are not hard to find. It’s much harder to find home sellers — particularly the traditional kind who aren’t in foreclosure or attempting a short sale — willing to accept the new market reality and price their properties accordingly.
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