Wrigleyville Home Stand

Sheffield & Waveland 

The Cubs are back in the Wrigleyville neighborhood of Chicago this weekend to take a swing (haha) at baseball immortality. My condo is a few blocks away from the field and I'm looking forward to being 'present in the moment,' if only from afar (note the 'Bleachers' center field entrance above). Ticket prices are ridiculous so the game will most likely be broadcasted via old school radio waves for me. That's cool. Really cool.





Geno Petro | CHICAGO REALTOR®

@genopetro

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He's Back! (in historic Oak Park)

"I'm shakin' the dust of this crummy little town off my feet and I'm gonna see the world."

GEORGE BAILEY in It's A Wonderful Life

I was strolling along a side street in Oak Park this morning when I came upon a yard sign with...'the name.' I felt a twinge of contempt for my Banker and sensed a sudden urge to leap from a bridge. Then not. (As everybody already knows, I can't swim.) From the corner of my eye I thought I caught a glimpse of Clarence but when I turned for a closer look, he had vanished... into angel dust. I heard church bells ringing in the distance. My client was due to arrive at any moment. I looked up to the sky and waited for the snow to begin falling. Post-World War II Bedford Falls at Christmas time and early April in Chicago during any era have at least that much in common.

The Frank Capra (uncolorized cut) sidewalk I stood on was circa 1940s Midwest personified. I framed the above posted yard sign, snapped my ironic shot, and decided to hug my wife when I got home this evening. After all, she "could have married Sam Wainright, or anyone else in town..." and she's a lot hotter than Donna Reed ever was.

I guess what I'm trying to indirectly say, without stating the real estate obvious, is that Oak Park, Illinois, is one of the most beautiful towns anywhere in the Midwest. It's a Chicago bedroom burg where Prairie style meets Mission meets Victorian architecture. It's a fusion of the Past and the Now. It's a town where, in the year 2009, a fellow named George Bailey is actually running for office. And there, my friends, is at least one happy ending just waiting to happen--at least the way this Chicago realtor sees it.

Geno Petro

Another Chicago Foreclosure

I'm coming clean. Two years ago I didn't even know what a Short Sale was--- not entirely. I'd heard tell of the horror stories, of course, but never had the opportunity (and yes, it is an opportunity for someone) to experience an American Dream gone sour, up close and personal. And just so you know, a Realtor never really understands this whole painful process---Pre-Foreclosure, Short Sale, Auction, and finally, full blown REO {Real Estate Owned} Foreclosure---until forced to jump through the Seller's and Lender's hoops at least a half dozen times for free. In the Chicago Real Estate market, I just never found this to be much of an issue (or a market). That is, not until lately.

Lately, I've been showing Short Sales and Foreclosures practically on a daily basis--several times a week, to be sure. And while still a relatively small percentage of the single family and condo inventory compared to the rest of the country, their numbers have clearly increased and their presence can be spotted in every Chicago neighborhood (note the stickers on the front door). The least expensive one I'm involved with now is listed at $58,900. The most expensive, $3,550,000. A handful are beautiful. Most are not. Each is heart breaking in its own way.

I work exclusively with Buyers in this expanding Chicago Real Estate market (and have no interest to get involved on the List side other than to negotiate Offers) and have acquired a keen eye and a keener ear in the process these past few years---clues dropped by the Bank or Listing Agent to help get the deal done in a relatively timely fashion. By timely I mean less than 6 months. Oh yeah, I said months, although REO properties (Bank Owned) are almost always faster to the Closing table than actual Short Sales.

This opportunity is the hidden beauty of the internet and high Google (and Yahoo) page ranking and positioning. The property 'Inquiries' and 'Requests to Show' come into ChicagoHomeEstates.com on a daily basis. I consider our Chicago (and Northern Illinois) MLS Search Engine to be the best in the city and I encourage my clients to both Register and experiment. I instruct them how to look on their own, keeping me in their house hunting loop while I search the inventory as well.

And because of this effort I've lately found myself in neighborhoods I never would have imagined a few short years ago. (You mean there are actually paved streets west of Western Avenue? Don't the houses have cacti in their front yards? Isn't the Grand Canyon somewhere off of Grand Avenue and the M streets--Menard, Mobile, Monitor, etc...?) I took the above photo in Addison/Dunning this evening as my clients and I toured the shut down, evicted property with a high powered flashlight. Note to self: keep a bag of surgical face masks handy. The mold spore count was in the trillions. The Asking Price: $152,000. Not one of the prettier ones I walked through lately.

Still, we are mulling over an Offer. Hey, throw it against the wall. Who knows?...maybe it will stick to the mold. I'm telling you...heart breaking.

Geno Petro