February Housing Stats for Winnetka, Wilmette, Kenilworth & Glencoe - and the craziness continues!  What do I mean by that?  I have consistently shown month after month that listing your house for sale for too high a price will result in: a long wait to sell less money in the end It's really that simple.  February sales for Winnetka, Wilmette, Kenilworth and Glencoe are still going at an average of 76% of the original list price (almost idential to January.)  This number does not reflect one foreclosure and one short sale that I removed from the totals (which sold for 49% and 63% respectively.)  Days on market have been longer than it takes a baby elephant to come to term in the womb. Only four houses sold in under 1 week one sold in 6 weeks three sold in under three months and the rest... 03/01/2010

January home sales in Winnetka, Wilmette, Kenilworth, and Glencoe were not large, but it's January after all.  Everyone's waiting for the Super Bowl, right?  And since that happened last night . . . Well, here are the stats: Winnetka (9 sales) 509 Elder- listed at $775,000, sold for $550,000, 302 days on market, 71% of list price 1151 Laurel - listed $1,200,000, sold $862,500, 116 days on market, 72% of list price 900 Forest Glen - listed $1,395,000, sold $1.1M, 68 days on market, 72% of list price 625 Hill - listed $1,225,000, sold $1,125,000, 58 days on market, 92% of list price 1010 Mt. Pleasant - listed $2.2M, sold $1.5M, 464 days on market, 68% of list price 1144 Tower - listed $2,249,000, sold $1.6M, 215 days on market, 71% of list price 303 Woodley - listed $2,795.000, sold $1.9M... 02/08/2010

UPDATED 2022 NOAH'S ARK PET STORE Winnetka IL  Noah's Ark Pet Store in Winnetka is owned by Angie DeMars - and as far as animals go, she walks the walk.  Her pet store caters to all things animal, but she is a dedicated and passionate advocate for adoption and works closely with PAWS Chicago (Pets Are Worth Saving) a no-kill shelter.Angie grew up in Colorado and is a lifelong animal lover.  After graduating from college, she bought a one-way ticket to Chicago because she was intrigued by seeing it so often in movies and felt it would be a great place to live.  She went right to work at KPMG as a database manager and eventually got married and settled down in Winnetka. She adopted a pet from PAWS, a sickly Maltese named Mimi, and through the rigors of taking care of her dog, she became p... 01/31/2010

Buying a foreclosure - it's not a slam-dunk.                  Just a few years ago, foreclosures were almost unheard of in the North Shore communities of Winnekta, Wilmette, Kenilworth, Glencoe and Northfield.  Only far off Evanston had a few foreclosures that most agents from the North Shore never had any reason to deal with. We all know now that things have changed.  There are 4 total foreclosures in Winnetka, Wilmette, Kenilworth, Glencoe, and Northfield (and 33 short sales.)   Most buyers think that a great deal is in the offing - and it can be but nothing is certain when dealing with foreclosures. First of all, the bank now has control.  Different banks have different procedures, but usually  more paperwork is necessary.  As an example, all banks require a pre-approval letter and i... 01/18/2010

Steve Baird, president and CEO of Baird and Warner Real Estate, has been named to Inman News' 100 Most Influential Leaders in Real Estate.  Compiled annually, the list reflects the "best and brightest," who this past year have risen to the challenge posed by a battered economy and housing hardships. The list covers a broad group of individuals both directly and indirectly involved in real estate, including, brokers, government officials, journalists, consultants, and those in the financial services sector. As an agent for Baird & Warner's Winnetka office, I am very proud that Steve Baird's influence on real estate has resounded beyond Chicago.  This multi-generationally owned family business has been involved in Chicago real estate for 150 years and has 23 offices throughout the area.  ... 01/08/2010

December Closed Sales in Winnetka,Wilmete, Glencoe, Kenilworth, and Northfield   In December, sales were moderate in Wilmette, Glencoe, Northfield and Kenilworth while Winnetka had a big jump.  Here are the numbers: Winnetka - 19 Closed Sales Wilmette - 14 Closed Sales Glencoe - 11 Closed Sales Northfield - 6 Closed Sales Kenilworth - 2 Closed Sales   Graph of original price vs. final selling price for December:                                 Graph of Average Days on Market           01/04/2010

New Trier High School in Winnetka - To Renovate or Not?    A volatile subject sure to raise hackles in the coming 2 months is not whether New Trier needs a renovation, because most residents believe it does.  The issue is just how much renovation it needs and at what cost. One proposal early on called for the complete rebuild of the school with an accompanying price tag of $400 million which was denounced as too expensive and too intrusive to the community.  Other ideas called for enlarging the Northfield campus, rebuilding just the west side, or just continuing to make repairs as they were needed. What ultimatley has been proposed is replacing the:                     Cafeteria Gates Gymnasium Tech Arts Building Music/Performing Arts Building This work is estimated to take 2 1/2 years ... 12/14/2009

