Bait and Switch Weather

The sky was the bluest I've seen it in a long time with nary a cloud.  The sun was shining so brightly I made sure I had my sunglasses.  I got into my car from my attached garage and made my way to show Orland Park homes for sale.

My buyer was late so I did some work on my iPad.  The door stood open on the first house we were viewing, so someone was home even though I was given a lockbox combination (but was told to knock first).  I realized it was windy as I was fearing the for sale sign was going to blow off and hit my car.  I almost moved my car to avoid any potential damage.

My buyers pulled up and I waited for them to get out of the car before I proceeded to greet them.  It was then that I felt the sharp sting of the extremely cold wind hit my face and blow my hair all over.  Even though I could see it was windy, I didn't realize how cold it was as the sunny sky belied the true temperature and I was nice and warm in my car.

I had to stop at my favorite Orland Park health food store on the way home.  I wanted to make a quick trip to Trader Joe's but didn't want to fight that cold wind any more and drove home.

I'm not a good representative of a Chicagoan who is supposed to be used to this kind of weather.  In fact, depending on when we visit our 2nd home in Scottsdale AZ, I get cold there too!  I've said it before and I'll say it again - I really hate winter.  I wish I could be a snowbird right now and sell Scottsdale real estate during the winter months and come back home to the Chicago suburbs during the spring warm-up through the beginning of winter.

One of these days...

Craigslist Ads for the Southwest Chicago Suburbs

I have a new vendor for the single property websites I provide for all of my listings, like the related living Orland Park home at 15536 Canterbury.  Although my prior provider allowed for Craisglist postings my new provider makes it super easy and allows a huge choice of templates to use, some using low html (that Craiglist prefers), medium and fancier ads with high html (risky as CL might ghost the post).  It is much easier to keep up posting once the original ad has expired.

Does Craigslist Work in My Area?

That's the question!  I have gotten two responses from Craigslist since I started using it for listings many years ago.  One lady came to an open house from a CL posting of mine and I got what sounded like a scam - a man from somewhere in Europe who wanted to buy my listing sight unseen and pay cash and when he had to come in to close on it I was expected to pick up this stranger at the airport.  I was nice to him but things started sounding weirder and weirder and I finally told him this all sounds fishy.  He acted like he was offended and I never heard from him again, and he is not the person who purchased my listing.  If he was that interested in the home (if he was a true buyer), and I offended him he could have found another local agent to work with him to purchase the house.  Never heard back from him.

Crazy Craiglist Happenings

We've all heard about murders that happened using CL to lure unsuspecting victims and how about the CL rental schemes.  That's where someone posts a home for rent, usually a vacant home or even one for sale, collects the rent and leaves the lessees without keys for a home that was never for rent and belongs to someone else.

So Why Do We Use It?

My husband is a musician and has sold some equipment via Craigslist.  We sold our prior living room couch to a very nice local lady.  However, we're on our toes when we have strangers coming over looking at our wares, and only the lady was allowed in our house.  For the other stuff my husband meets them outside or in the garage (and we're all on alert).

As far as real estate, I truly believe it's an area thing.  Maybe CL works for real estate in the city of Chicago or other large areas, but far less people use it (at least for real estate) in the outlying suburbs.  With that said, sellers want to see some type of advertising and marketing, and sending them the link to their CL ad is a tangible thing they can see that shows them we're working to get their home sold.

Personally, I can't imagine using CL to find anything.  The ads rotate so quickly I can't keep up with them.  I'd rather browse on any other kind of website for items to purchase.  If I'm looking for something used that I know I can't purchase new any longer, I go to ebay.

As far as real estate, there are so many better ways to find property, like using my Orland Park homes search, for example.  On this page, a general search is already started and you can go through the listings or create a more advanced search, adding different towns, putting in a more specific price range, number of bedrooms, baths, etc.  My search covers all of Northern IL including border towns of Indiana and Wisconsin.

My website is local and has local information, something that is lacking in many of the large real estate portals that span the entire country.  My data is up-to-date.  Those other big portals show homes for sale that were sold and closed years ago.

I will continue to post my listings to Craiglist, especially since my new vendor makes it so easy, and I will share those ads with my sellers, who feel I'm working hard for them (this is only one tiny facet to my marketing).  You never know when that ready, willing and able buyer will find one of my listings on CL, so I'll keep using it.

Orland Park Homes Available 3/24/12

Orland Park, IL is a very popular southwest suburb of Chicago.  In fact, it was on Money Magazine's Top 100 Places to Live.  So how many Orland Park homes are currently up for sale?  Today there 272 homes on the market.

