Staging Condos to Sell Condos
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In the current real estate market, sellers are looking for every available advantage to distinguish their property from others. Many sellers turn to staging professionals such as OwnACondo.com's very own Barbara Holmes for advice on how to declutter, depersonalize and add style that appeals to potential buyers.
We're proud to announce that Barbara was recently recognized as a Certified Staging Consultant (CSC) by the Mainstreet Organization of Realtors. It's a valuable and rare designation, with fewer than 300 Realtors in all of Illinois.Â
"Home staging helps create the perfect package," explains Barbara. "It presents the condo in the best light, improving marketability, and creates a positive emotional picture for the prospective buyer."
Expanding her skills to help her clients is something Barbara has done repeatedly during her real estate career. Check out this link to see some very dramatic online examples of the power of professional staging. Click here to read more about Barbara and to contact her if you'd like more information about staging your property.
Congratulations, Barbara!
Chicago condos
"I subscribe to the law of contrary public opinion," said Al Pacino's character Ricky Roma in the brilliant 1992 movie Glengarry Glen Ross. "If everyone thinks one thing, then I say 'Bet the other way'."Â
Plenty of condos, townhomes and houses are still selling around Chicagoland and around the nation, despite the fact that sales are down from the recent record-setting period. Who's buying? Lots of people who realize that a slower market is precisely the best time to buy.
But let's forget ficticious characters with clever lines in movies. In the 1980s when the stock market declined and interest rates went to double digits, Warren Buffet, who is now arguably the richest man in the world, coined the phrase "Wall Street had a clearance sale, so I bought." He understood the opportunity available when everyone else was selling. And you can bet that people like Buffet, Donald Trump and others are buying real estate in the current market.
Opportunity is abundant today in the condo market and you don't have to be a billionaire to take advantage of it. Choice is plentiful and negotiating power is high for buyers. Real estate remains the best way to build wealth over time. The market has pulled back from the ultra-fast annual appreciation and buying/selling frenzy of the last few years, a pace that no one expected could or would continue indefinitely. We're now returning to steady, solid growth in real estate.
The National Association of Realtors follows home prices and found that for the last 30 years, values increased an average of 6% per year, including the cycles. The time to get involved is now.Â
Give us a call at 866-696-2266 so we can help you get started on finding your dream condo for your residence or for investment. You'll look back and enjoy knowing that you had a contrary point of view.
Condo Tax Benefit
Tax reckoning day is almost here, a time that can strike anxiety in the hearts of many. But if you are the owner of a condo, you could be smiling right about now.
Often, your mortgage interest and your property taxes are deductible on your income tax return. Of course, personal situations differ and you should always consult an attorney or tax professional for more specific information.
Keep in mind that this potential tax incentive for home ownership is another of the many benefits that can distinguish having a place of your own from that nasty alternative: renting.
Contact us today at 866-696-2266 to talk about getting your own condo. Let's not let another year pass by.
OwnACondo.com partners with Chicago White Sox
With the crack of the bat, the Chicago White Sox not only won their home opening baseball game yesterday but also contributed OwnACondo.com's first donation of the season to Chicago White Sox Charities.Â
White Sox third baseman Joe Crede stepped to the plate with bases loaded against the Minnesota Twins and sluggged a grand slam to left field, ending a tie score and catapulting the team to an eventual 7-3 victory. That home run also kicked off a yearly tradition by OwnACondo.com of donating $100 to Chicago White Sox Charities each time a Sox player hits a homer in U.S. Cellular Field.
Last season, the White Sox hit 110 home runs at The Cell and OwnACondo.com was honored to be invited onto the field at the end of the season to make our donation.
Chicago White Sox Charities provides annual financial, in-kind and emotional support to hundreds of Chicago-based organizations. Individual donations of virtually any amount are accepted. Call the Sox at 312-674-1000 and mention that you'd like more information about Chicago White Sox Charities.
Chicago Condo company and Earth Hour?
Earth Hour hit the Chicago area last Saturday evening as people pulled the plug, literally and figuratively, on their electric consumption for one hour. Many Chicago landmarks went dark for the event, including the Sears Tower, the Tribune and Wrigley buildings, the Ferris wheel at Navy Pier and more. One fast food chain even shut off the lights on 500 of its famous golden arches. (It's unknown if the power was shut off in the drivethru speakers or whether that was business as usual.)Â
We hope you participated in the event, held by the World Wildlife Fund to highlight global climate change and energy waste. Perhaps you enjoyed the quiet and the darkness and even had some fun while making do with no electric lights or other devices. It truly wasn't all that long ago that living that way was simply the way things were.
For a look back at how Earth Hour went, locally and globally, click on the links.
