Real Estate info- buying, selling and everything in between

Swansea IL (Wolf Branch) Real Estate Market update  April & May 2009

Swansea continues to be consistent in closed home sales.  May had 7 homes close which is the same number as January.  All things considered things look good for the Wolf Branch school district.

May 2009

Closed homes: 7

Re-sale:  6 with an average sales price of $164,750 and market time of 86 days

New Construction: 1 with a sales price of $423,577 and 47 days on market.

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April 2009

Closed homes: 5

Re-Sale: 4 with an average sales price of $173,725 and market time of 132

New Construction: 1 with a sales price of $487,295 and 77 days on market.

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Year to date totals for Swansea IL Wolf Branch School District:

O'Fallon IL May 2009 Real Estate Market Update

May 2009 had 33 homes close as opposed to only 13 back in January so moving in the right direction.  Currently there are 305 homes available in all price ranges.  More good news: 52 homes are currently under contract.

Of the 30 homes that closed in May 2009:

29 were pre-owned and had an average sales price of $196,320 with an average market time of 189 days.

1 was New Construction and had a sales price of $254,000.

The rest of the story:  

Buyers who qualify for the $8,000 tax credit previously had to wait until after filing a tax return to see any of the money.  With the new rules in place FHA approved lenders could/might/maybe have the ability to make the funds available at the closing table thru short term bridge loans. 

EDIT 5/14/2009:

The Tax Credit CANNOT BE USED AS DOWN PAYMENT. It is a LOAN against the tax credt. 

Final details of the program should be available shortly.  

And... GOOD LUCK to the O'Fallon High School girls track team this Friday at sectionals!

The $8,000 first time home buyer tax credit has/might/maybe just been approved to be used towards a down payment.  Exact details on how this will be implemented are still a bit vague so stay tuned!

O'Fallon IL currently has 271 homes for sale in a wide variety of price ranges and locations.  Inventory is high, prices are reasonable and interest rates are still holding around 5% so now is a fantastic time to buy.  Throw in the $8,000 first time home buyer tax credit and things look good. 

April turned out to be a very strong month (all things considered) with a total of 26 homes closing, this compares to 23 homes last month.

Of the 26, 22 were Re-Sale homes with an average sales price of $156,573 and average days on the market of 110.

4 of the 26 were new construction. Those had an average sales price of $334,486 with an average market time of 162 days.

More good news: there are 59 homes under contract as of today so the coming months should be stronger yet! Below are some graphs that show comparisons from year to year and month to month.

 Stimulus money headed this way!

The Metro East will be receiving more money from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.  The bulk of this new money will be used for water control and flood prevention.  This leads us to what O'Fallon is considering regarding drainage improvements for storm water.  Under the proposed plan residents will pay a flat fee bases on the size of the area they occupy. Not  a bad idea at about $4.00 a month.  The other side of this is that the retailers (auto dealers, box stores) could be hit very hard as they cover substantially more ground than your average home in O'Fallon.  That said something clearly needs to be done.  For a city as progressive as O'Fallon, to have areas of town without any sort of storm drainage (curbs, gutters) is unacceptable.  We shall see what transpires over the coming weeks.  And...

Real Estate activity is picking up; April numbers will be out soon!

Click below for our May newsletter!

In March the guidelines were released that explained in detail what President Obama's initiative means to folks who need the assistance.

This program is designed to help homeowners stay in their home through refinancing or loan modifications as opposed to being forced into a short sale situation or worse...foreclosure.

How to qualify:

You need to owe between 80%-105% of your mortgage.

Your loan must be backed by Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae, many people have no idea.  If you don't you can 1-800-7FANNIE or 1-800-FREDDIE to find out.

You must have a conforming loan.  This can mean different things around the country but around here it means a loan under  $417,000

for full details visit www.makinghomeaffordable.gov

Email us for a list of approved local lenders to help get you rolling. 

For the most current local Real Estate Info for the  O'Fallon IL area visit us at

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Got your attention?

Much has been written and discussed about this issue. For that reason I shall keep this short and sweet.

As most of you know property/Real Estate taxes in O'Fallon IL (actually all of  St. Clair County IL) are a bit convoluted.  We constantly get email and phone calls with questions requesting assistance in appealing property taxes.  So let's take a look first at why/if you might have a legitimate appeal. Below are the two most common issues we have been seeing.