I was curious to see how much the tax credit would affect sales in Winnetka, Wilmette, Kenilworth and Glencoe.  As it applied to first time home buyers (or buyers who had not bought for three years) and with income restrictions I did not think it would have much of an impact. Basically, I was right, with the exception of Wilmette which posted 32 sales for the month of November. Here's how everything panned out for November closed sales: Winnetka 8 sales Total $ Volume:  $8,083,500 Median Price:  $871,250 Average Price:  $1,010,438   Wilmette 32 sales Total $ Volume:  $24,798,050 Median Price:  $620,000 Average Price:  $1,585,000   Kenilworth No sales   Glencoe 8 Sales Total Dollar Volume:  $6,023,471 Median Price:  $584,736 Average Price:  $752,934   Northfield 4 sales Total Dollar Volu... 12/09/2009

Native Prairie at Shelton Park in Glencoe, ILUpdated 2022A bit of native prairie is returning to Glencoe at Shelton Park near the corner of Green Bay Road and Harbor.  I was pleasantly surprised one morning while jogging through the park to see a new sign announcing this exciting development.  In a land where tallgrass prairies once ranged as far as the eye could see and as tall as a horse, this approximately 1/2 acre plot may not seem like much, but believe me, it is!It takes a long time and a lot of patience to establish a native prairie - prairie plants have extremely long roots that are fire and drought-resistant.  It may seem like the weeds have won the battle in the first 2-3 years, but ultimately the prairie plants will dominate and their dense root system will not allow weeds to... 12/07/2009

Winnetka's Annual Holiday Sale is this Sunday December 6.  Many shops throughout town participate in this event and offer storewide discounts of up to 20%.  The sale is always scheduled on the first Sunday after Thanksgiving and many stores offer treats as well.  Let's support our village by shopping locally! Here is a list of participating vendors: Hubbard Woods Creme de la Creme E Street Denim Hastens Beds Marigolds Material Possessions Mattie M Simon's Boutique West Elm All She Wrote Bleacher's Sports Ellen's on Elm Frances Heffernan/Frannie Grand Foods Gray Noah's Ark Pet Supply Rosemary Shugar S'Agaro Sunday Afternoon Gallery T. L. Fritts Sporting Goods The Book Stall Valentina Village Toy Shop Vose-Sanders Bootery East Elm Conney's Pharmacy Davis Miller Marion Michael Orrington Je... 12/04/2009

Updated 2022 Winnetka Historic Homes - Italianate Style Victorian homes were being constructed in this country between 1840-1890 and the most popular of them was the Italianate style.  Although an American original, they were generally inspired by Italian villas and farmhouses and could be as simple as a two-story home or an elaborate mansion.There are several features that distinguish this style but the most prominent is the elaborate cornice.  The eaves are deep-set with rows of brackets along the underside.  The homes are usually irregular in shape and stand two to three stories high or even higher.  Many of these homes have spacious porches. bay windows, and hipped roofs (where all sides are sloped.)  An original feature that has been lost on most of these homes is the cupola.The It... 12/03/2009

TOP TEN HOME IMPROVEMENTS THAT BENEFIT SELLERS   Getting top $$ for your home is the target of a real estate agent- and the best way to hit the center mark is to make sure your home is in the best conditon you can make it.  I always go through a seller's home to assess the minimum that should be done to achieve this goal and it does not have to be expensive or labor intensive. The home valuation company, HomeGain polled 1000 real estate agents to come up with a list of the most important, least expensive, and most value intensive improvements that sellers can do to prepare their home for the market.  Since they started the poll in 2000, the #1 task has been . . . decluttering the house.  How cheap is that?  Labor intensive, maybe, but the most important thing you can do is simply put th... 11/30/2009

It's been drilled into our heads:  LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION.  A desirable location can add real value while living on a busy street, across from commercial buildings or noisy areas can greatly decrease the value of your home.  But here's an interesting concept I came across:  your "Walkability" score, or your home's proximity to desired amenities such as coffee houses, grocery shopping, cafes, schools, parks, libraries, etc. A recent report, "Walking the Walk:  How Walkability Raises Home Values in U.S. Cities," was put together from transaction data from Zip Realty and scored on the basis of your home's nearby amenities.  The score ranges from 0 to 100 with 100 having the best score and anything over 70 indicating that it's possible to get around without a car.  The study was commiss... 11/29/2009

