Lizzette Jimenez
Lizzette Jimenez--condo owner, real estate investor and first-time homebuyer specialist-- joins the growing team at OwnACondo.com.
Fluent in English and Spanish, Lizzette’s story of how she chose OwnACondo.com is a good one, and one we’ve heard before.
“I had a great experience with one of the OwnACondo.com agents,” says Lizzette, who purchased two investment condos at a complex exclusively represented by OwnACondo.com. The service she received was obviously well-remembered.
Lizzette has 10 years of experience as a licensed real estate sales associate and is encouraged by signs the market is again warming up. She says that she decided to pursue a career in real estate because the experience she had purchasing her first condo at age 21 wasn’t particularly easy.
“I felt completely lost in the process when I was a first-time home buyer,” Lizzette explains. “I decided I had to go out and educate myself.” This led to her decision to become a real estate agent and now Lizzette loves sharing her knowledge and experience with people who are in the same position as she once found herself.
“Working with first-time buyers is so much more rewarding,” she says. “There’s so much more help I can provide.”
Lizzette Jimenez's specialties include:
- Suburban Chicago Real Estate
- DuPage County real estate
- Condos
- Townhomes
- Real Estate Investing
- Real Estate Investors
- Real Estate Auctions
- Leasing
- Rentals
- Foreclosures
- REO
- Short Sales
- Condo Financing
Lizzette moved up from that first condo she purchased at age 21 to a spacious townhome where she now lives with her husband and young daughter. Lizzette enjoys yoga, fitness, international traveling and she’s also an avid reader; although with the demands of a two-year-old child, she admits with a laugh “I’m lucky I can even fit in my industry-related reading these days!”
Lizzette currently serves on her townhome association board of directors. She knows first-time home buying, condos, townhomes and real estate investing—in short, she’s a perfect addition to the team at OwnACondo.com, the best place to buy and sell condos! Contact Lizzette Jimenez, an English- and Spanish-speaking real estate agent, at: ljimenez@ownacondo.com
Moving to a New Place
By Patty Cunneen
Last weekend my fiancé and I rented a U-Haul truck because we were moving into a new place. We had spent all day packing up and unloading. It was midway through the day and our job was almost completed. All we had to do was drive the truck back to U-Haul and we would be be on our way back to our cozy new place. As we were pulling out of the parking lot, there was a sudden “bang.” Even though we were proceeding very slowly and cautiouly around a parked car, constantly checking our mirrors, we realized very quickly that we had crashed. But it wasn’t into the car that we were trying to be careful not to hit, it was the roof of the truck into a balcony of the building! We were not even thinking about the roof! We immediately jumped out of the truck to see the damage. Yep, we had put a hole through the roof.
We were reluctant at first to get too upset because, after all, we do have movers insurance right? Well, yes we did, but moments later we realized right on the dashboard was a notice which read "Overhead damage is not covered by insurance" and it had a few simple pictures to display this act.
We knew that was not good. We immediately drove the truck back to the place where it came from and told the owner the truth. As we nervously waited in his office, he clicked away calculating a final price. Fortunately, it wasn’t as horrible as we thought, but just a note to all homebuyers and condo movers: Make sure to watch the roof of the truck and try to remember how tall the truck really is that you are driving when you move into your new place!
Don’t Flush in a Challenging Real Estate Market!
By Anthony Caciopo
News of the Odd, with some things a Little Odder Than Others:
Apparently, the difficult economy and a challenged housing market has lots of ripple effects...sorry, no pun intended...and the latest bit of unusual news is that household water pressure in at least one community has been affected by the lack of residential real estate development.
According to the Elgin Courier-News, a three-year-old water tower in the Highland Woods subdivision on the western edge of the City of Elgin can be filled to only about 25% capacity because home building has all but stopped in the area . Now, a partial fill might not sound like a problem if there aren't that many homes to serve yet, right? But the real problem is that in order to keep the water from stagnating (since not enough useage is occurring for even that limited amount of water) the city's fire department has been periodically flushing fire hydrants in that area in order to prompt the cycling of fresh water in the tower.
This has resulted in reduced water pressure for a different type of flushing at homes and schools nearby. Less pressure means that all sorts of daily activities related to water change a bit, from washing the dishes, filling a drinking glass, sudsing up the laundry and, yes, even going to the bathroom.
We trust the good people of Highland Woods in Elgin aren't too inconvenienced by the occasional low water pressure. Certainly, no one wants to have to resort to flushing in shifts. The fire department has already said it will do its own flushing--of the hydrants, of course--on days when school isn't in session, along with giving local residents more notice of when to expect the temporary pressure drop. And let's also hope the recent glimmer of partial good news in the housing market has some impact soon in Highland Woods and beyond.
