Archive for the ‘Real-Estate’ Category

First time home buyers/sellers seminar in Chicago today

April 16th, 2009 by Brad Harbach   1 Comment »

The Windy City Club will be hosting a first time home buyers/sellers seminar at the library in downtown Chicago this evening.  For anyone looking to learn more about the current state of the local real estate market in Chicago this is a great opportunity to join a small group of young professionals as Phyllis Stellato from @properties will walk us through everything you need to know as a first time home buyer or seller in Chicago.

The event is open to anyone…

[Read More...]

Bargain Housing Prices - Should I buy my first home?

April 3rd, 2009 by Brad Harbach   waiting for comments...

The substantial drop in home prices over the last few years has caused some young professionals to begin exploring the real estate market, looking for a once in a lifetime opportunity to buy their first home. With prices falling over 20% in numerous cities across the country, it is not out of the ordinary to find homes listed for over $100,000 less than their peak price. On the surface these houses can seem downright cheap, but we must remember that…

[Read More...]

Investing in Commercial Real-Estate? Better have lots of CASH.

February 23rd, 2009 by Will Crowthers   waiting for comments...

Tom is a good friend of Brad’s who I had the opportunity to meet a few years back while camping in the middle of Indiana for some quality Dave Matthews shows. He grew up in Cincinnati, OH and graduated from The Ohio State University with a degree in Finance. After college Tom moved back to Cincinnati and has been a commercial real-estate broker and appraiser there for several years. With all of the turmoil I read about daily in the residential…

[Read More...]

Rent vs Buy

January 24th, 2009 by Brad Harbach   1 Comment »

Yesterday we had a good discussion in the comments of a post on the old buy vs rent debate. Here is my quick analysis of it:

Buy
+Mortgage
+Mortgage Insurance
+Taxes
+Home Insurance (Houses Only)
+Association Dues (-utility benefits)
+Buy/Sell Costs (Agent + Mort Fees)
+Maintenance/Repairs
-Tax Deductions
—————-
=Cost of Home Ownership

For the “Cost of Home Ownership” defined above you get in return equity (from principal payments), all profits/losses on the value of the home (over the long-term real estate values increase at a rate equal to wage increases - which…

[Read More...]

Market Takes Care of Renters

January 24th, 2009 by Brad Harbach   waiting for comments...

The WSJ reported this week that rents are falling nationwide:

In Manhattan, rents fell on almost all kinds of apartments in 2008. Rents of studio apartments fell 7.4%, and rents of one-bedrooms and two-bedrooms in buildings without a doorman fell 5.5% and 5.6%, respectively, according to a report released Tuesday by the Real Estate Group of New York, a Manhattan-based brokerage firm. In Miami, 60% of rents decreased in the fourth quarter, and 45% of rents in Los Angeles declined.

[Read More...]