The “FHA-Rural Regulatory Improvement Act of 2011,” a draft bill proposing a minimum down payment of 5 percent, an increase over the current 3.5 percent down payment required to be able to take out a FHA-backed loan, will be

Across the board in all six Chicagoland counties, according to LeapRE, March has the highest number of price reductions. April has the second-highest, January has the third-highest and February, the fourth-highest. Overall, it seems that Chicagoland agents go for

The number of foreclosed homes is escalating — economists are projecting that selling the current amount of more than 872,000 bank-owned properties will take approximately three years; meanwhile, home values nationwide may fall another 5 percent by the end

Agent Genius has written extensively on housing since day one and it isn’t easy to keep a sunny disposition as housing has crashed in recent years. Various organizations from trade organizations to governmental organizations have come up with different

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) found that property crimes including burglaries, larceny/theft, and motor vehicle theft all decreased in 2010, with a decline of 2.8 percent in all city categories, according to

The Van Buren Lofts located at 1224 W. Van Buren in the West Loop currently features new pricing where grand opening prices start at $189,900 and some lofts are nearly $95,000 less than the original asking price, according to

The Virginia based company Commission Express announced that they will be opening its newest branch on June 1 in Evanston, according to their press

The brutal murder of Realtor Ashley Okland in West Des Moines in early April remains unsolved, and now the disappearance of the 53 year old woman who reported the crime is keeping police on their

In cooperation with The Chicago Tobacco Prevention Project, competitive grants of up to $10,000 are being offered to property managers, owners and condo associations who enforce smoke-free property regulations, according to a press release from the Respiratory Health

Real Trends 500 recently spotlighted a number of RE/MAX in Northern Illinois, all of which are independently owned and

CEO Russ Bergeron of the Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) gave a presentation on the future of the MLS at the Illinois Association of Realtors (IAR) meeting that took place May

“Knowledge is power” is the mantra implied by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) newly pitched Know Before You Owe project. The project aims to consolidate two federally required mortgage disclosures (the Truth in Lending form and the Good

The past three months have brought an ongoing increase in Illinois’ home sales, with a total of 8,526 homes sold in April, up from a previous 7,856 sold in March, according to a press release from Illinois Association of

Out of a pool of 2,018 adults, 54 percent believe that housing recovery will not occur until 2014 at the earliest, and 45 percent said that the government is not doing enough to avoid foreclosures, demonstrated in the latest

From March to April, nationwide housing listings typically increase by 5 percent (an average compiled from the last 28 years), according to Zelman & Associates; this year the monthly spike was measured at 1.1 percent in more than 140

Freddie Mac will now be assisting homebuyers of REO properties with up to 3.5 percent in closing-cost assistance through their HomeSteps summer sales promotion. Agents will also benefit, receiving a $1,200 bonus for offers on eligible foreclosed properties, as