First-time buyers are skipping the starter home and saving for the big house in the suburbs - MarketWatch

forget the starter home. Today’s first-time buyers in DOWNERS GROVE  want a place they’ll live in for a long time — possibly even into retirement. And this ideal home is most likely in the suburbs.

That’s according to a new Bank of America poll of more than 1,000 adults 18 and older who would like to buy a home in the future.

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Neal Paskvan is a full time Realtor specializing in Downers grove, Darien,Woodridge, Westmont and Du page county Real Estate

show your A/C SOME love this week

Due to the wet weather this spring in Chicagoland  the littlecottonwood “Snowflakes” fell early!

 

Cottonwood   Clogs A/C  COILS

Think about it for a moment… During the peak of cottonwood season, fuzzies are flying around your neighbor hood. This is when they attack your air conditioner. No they don’t use magic, or contain some sort of chemical agent. Instead, they are sucked into your condenser coil, and the result is reduced air flow across the coil. This will first cause your air conditioner to loose some of its energy efficiency. Although this is a problem, losing a little efficiency will only cost you pennies, but the bigger problem of an over heated compressor can cost hundreds.
Picture this, its 100 degrees outside and your cottonwood seed packed coil can’t cool itself off. Do you see the problem here? Those cute little fuzzies we chase around as kids just burnt out your compressor! Now you have to call up for an emergency service call in the high heat of summer.

From what the experts' tell me, the simple solution is to just fully hose down the grill work around your A/C unit so it can do it’s job!

Click here to see a Video on how it's done

“Neal Paskvan is a Real Estate Agent in Downers Grove with Baird and Warner” Neal Paskvan is a full time Realtor specializing in Downers grove, Darien,Woodridge, Westmont and Du page county Real Estate

3 reasons 20-somethings should invest in real estate - Business Insider

Investing in real estate can be a good way to diversify your portfolio. And it can be particularly appealing to 20-somethings who are comfortable taking risks and who want to earn bigger returns.

If you’re in your 20s and you’ve toyed with the idea of becoming a landlord or putting money into a real estate investment trust, here are three key reasons to jump on the property bandwagon.

Under one roof: Multigenerational housing big for builders

"Everybody has their own privacy and their own space, so for instance, my mom has her own suite," said Jennifer. "It is essentially a full one-bedroom apartment on the main floor, so I don't have to worry about her falling down the stairs. She has her own front door, she can have her own decor there, she can stay up however long she wants and not interrupt the family either and also, we have enough space as a family to have a regular family unit, and then she can have her separate 















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16 Reasons Appraisals Come In Low | RubyOne Mortgage

There’s no bigger emotional turning point in the home buying process than the moment a buyer makes an offer on a home. The transition from merely shopping to formally putting some skin in the game introduces higher levels of anticipation for everyone involved in the transaction. Things get very real.











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Neal Paskvan is a full time Realtor specializing in Downers grove, Darien,Woodridge, Westmont and Du page county Real Estate

Inaccurate Zillow 'Zestimates' a source of conflict over home prices - LA Times

en "CBS This Morning" co-host Norah O'Donnell asked the chief executive of Zillow recently about the accuracy of the website's automated property value estimates — known as Zestimates — she touched on one of the most sensitive perception gaps in American real estate.

Zillow is the most popular online real estate information site, with 73 million unique visitors in December. Along with active listings of properties for sale, it also provides information on houses that are not on the market. You can enter the address or general location in a database of millions of homes and probably pull up key information — square footage, lot size, number of bedrooms and baths, photos, taxes — plus a Zestimate.

Shoppers, sellers and buyers routinely quote Zestimates to realty agents — and to one another — as gauges of market value. If a house for sale has a Zestimate of $350,000, a buyer might challenge the sellers' list price of $425,000. Or a seller might demand to know from potential listing brokers why they say a property should sell for just $595,000 when Zillow has it at $685,000.

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Neal Paskvan is a full time Realtor specializing in Downers grove, Darien,Woodridge, Westmont and Du page county Real Estate

Mortgage 101: How to Conquer the 7 Biggest Homebuying Fears | Matt Rayburn | LinkedIn

Terrified of jumping into the homeownership circle? As with any large purchase, buying a home can be unnerving for someone who has limited knowledge of the homebuying and financing process. As the mortgage world is constantly changing, there are also several misconceptions about what it takes to buy a home.

Here's how to set some of those fears and misconceptions aside when thinking of buying a home.

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Neal Paskvan is a full time Realtor specializing in Downers grove, Darien,Woodridge, Westmont and Du page county Real Estate

Why Do Half of Millennials Still Live With Mommy and Daddy?

Many twenty-somethings are eager to get out of debt, but not all debt is bad. I go into debt if it will produce income for me.  The problem is most Millennials are in bad debt—student loans and such.  There is a simple fix to get out of debt except to increase income. Income solves all.

3 Things Millennials Need to Be Doing:
1) Make a conscious decision to increase income.

2) Promote and sell yourself (in that or HERE FOR THR REST OF THE STORY

8 Things Millennials Want in a Home

The Millennial generation represents the largest share of homebuyers, according to a generational trends report by the National Association of REALTORS®. Weighing in at 32 percent of homebuyers, millennials are looking for different needs in a home than their predecessors. According to REALTOR Magazine®, these are the top wants of millennial homebuyers.

Affordability

Millennials are spending-savvy, especially when it comes to their home purchase. After seeing parents reel from the recession and facing the repayment of their own student loan dent, millennials want affordable, budget-friendly houses without going into their maximum approved purchase price.

Efficiency

Via Pinterest

This generation is extremely waste-conscious. With that being said, they're looking for homes in which every space has a purpose.

