Ted Mortellaro Chicago Real Estate latest information and Trends

01/12/2023

4417 North Magnolia Avenue, Unit #1
3 bed | 3 bath
Listed Price: $525,000

Extra-large duplex down is now listed on the private listing market. This incredibly spacious home boasts three living separate living spaces and with its updated kitchen this home is a must see! Interested in a tour? Please reach out today!
If you're thinking of selling your home, I’d love the opportunity to show you how SwakeGroup had an average sale price of over 100% of list price in 2022

03/14/2022

Questions about being a first time buyer? Feeling alone in the process? Interested in a $750 closing cost credit?
Join us for a first-time home buying seminar at Elixir in Andersonville (1509 W Balmoral Ave) at 6:30pm on Tuesday, March 22nd.
It's not that often that you get the chance to tap into ALL the people involved in the home buying (and selling) process at one time. We will enjoy food and drink during a Q&A with Samson Demello-Rice, a senior loan officer at Synergy One lending. Followed by anecdotes and stories from two top producing Realtors (Michael Peterson and Ted Mortellaro) that focus on the Northside condo/housing market, providing insight and stats on the current market. We will round up the end of the night with James Sethna of Ashen Law, who has always taken great care with our clients to make sure the legal pitfalls are avoided. There will be plenty of Q&A. It's a night of fun and the support you need to get through one of the biggest decision of your life. We'll cover up to $750 in closing costs and provide information about federal grants!

Tue, Mar 22, 6:30 PM CDT: Elixir in Andersonville is a great place to start our group. We have the whole space to ourselves, a bartender on hand and food to boot. It's not that often that you get th

10/28/2019

Is Chicago on a bubble with real estate prices? While we hear rumblings of a recession and over inflated housing prices this new UBS report supports what I have been thinking about Chicago housing prices which is there is no bubble here. Every year prices have gone up modestly in the area which is unlike most coastal cities in the US which have seen 7%, 9% even 13% in a year. The modest increases of 2%-5% has kept prices here moving up but not at a pace as to outpace incomes. In fact of the 24 cities around the world that UBS analysed Chicago is the only city where housing prices are actually Undervalued based on people's income. See the most recent report.

Find out the latest property prices and cost of living in global cities.

10/18/2019

Another major transformation in Uptown. One of the largest SRO (single room occupancy) buildings in the area is slated to be transformed into market rate rentals. This beautiful 1920's former hotel is currently a 161 room SRO. Uptown in the past has had a large numbers of SROs but many including the largest, the Lawrence House, have recently been converted to market rate rentals which has dramatically changed the demographics of the neighborhood and is making Uptown one of the fastest appreciating areas of the city.

Yesterday was a big day for zoning changes downtown at the city council zoning committee. Three Uptown items were on the agenda and all pass...

10/10/2019

What is selling in Chicago?? The market has been a bit anemic since the end of July, with low buyer traffic and slow sales. The new substantial property tax increases have really kicked the one plus million dollar home market in the teeth, particularly since the federal government won't allow people to write those taxes off on their federal income tax anymore. What is selling is 2-4 unit buildings. I just put a 4 unit building on the market and I have gotten a lot of showings immediately. Also, less expensive single family homes with reasonable taxes are selling pretty well. What is not selling are condos, particularly if they have something that makes them less than desirable like being a 4 floor walk-up, or no outdoor space or oddly laid out. What is causing this slow down? It isn't because people don't have jobs or money in fact tech companies are adding large number of jobs in Chicago. I believe if is uncertainty about what type of recession we could be heading into (most economist believe it will be typical not severe) and what other types of taxes Lightfoot and Pritzker are considering. I don't think increases will put housing out of reach for Chicagoans but they want to see if it affects the prices.

Home sales have been soft across the city and suburbs this year. Here are a few places, price points and styles beating the downdraft.

10/08/2019

No surprise to those of us that live here but Conde Nast travelers have voted Chicago "Best Large City to Visit" in the United States. This is the 3rd year in a row that Chicago has claimed the title from this prestigious magazine. What is so great about this honor is that it comes from seasoned experienced travelers that have a knowledge of what makes a great travel experience.

The Second City placed first in a poll, with readers citing our architecture, museums, chefs and beer.

09/23/2019

Is the pendulum starting to swing the other way when it comes to home purchasing and millennials? For years millennials have put off purchasing homes the percentage of millennials has been consistently much lower than previous generations. But as older millennials are now in their late 30's and approaching 40 that seems to be changing. A quarter of millennials say they would like to purchase a home in the next 12-18 months. The issue with this is that would be over 18 million buyers. Even if half of those were couples that would still be over 12 million property purchases for this generation alone and supply has not been keeping pace with this type of demand. Chicago also has a very large millennial population in fact West Loop has largest percentage of millenials in its zip code than any other zip code in the country at 73% and most of them are renters. This has been a concern of mine that when the pendulum swings back buyers may be scrambling for homes.

They may have waited longer than previous generations, but millennials are showing a strong desire to become homeowners, especially older millennials. That is strengthening demand for the limited supply of homes for sale, and consequently reigniting the fire under home prices.

07/23/2019

Crain's has put out a list of strong and weak real estate neighborhoods in the city based on number of sales, sale price increases and market time. Low inventory in some neighborhoods could be the reason for an decrease in the number of sales but if lower inventory is coupled with lower prices and longer market time then that would conclude that that neighborhood is in a soft market. I also believe the the large increase in property taxes have taken a toll on certain neighborhoods and has made them unaffordable for many buyers. If a property experienced a $4,000 increase in their taxes that would increase the monthly payments by about $333.00 which is the equivalent of paying an additional $60,000 in mortgage. So, now a $600,000 property is costing a buyer the equivalent of a $660,000 property just by the tax increase. Also, the hot areas are the areas that have a lot of room to move up. 2 flats in Englewood have been selling for about $50-$70K. If they prices go up $6,000 that is an increase of almost 10%. It looks good from a percentage standpoint but is really nominal in dollars.

The South Side dominates in Crain's midyear analysis examining areas where sales and median prices are rising and homes are selling faster.

07/18/2019

Google looks to expand again in the West Loop to 1 million square feet. This would be a major expansion from their current square footage in the area signaling a plan for a large expansion of jobs. Other major tech companies are also looking at major expansion in the area these include Facebook, SalesForce, and Glass door West Loop prices are already well above the city average and this will add additional pressure to those prices. Other areas that could also see an affect are East Garfield Park, North Center, West Town, Pilsen, University Village, Wicker Park/Bucktown, Logan Square.

The tech giant is talking to developers in the trendy neighborhood about doubling its office footprint to around 1 million square feet.

06/26/2019

https://www.uptownupdate.com/2019/06/timeline-theatre-selects-architect-for.html?fbclid=IwAR11OOo2fibssTtj8vfp1k9arUXlHRuC3TYJh3nEHwImExskRRuXcUqT_p4

This is going to be a great addition to Uptown! I have seen some amazing productions at Timeline it is truly a gem in the Chicago theater scene and an amazing asset to the neighborhood. The building is going to be a multi faceted theater experience and education center. Combining this company with the Uptown Theater, the Double Door and The Baton will recreate that amazing Uptown entertainment district that had mostly been lost over the years. This is why I highly recommend Uptown as the best place in the city to invest. Let me know if you have any questions about buying in Uptown.

What to expect when TimeLine Theatre's new home opens at 5033-35 N. Broadway (HGA) (TimeLine Press Release) "TimeLine announced in Dec...