Swiss Army Knife
While the build-out at the new OwnACondo.com office is nearing completion at 540 N. Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, we are working like busy elves in the training room of our old office in suburban Oak Brook. We had anticipated moving in sooner and so all of our belongings are packed away and we are working from limited resources. It is amazing, though, that our huge office can still operate from folding tables and temporary computer set-ups. We are a fully functioning office in a room in the basement of our building! We operate like a Swiss army knife. We have everything we need at the tip of our fingers in one small office. This may not be the nicest knife in the drawer but we have everything we need. We have had clients and agents stopping by the office and asking us if we have this or that, and we do. They are very impressed with the work that can be done, in a room in the basement of a building!
Granted we are very excited for the Chicago office, do not get me wrong, but we are perfectly capable and fully operating. Just like a Swiss army knife, we are able to do everything we need to do to get our work done....and that means helping people buy and sell condos, of course.
Once we move downtown (to Streeterville, to be exact), we will be a premiere Swiss army knife! We will have everything and more. Through this whole moving experience we have learned that all you need to do is make it work, no excuses. Do what you can with what you have and simply, get the job done! It is that simple!
Marie Waxton
OwnACondo.com welcomes Marie Waxton to its growing team of licensed real estate sales professionals. She is highly buyer-focused and dedicated to helping people find their dream residence.
Marie enjoys dissecting all the details that make up any particular property. "Real estate is usually the biggest investment people make. I like to make sure it's what they want and that it will fulfill their dreams," she says.
Her real estate career began in 2006 and Marie toured unique (and sometimes historic) buildings in Chicago, researching programs for their restoration. She worked with banks, making sure financing was available for these unique properties.
Highly personable and enthusiastic about Chicago and its people, Maries Waxton says without hesitation "I have a love affair with the city. I enjoy the lake, the zoo, the skyline, museums and jazz clubs." Marie originally hailed from Northwest Indiana and now resides in Chicago's Southwest suburbs.
Marie's specialties include:
- Chicago-area real estate
- Dupage County real estate
- Condos
- Townhomes
- First-time homebuyers
- Real estate investing
- Real estate investors
- Real estate auctions
- Leasing
- Rentals
- Foreclosures
- REOs
- Short sales
- Condo financing
Marie earned a degree in education and journalism from the University of Indiana, Bloomington. She encourages buyers to check out OwnACondo.com's easy condo search and to contact her at mwaxton@ownacondo.com for any information related to condos, townhomes, financing or real estate in general. Marie Waxton continues OwnACondo.com's long tradition of expert, dedicated and customer-centric service that consumers love!
Chester Williams
Chester Williams has joined the growing team of dedicated real estate professionals at OwnACondo.com, bringing five years of real estate sales experience, and a wealth of customer service skills too.
“I just enjoy seeing people get their dream homes,” said Chester. “I am good at matching people up with the right property. I listen to what they want and what their needs are, and I know the Chicago market well.
He studied business and economics at Illinois State University, and after earning his real estate license, Chester Williams worked for Century 21 Blair James Realty on the North Side of Chicago from 2007 to 2009. In addition, he has several decades of experience in customer service, having worked for the past 20 years for Advertising Broadcast Services, where he is now collections manager.
Chester and his wife live in Chicago’s Wrightwood neighborhood, on the Southwest Side of the city, and he is very familiar with all areas of the city, and south suburbs too. His specialties include:
- Condos
- Single-family homes
- Multi-unit buildings
- Chicago real estate
- Chicago South real estate
- Chicago North real estate
- South Cook County real estate
- Downtown Chicago real estate
- Negotiations
- Foreclosures
- REOs
When he is not helping clients find homes, Chester enjoys hobbies such as restoring classic cars. His current favorite is his newly restored 1963 Chevrolet Impala.
If you have any questions or would like Chester Williams to help you find your own dream home or investment property, contact him at (773) 771-3306 or cwilliams@ownacondo.com.
ABR Designation (Accredited Buyer Representation)
There are plenty of opportunities for Realtors® to stand apart from the rest. One of the ways a real estate agent can do this is by obtaining a designation. You can educate yourself on your specialty and participate in continuing your education. Many of the Realtors® at OwnACondo.com for instance have their ABR® designation, for Accredited Buyer’s Representation. They truly specialize in working and servicing buyers.
In order to obtain the ABR® Designation, you need to complete a two-day course and receive an 80% or higher score on the exam. You will then have three years to complete the other ABR® requirements. These requirements include: successful completion of the ABR® elective courses with a passing grade of 80% on the exam; documentation verifying that you have completed five transactions in which you acted only as the buyer agent; and finally, maintaining an active and good membership status with the Real Estate Buyer’s Agent Council and the National Association of Realtors®.
In the real estate industry, it is important to stand out in the field. There are many Realtors® and all are after the same goals: Closing transactions and making money. Do something unique and special so that you are more easily recognizable, such as earning an ABR® designation. You can then add this designation to all of your marketing and advertising. Add this designation to all social networking sites and you are already ahead of the rest.
Our condo buyers really love our ABR Agents, because our buyers are assured of unparralled expertise and service.
Condos vs. Co-ops
By Scott M. Siegel
Does anyone even know the difference?
