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Chicago Real Estate Blog - Details |
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Chicago Foreclosure situation - from another perspective
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Posted by: John S. Osga - 12/18/2007 8:25:20 AM
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There is no doubt foreclosures are at an all time high and we need the government to step in and do something, by most peoples accounts.
However, I was reading an article that said as many as 20%, or 1 in 5, or the foreclosure properties in the Chicagoland real estate market were not occupied and/or owned by speculators.
Thus, the number of families that live in their primary residences that face foreclosure is actually lower than reported. Not to say our situation is any better, but interpreting these numbers correctly is key when determining how much of an impact the subprime situation will have on the Chicago area real estate market.
It's also important to note that 93% of people with mortgages pay them on time. Obviously, a great majority of us can afford to live where we do and do not face a mortgage payment that will balloon in the next couple of years.
Further, how about all of us that saw skyrocketing increases in our property values the last 7 years? If you have owned you home for 7 years or more, you have accumulated some nice equilty - regardless of what Chicago neighborhood or suburb you live in. Sure you might have lost some recently, but over the entire term, most of us have done pretty well.
Unfortunately, all too often, the media focuses on the negative which leads to buyers and sellers to have a pessimistic view of the market which leads to the market downturn which then becomes a spiral downward. It would be nice once in a while to focus on those that have been responsible and can afford the homes they live in - which is a vast majority of the market.
The Chicago Real Estate market will come back sometime, but let's just make sure we have the proper perspective now.
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