January 9th, 2012 by Sari Levy
2011 Elmhurst Real Estate Market
Elmhurst Condominium Market
In 2011, Elmhurst Condo sales were down drastically over 2010 with nearly $25mm dollar in volume sold in 2010 reduced to just over $11mm in condo sales in 2011. In 2011, just 50 condo and townhome units sold in Elmhurst, compared to 108 in 2010. In 2010, distressed condo sales (short sales or foreclosures) accounted for about 20% of the sales in Elmhurst which were at 15% in 2011.
On average a condo stays on the market for 240 days and as of January 1, 2012 there are about 18 months of inventory on the Elmhurst condo market.
Elmhurst Single Family Homes
The Elmhurst single family home market faired much better in Elmhurst in 2011 than the condo market did. In 2011 there was $155mm of home sales up over the 2010 volume of $142 mm. A total of 383 homes were sold in 2011, with fewer than 15% of the sales being distressed, in 2010 there were 343 homes sold in Elmhurst with 20% of the sales being distressed, so an increase in homes sold and a decrease in distressed sales, which is quite a bit different than Chicago as a whole.
2012
My expectation for the 2012 real estate market in Elmhurst is that there will be an increase in the sale of distressed properties along with an increase in total number of homes sold. Already the phone is ringing with showing requests and buyers ready to get out and start looking. March is historically the month where the most home inventory hits the market in Elmhurst.
Posted in Home Buying, Home Selling, Market Insights | No Comments »
November 3rd, 2011 by Sari Levy
When you are purchasing a home, it is important to understand the economics of the home and property taxes are a huge factor in the equation. So, just how do you figure out what your taxes will be?
It is not a good idea to simply look at what the current owner is paying because there are many variables. In Chicago, we typically tell our clients to expect a tax bill at about 1.5% of the purchase price. In Du Page County, the range is from about 1% in Oak Brook all the way up to nearly 3% in Glendale Heights. Oak Brook is home to many large corporations and of course Oak Brook mall which helps keep property taxes low.
So, how did we come up with the 1-3% range? Below is the formula used in Du Page County to calculate property tax.
Du Page County Tax Calculation
- A home’s fair market value: $5000,000 – Fair Market Value is defined as the amount a buyer would be willing to pay for the property.
- Tax assessor’s adjustment: $500,000 x 33% = Equalized Asessed Value – In Du Page county, the assessor uses of 1/3 of a homes fair market value in determining DuPage County property taxes.
- Equalized assessed value: $165,000 – This is the adjusted fair market value of your property used for property tax calculation purposes.
- Property tax rate: 5% **Rates vary by city as indicated in the table below – 5% used as a simplification for example.
- Property tax calculation: $165,000 x .05 - Equalized assessed value multiplied by a property tax rate of 5% .
- Total property tax : $8,250
Du Page County Real Estate Property Tax Table
| Rank |
City |
Rate |
As % of purchase price |
| 16 |
Addison |
6.3238 |
2.11 |
| 4 |
Aurora |
7.9642 |
2.65 |
| 7 |
Bartlett |
7.6127 |
2.54 |
| 9 |
Bensenville |
7.2293 |
2.41 |
| 18 |
Bloomingdale |
6.1882 |
2.06 |
| 8 |
Bolingbrook |
7.4761 |
2.49 |
| 32 |
Burr Ridge |
4.1498 |
1.38 |
| 5 |
Carol Stream |
7.7741 |
2.59 |
| 29 |
Clarendon Hills |
4.9827 |
1.66 |
| 26 |
Darien |
5.5233 |
1.84 |
| 28 |
Downers Grove |
5.0111 |
1.67 |
| 10 |
Elk Grove Village |
7.0656 |
2.36 |
| 27 |
Elmhurst |
5.4604 |
1.82 |
| 15 |
Glen Ellyn |
6.4316 |
2.14 |
| 1 |
Glendale Heights |
8.7689 |
2.92 |
| 2 |
Hanover Park |
8.1067 |
2.70 |
| 31 |
Hinsdale |
4.4090 |
1.47 |
| 22 |
Itasca |
5.9902 |
2.00 |
| 13 |
Lisle |
6.5662 |
2.19 |
| 12 |
Lombard |
6.6908 |
2.23 |
| 24 |
Naperville |
5.8959 |
1.97 |
| 34 |
Oak Brook |
2.9139 |
0.97 |
| 30 |
Oak Brook Terrace |
4.6839 |
1.56 |
| 21 |
Roselle |
5.4484 |
1.82 |
| 20 |
Villa Park |
6.1923 |
2.06 |
| 19 |
Warrenville |
6.1354 |
2.05 |
| 14 |
Wayne |
6.5144 |
2.17 |
| 3 |
West Chicago |
8.0839 |
2.69 |
| 25 |
Westmont |
5.5351 |
1.85 |
| 17 |
Wheaton |
6.1888 |
2.06 |
| 33 |
Willowbrook |
4.0133 |
1.34 |
| 10 |
Winfield |
6.8270 |
2.28 |
| 23 |
Wood Dale |
5.9244 |
1.97 |
| 6 |
Woodridge |
7.6455 |
2.55 |
In communities where there are more than one township, the higher of the tax rates is shown in the table above.
