For those of you who were following the story. Mr. Betho finally arrived.  Granted he was 4-days-late, and a dollar short, but I didn't allow that to affect my greeting. Mr. Betho was given a warm greeting, swaddled, fed and cared for, and welcomed into the fold. My daughter, Sarah and my son-in-law Chris brought Mr. Betho in to the world on Friday evening... and it turns out that his name isn't Betho... it's Leo Mayson Van Nostrand.  (now c'mon... THAT's a monogram!!)... As you can see from the photo... he's very cute... (must take after his mother), but doesn't appear ready to start house-hunting just yet.. but I'll set him up on a Connect MLS computer drip campaign, nonetheless... let's see... a multi-million dollar house on the lakefront you say... can do! Leo was born at 6:45 on Fr... 02/19/2012

Evanston 's January Property sales were 38, up 18.8% from 32 in January of 2011 and -22.4% lower than the 49 sales last month. January 2012 sales were at their highest level compared to January of 2011 and 2010. January YTD sales of 38 are running 18.8% ahead of last year's year-to-date sales of 32.   The Median Sales Price in January was $317,000, up 39.3% from $227,500 in January of 2011 and up 5.3% from $301,000 last month. The Average Sales Price in January was $411,668, up 36.8% from $300,967 in January of 2011 and up 14.8% from $358,730 last month. January 2012 ASP was at a mid range compared to January of 2011 and 2010.   The Total Inventory of Properties available for sale as of January was 442, down -4.5% from 463 last month and down -26.5% from 601 in January of last year. Jan... 02/02/2012

Evanston's December Property sales were 45, down -10.0% from 50 in December of 2010 and -11.8% lower than the 51 sales last month. December 2011 sales were at their lowest level compared to December of 2010 and 2009. December YTD sales of 708 are running -10.0% behind last year's year-to-date sales of 787. The Median Sales Price in December was $286,500, down -6.1% from $305,000 in December of 2010 and up 44.7% from $198,000 last month. The Average Sales Price in December was $355,340, up 17.7% from $301,926 in December of 2010 and up 39.5% from $254,729 last month. December 2011 ASP was at highest level compared to December of 2010 and 2009. The Total Inventory of Properties available for sale as of December was 447, down -16.1% from 533 last month and down -28.1% from 622 in December ... 01/03/2012

Okay, this morning, I performed the most sacred of our civic duties.  I voted. And now I'm on my way to Starbucks, who's offered a free cup of Joe (no, not Joe the Plumber)  for all those who've voted. My daughter called me early this morning to remind me of the importance of voting... (and since I live in the Chicago area, the sound byte that resonates in my ear is "Vote Early, Vote Often"!). I could hear, in her voice, her excitement, her fervor for the process.  She was excited, she was invigorated.  My wife is off work, this afternoon, and plans on spending the afternoon volunteering for her candidate in the party's office, making phone calls (on her own cell phone) reminding people to get out and vote. My wife is emotional about this election... she was almost teary-eyed, as she ex... 11/27/2011

BLACK FRIDAY It sounds bad, doesn't it? We talk about things in colours - Friday was the blackest of days.  But it doesn't make a lot of sense, does it?  Since Black Friday is one of the very best days for retailers?  You'd think they would call it Golden Friday, or Green Friday (for the colour of money). So where did the term come from?  Well, it seems to have originated in the early 1960's in Philadelphia, where the day after Thanksgiving turned out to be such a busy day that the police department was called upon to work 12-hour shifts. And the rank and file gave it a negative and memorable name ... "Black Friday". So it began a negative...but Philadelphia retailers didn't care for the ongoing negative name... and tried to change it to BIG Friday... it didn't catch on.  Not as provoca... 11/25/2011

Homes for Sale in Evanston (November 2011) Upscale homebuyers are discriminating and careful. They want the best home the North Shore has to offer, but they won’t pay more for a house than its fair market value. If you’re a homebuyer looking for a great deal on Chicago’s North Shore, look for properties where the homeowners are motivated. One indicator of motivation is market time … how long the property has been for sale. Another sign of motivation is by comparing current list price to original list price (% PCH – OLP) and determining how much the price has declined. The greater the price deduction, the more the homeowners have settled into the realities of the market place. Usually long Market Time (MT) and big Price Changes go hand-in-hand … but not always since homeowners who unders... 11/18/2011