Flexibility

Millennials see their homes as an extension of the rest of their lives, not just a place to go after work. So they want casual and flexible spaces in a home that can be customized to fit their needs, whether that be a play room for their children, a home office, a home gym, man cave, or an extra bedroom.

"Green" Homes

Via Pinterest

Ten percent of millennials who purchased a newly-built home said they purchased new for green/efficiency reasons, according to an NAR study. Think new appliances, sustainable building materials, and energy-efficient LED lighting.

Entertaining Possibilities

Via Pinterest

It's no surprise that this generation of homebuyers want their homes to be a hub for entertaining family and friends. Open floor plans, fire pits, game rooms, outdoor living spaces, and "man caves" appeal greatly to millennials.

Location, Location, Location

These young homebuyers place importance on being close to urban necessities and entertainment. Home serves as a base for these active homebuyers and they're willing to compromise home size in order to be closer to certain amenities.

Move-In Ready

Growing up in the age of technologic advancement, millennials are accustomed to having things done in an instant. This generational trait transitions into their housing preferences, as well. The more a seller has done, the better. Millennials want updated and upgraded homes, and they want it done before they move in.

Maintenance-Free Materials

Millennials work long hours and have lots of interests outside of the home, so materials that require minimal time and care are key. For example, they prefer tile, laminate or vinyl flooringthat mimics wood over the maintenance of the real thing.

Overall, the Millennial generation doesn't view their home as a status symbol but as long-term investment that will suit the needs of their busy and active lifestyles now and evolve with each life stage.

If you're interested in purchasing your first home, download our free Mortgage 101 Handbook, a great resource of all things home buying and financing for first-time buyers.

Download: Mortgage 101 Handbook

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Neal Paskvan is a full time Realtor specializing in Downers grove, Darien,Woodridge, Westmont and Du page county Real Estate

Multigenerational households are becoming more common: Pew survey on living with parents.

Barack and Michelle Obama have very busy schedules, of this there is no doubt. It’s a good thing they have some help, not just from staffers, but also from family: Michelle Obama’s mother, Marian Robinson. Before her arrival, the last presidential grandmother to occupy the White House was Elvira Doud, Dwight Eisenhower’s mother-in-law.

Fewer American families live like this today than in 1953. But according to a new report from the Pew Research Center, multigenerational households are becoming more common. In 1980, some 12 percent of families had two or more adult generations living under the same roof. Now, 18 percent do, and the total number of Americans with this living arrangement has doubled, to 56.8 million. Almost half (48 percent) are in households that working parents share with luckless “boomerangs” sheltering in their old childhood bedrooms. But nearly as many are living with three generations or more. In fact, 20 percent of Americans age 65 or older live in multigenerational households, compared to 16 percent in 1990.

6 Pitfalls to Avoid in Your First Year of Homeownership

As a first-time homebuyer, you have a lot on your plate. From saving for a down payment and closing costs to keeping your credit score mortgage-ready and finding a home that suits your needs, you’ve accomplished a lot even before purchasing your first home.

Now that you’ve closed on your home, there are still some mistakes you should avoid to keep your first year of homeownership a positive experience.

Not Planning for the Other Immediate Costs of Buying

You’ve made your down payment and paid the closing costs, so you’re done writing checks for a while, right? Well, it depends. Even if your new home is move-in ready, you’ll still have to consider various other costs for making your new home your own, including but not limited to:

• A moving company (or moving truck, at the very least)

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Neal Paskvan is a full time Realtor specializing in Downers grove, Darien,Woodridge, Westmont and Du page county Real Estate

Are You Underestimating Your Home Equity? | Matt Rayburn | LinkedIn

A home is likely the biggest investment most Americans will make in their lifetime. Underestimating that asset's value may keep many U.S. homeowners from advancing financially with their home equity. According to Fannie Mae, homeowners who have a "negative perception gap" also likely underestimate:

• Their ability to qualify for a new mortgage.
• How large of a down payment they could make with their 

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Neal Paskvan is a full time Realtor specializing in Downers grove, Darien,Woodridge, Westmont and Du page county Real Estate

Spring housing season kicks off with record short supply

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Neal Paskvan is a full time Realtor  specOn a snowy Tuesday in early February, Jessie and Mark Sciulli toured a home in the northern suburbs of Washington, D.C., that wasn't listed for sale yet. Relocating their family back home from overseas, the couple was in town for just two days and had to see as much as possible. Their agent didn't have enough active listings to show, so she went after homes she knew were coming soon.

It is the same story for home buyers nationwide: There is precious, record little for sale.

"I feel like there is not a lot of inventory right now, so that does make us a little bit nervous, because we think there is going to be a lot more offered in two or three weeks, so I'd say for sure we feel that stress," said Jessie.

Patrick T. Fallon | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Open House signage is displayed outside of a home for sale in Redondo Beach, California.

Presidents Day weekend is traditionally seen by real estate agents and homebuilders as the start of the spring housing market — the busiest time of year for home sales. The number of listings always rises, and it will this year as well, but inventory is already so low to begin with that even the new listings will not be nearly enough.

"I think inventory is going to remain tight. The closer you are to urban centers, the tighter the inventory, because the demand ializing in Downers grove, Darien,Woodridge, Westmont and Du page county Real Estate

Rent relief could be coming here

ccelerating, but rents are moderating and could ease substantially in some markets. By the end of this year, rents may actually rise at a slower pace than incomes in many markets, according to a new analysis by Zillow, a real estate listing company.

Zillow is forecasting a 1.1 percent annual rent appreciation rate by December, down from 4.5 percent at the end of 2015, according to Reis, a commercial real estate analytics company. Some markets are still seeing double-digit rent growth.

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Neal Paskvan is a full time Realtor specializing in Downers grove, D



arien,Woodridge, Westmont and Du page county Real Estate