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Displaying blog entries 31-40 of 41

Lake Geneva Real Estate Update for the Week of December 22, 2008

Tuesday, December 23, 2008
by Lake Geneva Lakefront
With Christmas right around the corner this week, a lot of the normal real estate activity has slowed down, which is not all that unusual. It will be interesting to see if the activity starts to pick up again right after the beginning of the New Year, which is what we have normally seen in past years. I remain optimistic about the future of our real market here in the Lake Geneva area and convinced we will be able to do better and outperform many of the other troubled markets that we all continue to hear so much about. In the meantime I would like to wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and hopes for a wonderful Holiday season with family and friends.

For All Yor Real Estate Needs in the Lake Geneva Area, contact Bob Webster of Keefe Real Estate.

Is the Fed Ready to Offer 4.5% Mortgage Money?

Saturday, December 06, 2008
by Lake Geneva Lakefront
The Fed is trying to come up with a number of different ideas on how to pump up the real estate market, with the latest idea of 4.5% mortgages.  Inman News reported on December 5th that there has been no official announcement and there is apparently not a consensus of opinion as to whether the funds should apply only to new mortgages or be used to help in the refinancing of existing mortgages. 

For all your real estate needs in the Lake Geneva Area, contact Bob Webster of Keefe Real Estate at 262-348-3233 or Email Bob Webster. Search for property at http://www.searchlakegenevahomes.com
  

Government Action Is Encouraging News for Lake Geneva Real Estate Market

Wednesday, November 26, 2008
by Lake Geneva Lakefront
The Fed took some dramatic steps yesterday to try to free up credit and lower interest rates.  Check out this article in USA Today. The 3rd quarter sales statics for Walworth County were released this week showing 238 sales for the most recent quarter, up slightly from the second quarter of 2008.  The report also showed an overall reduction in the listing inventory for Walworth County of approximately 25% which is good news for the Lake Geneva Real Estate market. 

To view details on the current inventory lake front and lake access property for sale on Lake Geneva, contact Bob Webster of Keefe Real Estate at www.LakeGenevaLakefront.com  or call me at 262-348-3233 or 800-364-7579.

Latest Lake Geneva Lake Front Sale

Friday, November 21, 2008
by Lake Geneva Lakefront
The latest Lake Geneva lake front home sale just closed on November 14th for $1,900,000.  It was a home located in the Elgin Club on the North Shore of Lake Geneva.  That brings the total number of sales so far this year to 17 for lake front and park homes on Lake Geneva, with a total volume of over $43,000,000, according to Multiple Listing Service statistics.  To view details on the current inventory of property for sale on Lake Geneva, contact Bob Webster of Keefe Real Estate at www.LakeGenevaLakefront.com  or call me at 262-348-3233 or 800-364-7579.

THE LAKE GENEVA REAL ESTATE MARKET UPDATE FOR MID NOVEMBER

Sunday, November 16, 2008
by Lake Geneva Lakefront
With the election now behind us, hopefully any uncertainty on the part of the Buying public regarding the outcome will slowly begin to fade away.  Regardless of how you may feel about the results, I think just having it as one less “unknown” is a positive situation.  The whole home buying process is very emotional, as well as many of the reasons people choose to buy or not buy at any given time.  It seems that we are starting to hear the “so called” experts advise that if someone is in the market to buy, now is a good time with a good selection of inventory to choose from, some very attractive asking prices and interest rates at historically affordable levels.  So we’ll hope that message gets spread far and wide.  We are seeing and hearing about some offers being made and transactions coming together here and there, although not as much as we’d like to see and not a real trend one way or the other as far as I can tell.  If the perception becomes that we’ve hit the “bottom” and the market is rebounding, that probably more than anything else will help get things moving in our favor.  I had a closing last week where the Buyer actually expressed at the closing table that they felt they were paying “top dollar” in a “declining” market and they felt they probably would have been able to negotiate a better price now, rather than a month and a half ago when the offer came together.  I was surprised to hear them say it and did my best to assure them that was not the case.  It may be in some other markets, but does not appear to be the case here.  Fortunately their attorney was sitting right there and confirmed what I was saying so I think it helped to reassure them.   But, that is the battle we have on our hands today, with many Buyers and the perception a lot of them have about the current market conditions. 
Contact Bob Webster at Keefe Real Estate at 262-348-3233 or Email him at Bob@LakeGenevaProperty.com.