Evanston Homes Sold in October 2011 Last month, 36 Evanston homeowners sold their homes. 4 homes sold were Foreclosures. 6 homes sold were Short Sales. Currently, 254 homes are for sale. 25 homes have a pending contract. Based on last month’s sales, it will take 7 months to sell current inventory. Following is a sampling of homes sold in Evanston.   Data provided by the Midwest Real Estate LLC (MRED) multiple listing service and includes properties listed and sold by various participants in the MLS. Data supplied does not reflect all market activity in the area. Extraordinary value Houses that sell faster offer extraordinary value. Houses that offer extraordinary value are priced correctly at the get-go and show like a model home. If you want to sell your home quickly, you must offer ex... 11/17/2011

Housing in Evanston is constantly in flux.  Prices go up and down, so it's difficult to tell exactly what kind of buying power you have any given month of the year.  So here's a nice sampling of what you can purchase in Evanston Real Estate in a single-family home for between $400,000 and $500,000.  There are currently 37 properties in that price range.  This is a home at 1705 Harrison, Evanston, IL.  3 Bedrooms, 1.1 baths currently listed for $409,000.  It has central air, a newer roof, it's close to the Metra, the EL, St. Athanasius, Central street and Northwestern. It's currently listed with Catherine Leonard of Coldwell Banker.  (And yes, you can repaint it a different colour!). This is a home at 713 Custer, Evanston, IL.  4 Bedrooms, 2.1 baths it's a full renovation of a victorian ... 11/09/2011

For those moms and dads who are wondering when the official time for the City of Evanston's trick or treating is... the city's website lists the official date/time frame as Monday October 31st, from 4:00 - 7:00 p.m. So send the little ones (and some of the big ones) out in their costumes, door-to-door, to "ahem" collect for the good cause (hey, those dentists still need clients ... fluoride is quickly putting them out of business).  Make sure to check their "take" when they come home to make sure everything is safe.  Personally, I think that any snickers bars are unsafe, and I have to confiscate those. (yes, all of them... and those twizzlers aren't lookin' too safe, either). Additionally, Evanston is sponsoring a Halloween Skate at the Robert Crown Center's studio rink (1701 Main) from... 10/30/2011

Cherry Picker Investments handles foreclosures of all sizes, but most of them are not multi-million dollar foreclosures because the majority of the Illinois housing market is under $1mm in price tag.  Nonetheless, multi-million dollar foreclosures do happen and this one is coming up in Evanston, IL. 925 Edgemere is a Spanish-style residence located in Southeast Evanston, on a small street with approximately 16 residences.  The house was built in 2008, with five bedrooms, seven bathrooms, an outdoor pool and lakefront access totalling 11,000 square feet.  The property was previously listed for $9 million; the price was lowered last year to $7.9 million. Next month the house will go to auction at the Cook County Sheriff's sale. No one knows for sure just what the house will sell for, but... 07/26/2011

    If you can't do it right,... well!  You know the rest,....   Check out this really cool video by   Mike Tompkins       Anyone who follows my blog posts, has stumbled upon one or two that have an Adele video embedded.  I love Adele.  She has the most amazing, strong, beautiful voice and just nails every note in a musically large range.  I have heard many others try to sing her songs, but.... well.... how do I say this nicely,.... they just cannot do them justice.  Okay, after an entire evening of Karaoke, I can honestly say they murder them!      So, imagine my surprise when catching up on some of my subscriptions here in the Rain, when I stumbled upon a blog post with someone (other than Adele) singing Rollin' in the deep.  Now, for just a slight moment I hesitated to click on that... 07/21/2011

Hey, buddy, can you spare a dime? If you can spare more than a dime, take a look at the kind of elite residential properties your money can buy in Evanston. La crème de la crème Is money no object? Then one of these spectacular homes for sale in June 2011 can be yours.     Data provided by the Midwest Real Estate LLC (MRED) multiple listing service and includes properties listed and sold by various participants in the MLS. Data supplied does not reflect all market activity in the area.   Currently, 40 luxury-priced homes are available for purchase. Apart from offering exceptional homes in outstanding surroundings, the top reason Evanston is so popular comes down to: Nearness to commuter rail lines Proximity to the lake Top-rated school systems Throwing good money after better Housing st... 07/19/2011

Some of you may know that we had a heck of a storm pass through the Evanston area yesterday morning. It roared through here around 8:00 in the morning, and a mere fifteen-twenty minutes later was simply a memory.  But it left over 170 trees, or large branches down in Evanston, and hundreds of thousands of Chicago-area residents without power, and/or cable.  In my case, it left me without Comcast which handles my Cable television, broadband and telephone. But I'm more fortunate than others, as we had no loss of trees, no damage to the house, no water in the basement, and we still have electricity.  As I write this there are still close to 100,000 Commonwealth Edison customers still without power, in hot and steamy condition. Just to give you an idea of the power of this short-lived storm... 07/12/2011