Now, were not talking about Co-Ops in the crunchy sense like a kibbutz or an ashram, which by the way do ‘represent’ in the spiritual feeding department. We are talking about two separate and distinct forms of equitable ownership in Chicago real estate that are as different as apples and oranges.
Let’s take a closer look:
Characteristics of Co-Op Buildings:
1) Owners own shares of stock in the corporation that owns the building. There is no fee simple interest in the real estate. You will own a pro-rata percentage of the entire corporation based upon the number of square feet your unit represents.
2) Owners must be approved by the co-op board. There is no pay-to-play in co-op land. Prepare for a fairly rigorous application and background investigation. This may be more intrusive than you expected.
3) The co-op board determines your down payment. Usually a minimum of 20% is required as a down payment, which may render this form of ownership out of reach for first-time or even move-up buyers.
4) Financing is hard to come by. Co-op financing is definitely a specialty and is offered by only a handful of banks. The good news is that because of the high down payment requirement, a buyer will not have PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance) to deal with.
Characteristics of Condo buildings:
1) Owners own a fee-simple interest in their condo. Basically, you will own everything within the four walls of your unit and your parking space. The other unit owners, collectively via the Homeowners’ Association (HOA) own the remainder of the common and limited common elements of the development (roof, exterior walls, hallways, landscaping, parking garage, etc.)
2) There is no board approval. Well, in most cases there is no board approval process. There are older buildings out there which still have relics of discriminatory policy on their books. In their misguided attempt to restrict ownership of condominium units, some early condo boards elected to follow the lead of their cooperative brethren and require board approval. In today’s funky market, this is frowned upon by the agencies FNMA (Fannie Mae) and FHLMC (Freddie Mac)and the FHA (Federal Housing Authority) and, in fact, in order to get their developments approved for FHA financing, some boards have elected to expunge the offending language/policy from their documents. Welcome to the 21st century!
3) Your personal creditworthiness determines your down payment. To a large extent, financing, although not as easy as in the past, is currently very attractive interest rate-wise. The only limiting factor determining your required down payment is your ability to make a down payment and your desired loan program. For qualifying developments, you can put as little as 3.5% down!
4) Financing options abound. Any one of the large national or regional banks offer a full array of loan programs from which to choose and to a lesser extent, certain mortgage banking companies should be able to provide your financing.
What You May Not Have Known (or didn’t want to know) About Co-Ops:
Co-op buildings, although more closely associated with the greater New York metropolitan area, (think: The San Remo, The Dakota and The Majestic along Central Park) do exist in the Chicago real estate market. Two notable buildings are: 999 N. Lake Shore Drive and The Edgewater Beach Apartments. Typically, co-ops are grand vintage buildings from the 1920s that are an architechture junkie's fantasy--giant birthday cakes of carved limestone and terra cotta topped with clay tile or oxidized copper icing. Mmm, mmm, good!
Not so fast. Despite the visual treat, this form of ownership has very dark (and seldom discussed) roots. Due to the inherently restrictive nature of the board approval process and the somewhat onerous downpayment required by the corporation, some co-op buildings were tacitly able to perpetrate outright racial discrimination.
But I digress. That's a blog for another day.
If you'd like to learn more about how we make buyers happy, contact me at 1-866-696-2266 or scotts@ownacondo.com.
Born This Way?
By Anthony Caciopo
Patty Cunneen, a fellow blogger in this space and our compliance manager at OwnACondo.com, recently returned from a sold-out Lady Gaga concert in support of her hit new tune, Born This Way. Patty regaled us with tales of an awesome night of music, big-stage spectacle and lots of in-costume/in-character audience participation. Condos were understandably the last thing on Patty's mind as she enjoyed a great time with friends in premium box seats at the United Center in Chicago.
Gaga's new song argues that whatever skin you're in, it's all good, no matter your race, ethnicity, physical abilities or sexual orientation. Part of the chorus of the song is:
"Rejoice and love yourself today 'cause baby, you were born this way."
When one thinks of talent and the ability to produce in a given field, a debate has long existed between what can be learned and what naturally resides within a person. Imagine this experiment: Take five children of the same age with absolutely zero musical experience. Provide a one-hour weekly music lesson for all five children in the same room, at the same time and with the same teacher. Then, take away all instruments and learning materials from the students until they meet again for the next weekly lesson. No studying, no practicing. Repeat this over a series of many weeks or even months and at the end of the experiment at least one of the students will likely emerge noticeably better at playing music than the others, even though instruction and access to instruments was exactly equal for all. Could that child have been born this way?
It's probably safe to say that most Americans believe hard work, practice and determination can usually overcome a lack of natural ability. But in the world of real estate sales, can being a top producer be taught, or does the ability reside only within? Interestingly, in a non-scientific poll conducted recently by Chicago Agent Magazine, the majority of respondents said, in effect, that the best real estate agents are born this way.
What are your thoughts about this debate?
