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.
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
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.
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.
Saturday, January 27, 2007
by Lake Geneva Lakefront
"Housing Sales Lost Pace But Not Value"
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (01/11/07) Derus, Michele
Metro Multiple Listing Service (MLS) data shows that the Milwaukee metropolitan area's housing resale market shrunk last year, with the four-county region producing 20,071 REALTOR@-brokered sales. That was the lowest level of activity in at least the last three years and 7.3 percent off of 2005's pace. Despite the slowing sales volume, most Milwaukee-area communities realized small price gains in 2006. Additionally, 11 of the 15 major U.S. markets tracked by Trulia.com--including Milwaukee--reported improved housing-market conditions at the end of December. Dan Buttery, president of Milwaukee-based Argus Investments, notes that the main problem continues to be the fact that so many people put contracts on their homes of choice and then are unable to sell their current residence. He states, "That was something I saw a lot in '06."