For those of you unfamiliar with our Evanston 4th of July activities, we have a fun time. It's homegrown, homespun, and enjoyable. Family sports events will be held at Elks Park Lincolnwood school and Willard School as well as the Robert Crown center from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. on the forth as well as 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Fleetwood-Jourdain Center. In addition the finals of the citywide tennis tournament will be help from 8:00 in the morning through 4:00 in the afternoon at Ackerman Park on Central Street @ McDaniel.  The weather promises to be perfect! The centerpiece of the Evanston fourth of July festivities is the Parade wich begins on Central Street (starting at the west end of Central near Prospect and Cowper, where all the floats will be gathering).  The parade begins ... 07/03/2011

You earned it. You bought it. You loved it. Now you want to sell it. Your house in Evanston, that is. Nothing can stop you if this is your must-have goal. You cannot test the market or dip your toes in the water. You have to go full throttle and pull out all stops to make your dream become a reality. Otherwise, you’ll just be spinning your wheels. Listing your house for sale isn’t the same as selling your house If you own a house in Evanston, consider yourself fortunate to live in such a vibrant and popular community. It may be ‘cooler by the lake’, but it’s still a hot real estate market. Evanston won’t ever go out of style. During the last 30 days, these luxury Evanston houses were sold to the highest bidder.   Data provided by the Midwest Real Estate LLC (MRED) multiple listing servi... 06/28/2011

There are a handful of those on Active Rain, who have suggested (both politely and less-so) that I am not PRO Stager, simply because I do not recommend that each and every listing I carry should have the benefit of a professional stager. And there are those who've poo-poohed (it's a word, really) the efforts of a lowly Realtor to effectively substitute their suggestions of "this-should-go-there" and "you need to remove that". While I, admittedly, am not an advocate of staging each and every listing, simply from a financial standpoint, I am an advocate of professional staging. We Realtors are only capable of doing "so much", and after that, better to leave it to those who have inventory and know-how.  In this post, I'm showing you the before and afters of one of my current listings. The ... 05/12/2011

I have had my blogging umbrella up the last few days but promise to get wet with knowledge again real soon.  Now as busy as I have been the past few days I needed to take a few moments out to wish our beloved Alan May a very Happy Birthday.  Since I don’t have time to serenade him myself we will let Sir Paul do the job.  Have a great day Alan, and I hope to see you at the Expo in a few hours.     04/06/2011

Evanston condos $100,000 - $200,000 It's been a little while since I've done one of these, so I thought it might be appropriate to refresh it. So let's take a little mini-tour and see what's available to you if you have $100,000 - $200,000 to spend, here in the fine city of Evanston, Illinois. Here is a lovely condo at 136 Clyde, #3N, Evanston, IL, currently listed for $100,000 even, with Andre Nugyen of @properties. It's a 2 bedroom, 1 bath,on the top floor of a building that was gut-rehabbed.  It's got a soft-loft feel, with exposed brick, hardwood flooring, Italian kitchen cabinets, stainless steel appliances, Grohe fixtures, an in-unit washer and dryer.  Only two blocks to the "EL" (for those non-Chicago natives, that's our local commuter train system... short for "Elevated").  And ... 03/23/2011

The weather is finally breaking and it’s time to be out and about. If you find yourself in Evanston, IL here are a couple of things to do:Saturday, March 19th from 8 a.m to 11 a.m.Women out Walking (WOW)This is a 12 week walking and health campaign.The benefits of even a small amounts of walking are amazing and ladies you know that bikini season is almost here. The Program is open to women of all ages and fitness levels. Each participant will receive a walkers journal, pedometer and a WOW-t Shirt. And what could be better than a walk around the Chicago Northshore on a beautiful spring day. So grab your girlfriends, kick-off is at The Evanston Township High School Auditorium, 1600 Dodge Avenue. (enter from the Dodge Ave. parking lot.)Saturday, March 26th from Noon to 2:00 p.m.Community R... 03/18/2011

As much as I enjoy the winters in Chicago (and I don't!), what I enjoy less is "pothole" season. Soon after the first snows and freezing weather, these giant car-eaters in our streets appear.  Those of you who live in warm climates can't relate, so allow me to explain the process. If there's any crack in the roadway, possibly due to overheating and the expansion and contraction process... water finds it's way into those cracks that are created. Once the water gets down there, and it freezes, it causes sections of roadway to "heave" (or push upward). Then, when it snows, and the plows come by, the plow blade catches the edge of that heaving and lifts giant chunks of roadway (which the plows then deposit as obstacles in the roadway for slalom racing with your car) leaving huge holes in t... 02/11/2011