Both Republicans and the Obama administration agree, surprisingly enough, that the government should back off a little from the housing market, according to a Washington Post article by Zachary Goldfarb. But executing the plan is easier said than

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan recently announced the recipients of the 2011 sustainable communities grants. The goal of the grants, which totaled to nearly $96 million this year, is to help communities and

Suburban apartment buildings are filling up as more real estate consumers opt to rent rather than buy, according to a Crain’s article by Alby Gallun. The occupancy rate at suburban multifamily properties went up to 94.3 percent in the

Auctions for penthouse apartments, waterfront mansions and grand country estates traditionally carry the stigma of a ‘last resort’ for desperate sellers or banks trying to get rid of foreclosed properties. The upkeep of homes $10 million and above can

Freddie Mac released its Economic and Housing Outlook report for November 2011 yesterday, and according to the report, the country is right in the midst of the most affordable home-buying market in decades, though recent home sales don’t reflect

Kevin Rocio, multi-family real estate specialist, has recently joined @properties Commercial Division. Rocio comes to @properites from the Chicago office of Marcus & Millichap where he served as an associate specializing in multi-family investment

Orland Park real estate professional Richard Deal has recently joined the Keller Williams Preferred Realty Market Center. The Market Center is on LaGrange Road in Orland

There may be more than 3 million homes officially for sale nationwide, but a recent Miami Herald investigation has shown that millions of additional properties lay dormant in housing’s “shadow inventory,” many of them tucked away on bank’s balance

Single-family and condominium home sales for Illinois in October were up 15.3 percent from a year ago, according to new data from the Illinois Association of Realtors (IAR). Total sales volume was 8,536, and though the statewide median price

The House of Representatives voted in favor for a bill that re-raised the limit of conforming jumbo mortgages for the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), ending a nearly two month gridlock in

The 2011 National Association of Realtors (NAR) Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers surveyed 5,708 home buyers and sellers, learning that the demographics of home buyers and types of homes being sold has shifted drastically this year, mostly due

Have you ever paid attention to some of the words used to describe properties in the MLS? LeapRE searched for keywords in descriptions that could be signals to have your affiliate recommendations ready for clients who buy the properties.

Although reality doesn’t always match the expectations of any buyer, according to the 2011 National Association of Realtors (NAR) Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, which surveyed 5,708 homebuyers and sellers this summer, homebuyers expect to stay in their

Q: A client’s friend recently bought a home and told my client the mortgage process was a nightmare in terms of documentation. Specifically, she said that the loan officer kept asking her for documentation on deposits into her accounts.

Is the conforming loans controversy finally settled? What is going on with the Chicago rental market? And how did housing starts data look? Here’s a quick rundown of stats from this week’s news (Nov. 14 – Nov. 18) by the

The Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago’s (HBAGC)annual Key Awards ceremony took place at the European Crystal Banquets in Arlington Heights on November 16. The event congratulated real estate professionals for their hard work and well-earned accomplishments in a