Hello all,

Just wanted to post a quick Happy New Year and give a quick update on the market.

McHenry County has taken its toll of market ups and downs, and we are in the midst of another wave of the roller coaster ride! The financial markets are not holding steady, but rates have seemed to be on the same ride and home prices. Today could be low, tomorrow back up again and no real gauge to compare the numbers to.

As far as homes go, now is the best time for first time buyers and still a decent time for second and move up seller/buyers who are willing to look at the big picture. If you are a first time buyer, loads of homes available although alot are foreclosure or short sale (for more info on short sale, drop me an email) With the foreclosures they are not too appealing if you are not willing to do some work. Short sales can be better selection of homes but can take a long time to get a deal back from the banks which can mean loosing another home and then finding out you cannot buy the one you bid on! Not a great scenario either way!

With rates as low as they are, and serious sellers continuing to drop prices, now is a great time to buy. The real game is decising when is the right time. Well, that said, you want to buy it at the right price, and get great financing too. Today is the right time for that, we have both things in place. Real estate has never been intended to be a get rich quick scenario, but a slower equity position for long term. If you want to get in and then get out, not sure when the right time is for that. But long term growth, and place to have stability and paying down the mortage to create equity along with the rise in market will give you the best of both worlds.

Since the depression rates and prices have not been this low together, always one or the other. Now should be the right time for buyers to really consider what they miss by waiting.

Second and move up sellers/buyers should also be aware that reducing by 10k in the sale might mean making up 20-30k in a purchase, so as a seller you should really consider this situation. Homes are definately on the market longer, prices dropping about 1% per month and sellers need to be aware of these items.

All said, the market is here, 2009 is in full swing and we should get real and get things moving quickly before the market shifts again!

Now is a fantastic time for first time buyers. Not only are prices at a great level but rates are also still very attractive. Actually we have not had this pricing together since the depression.

As for financing, we have a lender that has up to $9000 in down payment assistance money available for a short time. There are some qualification to meet, but the program is pretty straight forward and easy to deal with and can be used in a FHA transaction. Please give us a call or email if you know someone who could use this fantastic program to get into a home now!

Home prices are also great right now. Sellers are motivated and there are some great deals. Foreclosures seem to be tougher homes, needing alot more work than usual. You can see our listings on the web at http://www.RealtorShawn.com or http://www.GetTheDreamTeam.com. Also you can register to search the
MLS from Midwest Real Estate Data.

Thanks for checking in and as always if you have any questions please email, text, call or find us somewhere in McHenry county, probably the gas station!

Each year the Color Marketing Group reports on the trends of colors from design professionals and publishes this information. In April the National Assoc. of Realtors ran an article about these trends for 2008. Here is a quick highlight of the article.

Natural colors are coming in with unbleached and undyed materials. Also rock and soil colors. Blue colors are also being used even in the kitchen. For 2009 they are saying a deep navy blue that is close to black will be the trend.

Color schemes seem to be going to reds, orange, yellows and tuquoise mixes with the naturals and browns.

The shine is now on its way out so no more chrome fixtures. Copper and Bronze are coming in and hiding those metal finishes.

*source: Color Marketing Group, www.colormarketinggroup.org and www.realtor.org/realtormag.

Ok, here is the bad news! The first quarter stats are in from the IL assoc of Realtors, and they are not pretty. McHenry county finished up down from 2007 -21.7% in unit sales, and down -6.2% in price. Now the flip side is if you are selling a house for 150k and have to eat $9300.00 your purchase for 250k will save you $15,500. I know, a tough thing to swallow having to reduce the price, but if you sell and buy a larger home and save the same percentage then you are gaining a ton!