Today's Chicago Tribune (November 24, 2009) front page headline proclaims:  "Home Sales Surge in Area."  Is it true in Winnetka, Wilmette, Kenilworth, Glencoe and Northfield? Have prices plummeted as the article claims? Well, in a word, no.  And how much of this increase can be attributed to the First Time Home Buyer Credit.  Is real estate local?  First the numbers: OCTOBER 2009 Units Sold:  54 Average Market Time:  259 days Median Price:  $677,500 Average Price:  $917,573 Total Volume:  $49,548,952 OCTOBER 2008 Units Sold:  48 Average Market Time:  185 days Median Price:  $620,600 Average Price:  $884,253 Total Volume:  $42,444,125 OCTOBER 2007 Units Sold:  62 Market Time:  126 days Median Price:  $866,500 Average Price:  $1,233,568 Total Volume:  $74,481,238 OCTOBER 2006 Units Sold: ... 11/24/2009

The Schmidt-Burnham Log House - Winnetka, ILUPDATED 2022Winnetka's Original Log Home - the Schmidt-Burnham Log house is thought to be Winnetka's oldest home.  Some fine homes are still standing that were built as early as the 1890s, but this simple design was built by the earliest settlers in the vicinity.  This log house is slightly more sophisticated than the humble one-room log cabin and was intended to be permanent, having two or more rooms plus a second story. The logs were closely fitted with a complicated system of notching.  Sticks and stones were placed between the logs and covered with mud to help weatherize the home.  Interestingly, the windows and doors were cut out after the home was built!Finnish and Swedish immigrants originally introduced this simple construction style t... 11/16/2009

Winnetka, Wilmette, Kenilworth, Northfield October Home Sales - homes sales are down for the month of October compared to September and August.  But that's not unusual, given the usual end of the year slowdown.  Prices continue to dip and houses on the market for the longest period of time sustained the greatest loss.  But prices are just beginning to stabilize I think, or at least the decline has markedly slowed down. Winnetka - 12 total sales - Average Sale Price:  $1,318,750 1487 Tower, $480,000 sold price, 86 days on market, 84% of asking price 1010 Oak, $565,000 sold price, 420 days on market, 76% of asking 1146 Cherry, $680,000 sold price, 64 days on market, 91% of asking 206 Green Bay, $700,000 sold price, 872 days on market, 78% of asking 1025 Elm, $1,145,000 sold price, 153 day... 11/08/2009

After reading about the tragic death of a young folk singer in Canada from an attack by two coyotes, I am reminded that these wild animals should be treated with caution and never, ever fed.  These amazing animals have been thriving in our urban/suburban environement.  Because they look like the famiily dog, well-meaning people can sometimes forget that coyotes need to be left to fend for themselves.  This is for their protection as well as ours. Experts say this this type of attack is extremely rare.  In order to keep facts in perspective, there are 4.7 million  dog bites every year - with 1000 people every day needing treatment in emergency rooms.  Meanwhile, some other statistics about coyotes: about 1 person per year is bitten by a coyote in California between 1993-1997 seven people... 10/31/2009

Every buyer I have ever worked with has asked me to explain the Cook County system of property tax assessment.  Explain?  How could I adequately do this when the Civic Federation  says this on their blog: "The Cook County property tax system is so complex that it is impossible to predict exactly how the new tax rates will affect an individual property owner’s bill." And in today's Chicago Tribune, in an excellent article by Eric Zorn, he writes: "Just about everything having to do with property taxes is convoluted and every explanation is filled with jargon, acronyms and more math than most of us are used to doing." But of course, I try to explain it - as I will again now.  Especially in light of the fact that Winnetka, Wilmette, Kenilworth and other North Shore communities have seen dr... 10/30/2009

New Trier High School in Winnetka is hoping that the school board will vote to set a referendum for next February to allow voters to decide on going ahead with plans to refurbish portions of the campus.  The estimated cost of renovations is $185 million which translates into approximately $300 additional in residents' tax bills.  Earlier this year the district nixed more expensive plans, including a $400 million rebuild that voters said was too expensive. If approved the project would commence in the summer of 2010 and be completed in two years.  The school has not had a proper renovation in decades and the swelling population has only magnified the issues.  The plan includes state-of-the-art renovations such as 40 new classrooms, new spaces for science, performing arts, visual arts, p... 10/22/2009

Summer wasn't so hot.  Fall has been cloudy and damp.  But then today happened - warmer temperatures and the sunshine just made the fall colors sparkle like rubies and garnets. Here's my take on today:   10/19/2009