Green Chicago Condos
The green craze has hit nearly every industry imaginable, and Chicago's condo market is no exception.
The green building boom is in full swing in Chicago, with eco-friendly condo buildings popping up all over the city. These new condos boast an impressive lineup of eco-features, including green roofs, solar paneling, natural water and air cooling and energy-conserving appliances and insulation. Most eco-friendly condos also are LEED certified, which means they've got the U.S. Green Building Council's official stamp of eco-approval.
A few buildings, like Bucktown's EcoLogic Lofts, live up to the Windy City moniker by using wind turbines to generate some of the building's power. And The Emerald, in the West Loop, is even located on Green Street. You can't get much greener than that.
Many developments encourage eco-consciousness in other ways, too. Eco18, in the South Loop, and EcoLogic both offer priority parking for hybrid cars, along with bicycle storage and easy access to public transportation. And with on-site recycling programs in most of these condo developments, you've got no reason to toss that milk carton in the trash.
Although the asking price for a green condo may be a bit higher than a conventional one, the extra cost is likely to pay for itself in energy savings. Eco-friendly condos are designed to maximize energy efficiency, making them an attractive option for buyers concerned with rising energy costs. Plus, there's no need to sacrifice style for sustainable living. Many of Chicago's green condos are built by acclaimed architects and feature the same great design as other condos but with a much smaller carbon footprint.
Green building materials. Green appliances. Green amenities. Pretty cool, huh? It's enough to make all other condos green with envy. (Sorry, I just couldn't resist.)
Condominium Talk
June is National Homeownership Month and there's no better time to illustrate what owning a condo or house can mean to your bottom line.
The figures in the headline of this blog posting are the average net worth of a typical homeowner and a typical renter, respectively, as reported by the Federal Reserve Board's Survey of Consumer Finances.
And while it has long been acknowledged that owning a place of your own is a great way to build wealth in the long term, many people may be wondering about buying a condo or house in the current real estate market.
"All people think about is how fast prices can go up," author Gary Smith recently told the Chicago Tribune. The more central question is "How much money can I save on rent?"
Smith co-wrote a new book, Houseonomics: Why Owning a Home is Still a Great Investment.
Click here to read more of what Mr. Smith has to say in an article titled "Even Now, Buying Home a Smart Move"Â in the Chicago Tribune.
Be sure to contact OwnACondo.com at 866-696-2266 if you'd like even more information about why now is a great time to buy a place of your own.
Short Sales Condos in Chicago
"Break for sellers: Banks settle for less"
That was the headline for the topmost story on the front page of the Chicago Tribune in its May 31, 2008 edition.
Written by Mary Ellen Podmolik, the story detailed the rise in short sales, a real estate transaction in which a condo or house is sold for less than what is owed to the lender.
In a stagnant or declining real estate market, in which a seller may have very little, zero or negative equity, short sales can be advantageous to all parties involved, including:
- The seller, who is released from the property without a foreclosure and possible bankruptcy, the two worst marks on a credit report
- The lender, who accepts less than what is owed but does not have to put forth the time and expense of foreclosing on the seller and having the property sit vacant for an unkown amount of time with no payments coming inÂ
- The new buyer, who purchases the condo or house at a reduced price
- The condo association or neighborhood, which does not have a vacant property in its midst  Â
If you'd like to learn more about short sales and see if the process might be advatageous in your particular situation, call us toll free at 877-627-5643 and be sure to click on ShortSaleHelpCenter.com
