This video illustrates what the real estate market is doing nationally. Coming soon...local trends!
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
This Month In Real Estate: September
We want you to be armed with the most current market information available. Check out KW's latest video on current home market trends:
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
How are buyers finding your home?
These statistics from the National Association of Realtors show that the majority of home buyers find your home on the internet. At a close second, they’re using an agent that they trust to find the right home for them.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Inspiration
I can honestly say that my job is never boring. It seems that almost every day there is some sort of excitement. While I thrive in this environment, I do find it necesary every now and again to re-group and re-charge. Enter the 20-Club. Thanks to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), I now have 16 builders with which to share ideas, problems and strategies.
Twice a year, I am presented the opportunity to meet with the best custom home builders in the business. Last week I spent some time in Austin, Texas. There is nothing more exciting to me than rubbing elbows with REAL professionals. These folks are doing business the right way. Most of all, I am able to create a better experience for my customers through this collective wisdom. I often hear it said from Keller Williams Realty - "together we can accomplish more"
Hats of to my 20-Club and to Jenkins Custom Homes for their generosity last week. Check out more of their work at http://www.newhousebuilder.com/.
Twice a year, I am presented the opportunity to meet with the best custom home builders in the business. Last week I spent some time in Austin, Texas. There is nothing more exciting to me than rubbing elbows with REAL professionals. These folks are doing business the right way. Most of all, I am able to create a better experience for my customers through this collective wisdom. I often hear it said from Keller Williams Realty - "together we can accomplish more"
*one of the coolest showers I have ever seen!
Hats of to my 20-Club and to Jenkins Custom Homes for their generosity last week. Check out more of their work at http://www.newhousebuilder.com/.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
The MLS at your fingertips
We work hard to ensure that you have access to our local real estate market. One of the ways we've done that recently is by implementing a system that can be downloaded to any phone. You'll be able to search our local MLS anytime you'd like, anywhere you'd like.
Our new mobile system can be found here. Check it out, pass it along to your friends. It's totally free!
Our new mobile system can be found here. Check it out, pass it along to your friends. It's totally free!
Monday, September 14, 2009
Real estate up from rock bottom?
I’ve heard a lot of talk lately about whether or not we’re still in a recession, and furthermore, how horrible the housing market appears to be.
Well kids, numbers don’t lie. A fellow custom home builder forwarded this Wall Street Journal article to us last week. The article clearly illustrates how real estate values hit the bottom sometime during the second quarter, and have actually risen since. See for yourself here.
With real estate values down nearly 30% from their 2006 high and prices on the rise, this market epitomizes the theory of being in a “buyer’s market.” For buyers, that signifies that there hasn’t been a better time in the last three years to buy a home. Inventory is at an all-time high so the choices are endless.
For sellers, it’s a combination of emphasizing how important it is to market your home at a competitive price and at the same time, marketing it for all it’s worth. Inventory being as large as it is currently, your home needs to stand out above the rest and it must be priced to sell. We’re no longer lingering in a market where it’s valuable to “test the market” by putting your home on the MLS for more than it’s worth. How do you do that, and still not lose the shirt off your back and that new flat screen you bought a couple of months ago? That’s something your friendly REALTOR can help you with.
Well kids, numbers don’t lie. A fellow custom home builder forwarded this Wall Street Journal article to us last week. The article clearly illustrates how real estate values hit the bottom sometime during the second quarter, and have actually risen since. See for yourself here.
With real estate values down nearly 30% from their 2006 high and prices on the rise, this market epitomizes the theory of being in a “buyer’s market.” For buyers, that signifies that there hasn’t been a better time in the last three years to buy a home. Inventory is at an all-time high so the choices are endless.
For sellers, it’s a combination of emphasizing how important it is to market your home at a competitive price and at the same time, marketing it for all it’s worth. Inventory being as large as it is currently, your home needs to stand out above the rest and it must be priced to sell. We’re no longer lingering in a market where it’s valuable to “test the market” by putting your home on the MLS for more than it’s worth. How do you do that, and still not lose the shirt off your back and that new flat screen you bought a couple of months ago? That’s something your friendly REALTOR can help you with.
And you are...
We’re the BJ Armstrong Team. We’re local residential real estate experts.
We’re here because we have all of these ideas swimming around in our minds about real estate and we want to share. We want you to know what we know. We’re aware that real estate isn’t a well kept secret, and believe that the consumer should be armed with good information.
Who’s this BJ Armstrong you speak of? BJ has been building custom homes and selling real estate for over 16 years. He’s a lifelong resident of Bloomington/Normal, graduate of Illinois Wesleyan University, father of two and devoted husband. For fun, BJ enjoys piloting small planes, spending time with his family, and golfing (BJ may disagree about that last one).
And this Kara person? That’s me. I grew up in a tiny town just west of Gurnee, IL. I’ve lived in Bloomington/Normal for almost four years now after working in the pharmaceutical industry in the ‘burbs of Chicago. I graduated from Illinois State University with a degree in English in 2003 which is when I met my husband, another lifelong resident of Bloomington.
Check back with us. We’ll update this blog regularly to give you only the latest, most pertinant real estate news and info.
We’re here because we have all of these ideas swimming around in our minds about real estate and we want to share. We want you to know what we know. We’re aware that real estate isn’t a well kept secret, and believe that the consumer should be armed with good information.
Who’s this BJ Armstrong you speak of? BJ has been building custom homes and selling real estate for over 16 years. He’s a lifelong resident of Bloomington/Normal, graduate of Illinois Wesleyan University, father of two and devoted husband. For fun, BJ enjoys piloting small planes, spending time with his family, and golfing (BJ may disagree about that last one).
And this Kara person? That’s me. I grew up in a tiny town just west of Gurnee, IL. I’ve lived in Bloomington/Normal for almost four years now after working in the pharmaceutical industry in the ‘burbs of Chicago. I graduated from Illinois State University with a degree in English in 2003 which is when I met my husband, another lifelong resident of Bloomington.
Check back with us. We’ll update this blog regularly to give you only the latest, most pertinant real estate news and info.
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