Posted in Home Buying, Home Ownership Costs, Tax | No Comments »
October 24th, 2011 by Sari Levy
Looking to live in Utopia? Then you might want to check out the Hamptons of Hinsdale. Located near the intersection of 59th and Washington Streets in Hinsdale, the Hamptons plans to offer over 100 luxury units, both townhomes and condos set in a serene park like location with ponds and open space. The infrastructure and site improvement work is virtually complete. The first four-unit town home building is complete (pictured below) and a 23-unit condominium building is also under construction. Foundation work and underground garages have been completed for two additional condominium buildings.
Background
In 2002, Wextrust Development purchased the property for $18 million. Wextrust planned to construct 12 buildings on the Hinsdale site. In the original plan, seven buildings would contain 23 luxury townhomes and five larger structures would house 93 condominium apartments. Prices were to range from $339,000 to $697,900 for the condos and $695,000 to $940,000 for the townhouses. But work on the project halted that year when Wextrust CEO and COO were indicted by a federal grand jury for involvement in a $255 million Ponzi scheme.
After sitting on the market for sometime, The Hamptons was purchased by a subsidiary of Oak Brook-based Inland Opportunity earlier this year from Citizen’s Financial Bank. According to The Hamptons website, The Hamptons is “Well-funded, carefully planned and on schedule for completion in the near future.” Next Generation Development out of Wheaton will handle construction, sales and marketing.” The Hamptons sales trailer is now on-site along Grant Street, well as the rear entry near Washington & Kennedy.
Located on a 12.5 acre parcel of land, The Hamptons offers 26 Villa Townhomes and 93 Condominiums set among landscaped grounds, featuring shingle-style architecture, open space with gazebos and a tranquil pond. The Hamptons is situated in the highly desirable Elementary school district 181 and in Hinsdale Central High School District.
Marketed as “affordable, intelligent living”, there are four town home designs that span 2,473 to 2,817 square feet and 9 condo floor plans are available, ranging from 1,262 to2,239 square feet. In a small change from the original plan there will be four condo buildings and six villa buildings. Below is a table showing the units being offered with links to more information for the units available now.
| Unit |
Sq. Ft. |
Beds |
Baths |
Starting Price |
Type |
| Biltmore |
1,262 |
1 |
1.5 |
$290,000 |
Condo |
| Chelsea |
1,466 |
2 |
2 |
$355,000 |
Condo |
| Rushfield |
1,673 |
2 |
2 |
$390,000 |
Condo |
| Felsted |
1,702 |
2 |
2 |
$425,000 |
Condo |
| Lennox |
1,740 |
2 |
2.5 |
$440,000 |
Condo |
| Kelmscott |
1,807 |
2 |
2.5 |
$485,000 |
Condo |
| Oxford |
1,833 |
2 |
2.5 |
$505,000 |
Condo |
| Shelbourne |
2,000 |
2 |
2.5 |
$530,000 |
Condo |
| Wentworth |
2,239 |
2 |
2.5 |
$550,000 |
Condo |
| Broadmoor |
2,473 |
2 |
2.5 |
$598,000 |
T/home |
| Cotswold |
2,647 |
3 |
2.5 |
$647,000 |
T/home |
| Prescott |
2,689 |
3 |
2.5 |
$658,000 |
T/home |
| Nantucket |
2,818 |
2 |
2.5 |
$698,000 |
T/home |
The grand opening took place the weekend of September 9th. There are two units listed for sale in the MLS as available now, the Broadmoor and the Cotswold. Both are listed substanially higher than the starting prices listed on the table above -with the Broadmoor being listed at $689,900, and the Cotswold for $697,000. Also, not in the MLS but listed as available on the Hamptons site is the Prescott for $722,000. As of October 20, 2011, one unit has sold, and that was for a Prescott unit back in 2008 for $1,036,058. Bet that guy is anxious for some neighbors who are going to pay about 30% less than he did. Ouch.