•1.)    Is the assessor's value higher than the actual market value of your home?  Or, does the county think your home is worth more than you could sell it for?  If you don't know just ask here.

•2.)    Is the assessed value higher than those of similar homes in the neighborhood or area?  Or, is your neighbor 3 doors down with the exact same house paying more/ less than you?  Yes, this does in fact happen.  Once again if you don't know just ask here.

Next we will look into what to do if the answer to either one of the above questions happens to be YES. 

DON'T FORGET TO VOTE TOMORROW APRIL 7!

First quarter Real Estate Market Conditions Update for O'Fallon IL 2009.

50 homes closed in the first quarter of 2009 in O'Fallon IL. Of these 41 were pre-owned or re-sale homes and 9 of them were new construction.

Re-sale (41) homes averaged a $159,468 sales price and were on the market an average of 122 days. New Construction (9) homes had an average sales price of $239,412 and were on the market an average of 153 days.

A look back over the last 4 years paints the picture:

The good news:

There is a fantastic inventory (266) of homes in all price ranges.  Interest rates are at historic lows, and home prices are very competitive.  Home loan applications are up and the prime months are right around the corner.     

So after a few weeks of driving by my curiosity got the better of me. What is this giant wooden horse and who is the guy on the ladder with a chainsaw? After driving by for days my curiosity got the better of me and I stopped. It seems Art is making a return to downtown O’Fallon IL ! David Perez is an artist (among other things) who has recently moved back here from Mississippi. His work is truly amazing and his ability to see a piece prior to carving is hard to grasp. As we spoke he pointed to a block of wood and explained what it looked like and what it was going to become. I of course nodded but truth be told it just looked like a block of wood to me. However, I have no doubts about his ability after seeing some finished product.

There is actually a bit of history in his carving as well. All the wood he is using was toppled during Hurricane Katrina; instead of it going to waste he has hauled it up here to work with. His influences range from Polynesian, Caribbean, to just whimsical. So stop driving by. Maybe purchase a piece or two while you are there. You will not be disappointed. You can find Dave and his creations next door to Full Circle Auto (the Old All Feeds Location) his hope is to fill that space with unique sculpture for display and or sale.

As you may have noticed there is no direct Real Estate tie in here so how about a new listing?

Just listed in O’Fallon IL!

The Holdens | RE/MAX Preferred | 618-531-4887 1204 Nottinghill Drive, O'fallon, IL   4BR/3.5BA Single Family House   offered at $262,900 Year Built 2005 Sq Footage 3,186 Bedrooms 4 Bathrooms 3 full, 1 partial Floors 2 Parking Unspecified Lot Size Unspecified HOA/Maint $0 per month DESCRIPTION IMMPECCABLY MAINTAINED GEM IN O'FALLON IL ON LARGE CORNER LOT. PRIVACY FENCE, 12 X 14 DECK, CONCRETE BORDERS AROUND LANDSCAPING BEDS, GREAT FAMILY ROOM WITH BAY WINDOW OPENS TO BRIGHT GOURMET KITCHEN AND BREAKFAST AREA. MASTER SUITE OFFERS VAULTED CEILING, LUXURY BATH WITH WHIRLPOOL TUB, SEPARATE SHOWER, & DUAL SINK VANITY. FANTASTIC BRIGHT FINISHED SPACE IN LOWER LEVEL WITH FRIESE CARPET BOASTS GAME ROOM,BATH AND OFFICE WITH EGRESS WINDOW. CARPETS & DUCTS JUST CLEANED. UPGRADED LIGHT FIXTURES/APPLIANCES. SEC.SYS. JUST MOVE IN & ENJOY! MINUTES TO SCOTT AFB!   see additional photos below PROPERTY FEATURES Central A/C Central heat Fireplace High/Vaulted ceiling Walk-in closet Family room Living room Bonus/Rec room Office/Den Dining room Breakfast nook Dishwasher Microwave Basement Laundry area - inside Balcony, Deck, or Patio Yard   ADDITIONAL PHOTOS Photo 1 Photo 2 Photo 3 Photo 4 Photo 5 Photo 6 Contact info:   The Holdens RE/MAX Preferred 618-531-4887 For sale by agent/broker Equal Opportunity Housing Posted: Mar 26, 2009, 5:34pm PDT