The lowest priced home is $89,900!  Keep in mind, the average sale price in Orland Park for 2011 was $318,088.  So this home is priced really low.  In fact, it's the only home priced under $100,000 in the village.  It appears to be cute and has some updates, but there is some kind of mold report that makes it look like there is some kind of mold on the property.  I think that's why it is priced where it is.

There are 23 homes priced under $200,000, which is a good amount considering the average price of Orland Park homes.  Some of these are short sales and foreclosures, but there is a good selection.

On the top of the range is a home priced at $2,200,000 that's been on and off the market since 2004.  Although the price has been reduced over the years, it's not that far off from the original list price of $2,499,900.  It's not easy selling a multi-million dollar home in our area.  They are selling in New York and California, but it's a tough sell in the southwest suburbs of Chicago.  The home is gorgeous and sits on a big lot.  I hope they can find themselves a buyer soon.

If you're looking for a home in Orland Park or any other southwest suburb, give Judy Orr a call at 708-536-8200.

Orland Park Real Estate Resources

Sometimes when looking through websites doing a Google search, I will find some so difficult to maneuver that I leave and find something else. I try to create my websites so they are easy to use and you can find what is needed quickly.

The following are some great Orland Park real estate web pages:

• Orland Park homes for sale - view all available homes for sale in Orland Park without having to do any kind of search. They are also broken down by price range to make it easier to find what you want.
• Orland Park MLS - this is where you can search for exact amenities you desire along with price. You can also search multiple areas (it is currently set for Orland Park, but by using the Ctrl button you can search for other towns simultaneously.
• Orland Park real estate - This is another website/blog page with a description of this popular village.

If you're interested in Orland Park real estate, these pages (especially the top two), are all you'll need. Happy Orland Park house hunting!

Momma's Got A New Pair of Shoes

The long-standing and top local Chicago Suburbs Real Estate website has a new look. It is now a sleeker design and color palette and the navigation is easier and cleaner. There is also a new custom MLS search offering much more data than before.

Below is the old look

Introducing the new template

The prior site had a built-in Wordpress blog and the new site has a seamless blog that reflects the same template style. The last three posts will be featured links on the home page.

Community pages are being created to be informative and easy to scroll through. You'll be able to view currently listed properties without having to do a search. The main community pages offer single family homes for sale and offer a link for attached properties (duplexes, condos, townhomes). As an example, view the Orland Park homes for sale page.

This website is at the top of Google for many pertinent southwest Chicago suburbs keywords. It might be fighting for first place with the big portals such as Yahoo's real estate pages, homes.com, etc. But it is usually the first local result you'll find in Google for certain keyword search terms.

Orland Park Homes

This is a busy pre-Spring season as buyers are out looking for properties so they can take advantage of the tax credit, which isn't just for first-time buyers this time around.

Today, there are currently 230 Orland Park homes for sale. Prices start at $169,000 for a 4 bedroom, 2 bath ranch style home that is a short sale and goes up to $2,995,000 for a gorgeous 4 bedroom, 5+ bathroom luxury ranch style home on 2 acres. This one has been on the market for 114 days and at this price in our current economy, it might take quite some time to get this sold.

If you're interested in buying an Orland Park home, condo or townhome, call Judy Orr at 708-536-8200 or fill in the Quick Contact Form to the left. If you're not quite ready to start looking, feel free to fill out the Automated Home Finder Form which will send listings directly to your e-mail. You are under no obligation to start looking until you're ready. But this is the best method to get updated listing information without having to constantly do your own searching.

Orland Park Real Estate Market Review

The chart to the left shows Orland Park real estate statistics comparing '08-'09. As you can see, there is still way too much inventory compared to the pending sales and those that have sold and closed. It's great to be a buyer for Orland Park homes.

This is why it is so important for sellers to price their Orland Park properties correctly. Buyers have a huge selection of homes in all price categories. They only write offers on the properties that are priced correctly for what they offer. This chart shows the true imbalance of properties that have actually sold compared to those currently up for sale.

The reality is, if you don't price your place correctly for what it has to offer (or not) it simply will not sell. Buyers won't make an offer since they'll find something better to make an offer on. If your home is not priced right you will not get any offers at all. You might not even get any showings.

I hope this chart shows you the real Orland Park real estate market. This chart was created by Terradatum that uses the information from the Northern Illinois MLS. If you'd like to take advantage of this high amount of inventory, which brings prices down, give Judy Orr a call at 708-536-8200 or use the contact form to the left.