How's the Real Estate Market in Lake Geneva, WI?

Wednesday, October 29, 2008
by Lake Geneva Lakefront
We've been enjoying some great post Labor Day weather here in the Lake Geneva Area and that has kept many Buyers actively looking, at a time when our activity normally begins to wind down about now as we get closer to the end of the year. In general, the market is nowhere near as bad as the media would lead you to believe, but it's also not as good as we'd like it to be. The reality is that it's somewhere in between. There are a number of very good values out there right now with many Sellers having lowered their sites with regard to price and expectations.  Interest rates remain at very affordable levels and we have numerous lenders in the area assuring us that they have plenty of mortgage money available to Buyers with a good credit score and some form of down payment.  So the message is now is a great time to be in the market for a property in the Lake Geneva Area, especially lakefront property.  Contact Bob Webster at Keefe Real Estate at 262-348-3233 or Email him at Bob@LakeGenevaProperty.com.

Bob Webster comments on Fontana Wisconsin Assessment Debate

Tuesday, September 30, 2008
by Lake Geneva Lakefront

Bob Webster of Keefe Real Estate in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin commented this week on the situation in the Village of Fontana regarding the reassessment process currently underway.  Being a resident of Fontana and having gone through the open book session and discussions with the assessor, Webster was interviewed by the local Lake Geneva Regional News newspaper.  Many residents received a reassessment notice from the Village recently with most seeing increases anywhere from 50% to 75% over the past year.  Webster commented that the idea of bringing property assessments up to current value is a perfectly legitimate position for the Village to take and they should be commended for trying to correct the inequities that exist.  In most cases with municipalities in the area, properties are often placed on the market for sale and in fact sold at values considerably higher than the assessed value.  The good news is that as the total of the assessed value for all property in the Village is raised, there is generally a corresponding reduction in the mill rate with an end result that many homeowners do not end up seeing a significant increase in the amount of real estate taxes they will pay.  The key is for the property owners is to be assured that the new assessment is a realistic number and not higher than what the property would sell for if placed on the market for sale.  As the assessor, Accurate Appraisal, LLC was charged with establishing this new value as of January 1st of 2008, no sold data was allowed to be used for the current year.  If you have any questions about the process or the current value of your home, Webster can be contacted at 262-348-3233 or Bob@LakeGenevaProperty.com.  His Web Site address is www.LakeGenevaProperty.com.

 

Here is a very interesting perspective on the Real Estate Market today

Thursday, September 11, 2008
by Lake Geneva Lakefront

I saw this video from CNBC on a fresh way to view how things really are today in the real estate market.  I hope you find it interesting.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=780461999

What's happening in the Lake Geneva real estate market at the end of 2007?

Saturday, November 17, 2007
by Lake Geneva Lakefront
Our market in Lake Geneva is doing much better than many markets in the Country, and much better than most of the so called experts in the media would lead the public to believe. We have two distinct markets in our area, the primary year round home market made up of people who live and work locally in the area, and the second home market where people primarily from Chicago and the northern Illinois suburbs come here looking for a place to get away, wanting to keep the drive to 2 hours or less. The second home market has been very active this year, with the high end lakefront properties leading the way as far as sales and activity. I’ve been in the business here in Lake Geneva for over 29 years and I don’t ever recall that being the case before. I take that as a very good and healthy sign. The primary home market has been a little softer than normal, but the good news is that we have seen a number of Sellers become more realistic with their price expectations and the real good news for the buying public is that combined with a good selection of homes to choose from and interest rates at very affordable levels, this is actually a great time for a Buyer to be in the market. But unfortunately, for the most part you won’t hear that from the media today, so it continues to be our job to get the word out.  Personally, I’m having the best year of my entire real estate career.

More Good News for Real Estate

Friday, February 09, 2007
by Lake Geneva Lakefront
"Pending Home Sales Index Jumps"
Investor's Business Daily (02/02/07) P. A2

Mild temperatures helped push pending home sales to their highest level in nearly three years, to 4.9 percent last month--which suggests that actual home sales in January or February are likely to be higher. The National Association of REALTORS' index of existing-home sales contracts that have been signed but not yet closed is still down 4 percent to 5 percent, however, from a year ago.

Displaying blog entries 31-40 of 41