Landscaping can increase a home’s value in any market By Kevin Marko Everyone knows sprucing up the inside of a house can help it sell better. But suggesting your client add sex appeal to their home’s curb appeal by

By Benjamin Wayne It’s no secret that video helps sell real estate. Virtual tours and video walkthroughs have long been an effective, though expensive, tool for real estate professionals. However, production costs, turnaround times and logistic complexity have historically

Understanding Fractionals By Mark Chesney The Chicago Tribune recently ran an article advocating agent partnering and creating “boutique teams” as a way to boost profits in the current down market. While the concept is great for aggressive, senior agents,

By Kaira Sturdivant Rouda You’ve heard it before, but I’m going to tell you again: Real estate is no longer about you, the real estate agent, it’s now about the consumer. It’s time to take a hard look at

Ask the right questions before joining a new office By Jason Palermo Few decisions directly impact a real estate agent’s career satisfaction as much as his/her choice of an office with which to affiliate. However, many agents approach this

Republican candidates offer few details on housing and foreclosure By Brian A. Bernardoni As we all know, the devil is in the details, especially in real estate. In the second of two articles on the housing policies and the

By Gina Dingman, CCIM Traditionally, one of the positive side effects of a downturn in the single-family housing market is improving fundamentals in the apartment market. While we are still witnessing fallout from the subprime disaster in capital markets

By Ric Cox We’ve addressed the topic of blogs a few times in Chicago Agent, but this time we’re starting from scratch and showing our readers the basics. Author Ric Cox told us that in one hour he started

By Jack Sternberg Gone is the heyday of the real estate boom when becoming a successful real estate agent just took a license and knowledge of current laws and regulations. While the latest numbers have existing home sales up

By Leigh Nevers The Chicago market is full of well-established inner-ring suburbs that have flourished over the last several decades. Today, many of these towns are undergoing a seismic demographic shift with one segment of the population gearing up

By Howard Rudin When it comes to referrals, most of us think about utilizing past clients, friends and relatives. These, of course, are important referrals to grow your business, but there is an untapped source of referral income that

By Glen Tomlinson In a changing real estate world, companies that prepare intelligently and effectively for 2008 will reap the greatest success. Those who properly structure their companies and their agents are the ones that can negotiate through these

By Tracey L. Taylor The subprime market meltdown has revealed how far we are willing to go for that almighty dollar. Yes, it’s simplistic to point the finger at the subprime lenders; however, we are all responsible for the

By Barry Paoli Despite our current situation, I still predict that motivated buyers will spark the real estate market and speed the needed upturn. In order to help with this process, we need to give these buyers hope and

In the Wake of the Subprime Meltdown By Tracey L. Taylor The subprime market meltdown has revealed how far we are willing to go for that almighty dollar. Yes, it’s simplistic to point the finger at the subprime lenders;

Back in the Market By Barry Paoli Despite our current situation, I still predict that motivated buyers will spark the real estate market and speed the needed upturn. In order to help with this process, we need to give