Hinsdale Condo Market Conditions
Currently, there are a total of 68 units on the market in all of Hinsdale priced from $60k to $1mm. In the last 12 months, in the Hinsdale Market, 16 condo/townhome units have sold ranging in price from $142,500 – $950,000. Simple math indicates that there is already a 4 1/4 years supply of inventory. With The Hamptons adding an additional 112 units, the time triples. It will be very interesting to see what sort of demand the Hamptons is able to create.
Posted in Condos/Townhomes, Hinsdale, Home Buying, Way Cool | No Comments »
October 3rd, 2011 by Sari Levy
Comparing the one year period of time ending on September 24, 2011 and the same period of time the prior year, the volume of sales has been pretty consistent, with 52 sales of condos/townhomes in Elmhurst this year and 54 at the same time last year. Sales of distressed properties (foreclosures and short sales) have increased from 15% of all units sold to 21% of units sold.
Prices for condos and townhomes that sold this year range from $15,000 – $609,000 and last year at this time, the range was similar, but note the floor decreased dramatically from last years $55,000 – $ 615,000. There were three properties that sold under $55k this year.
The average price per square foot has decreased from $176 to $158, even though the mix of properties sold were built in 2000 or later went from 30% of the units sold to 46% of the units sold.
So what can you get for under $225k in the Elmhurst condo market? Located at 136 N Haven is a vintage one bedroom, one bath 828 square foot condo located a short walk from the train listed at $219k. For $215,000 you can get a 1,486 square foot new construction 2 bed, 2 bath condo and it comes with heated garage space located in the Essex Place condos which are located just a stones’ throw from the new Elmhurst Hospital campus at 175 Brush Hill.
For the big spenders who like the biggest and brightest of everything, there are six new construction townhomes located on First Avenue in Elmhurst within walking distance to downtown and the train. Several models with three bedrooms and 3 ½ baths are for sale priced between $565k and $625k. Check out 359 W First to see the most expensive townhome option available in Elmhurst.
Overall Elmhurst Market Conditions
As of September 1, there was about an 18 month supply of condo inventory on the market, which is the lowest it’s been in the last 2 years at this time. The time a condo/townhome stays on the market has remained consistent at about 200 days, though we’re moving into the slow selling season, which should present some buying opportunities as sellers compete for fewer buyers.
Tags: elmhurst real estate market
Posted in Condos/Townhomes, Market Insights | No Comments »
September 26th, 2011 by Sari Levy
2011 has been a tumultuous year for home sellers, and here in Addison, there’s no exception; 57% of the properties sold were distressed sales -that almost a 10% increase over last year at this time. With nearly 60 % of sellers in trouble or already gone, prices are on the decline.
Between 1/1/11 and late August, 106 single family homes and 48 condo/town-homes have sold. At the same time in 2010, there were 127 single family and 38 condo sales. On homes where square footage data is included the average price per square foot on single family homes is $110, and around $80 on condos. That’s about a 10% decrease in single family and a whopping 50% decrease in last years condos over last year’s average square foot price of around $120 (condos and single family homes)!
The highest priced home to sell this year was $530k. The home was built in 2004, w/over 5900 Sq ft., 5 BR& 3 ½ baths. It was the only home in Addison to sell for over $500k in 2011, but it represents a tremendous value with its location, square footage, and amenities. There were 2 sales in 2010 of homes over $500k. Of the 175 single family homes for sale in Addison, 13 are priced above $500k.With only 3 buyers in this price range in the last year, you can see why it’s tough to sell homes at this price point.
On the other end of the spectrum, the lowest priced unit was a 1 bed/1 bath condo selling at $23,500 when a similar unit sold last year for $49,900. There are a ton of opportunities to own condos at prices far below $100k. In fact, there are decent single family homes available for around $150k. There are great new construction options as well at Armitage Pointe where you can have a home built on one of several available lots, or buy one of the builders models.
Tags: Addison, IL
Posted in Market Insights | No Comments »
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