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Ice Surrender in Cuba Marsh

I was on Cuba Road driving to a client’s house in Deer Park today to deliver a key and a Christmas gift. On the way, I unexpectedly traveled through a glistening crystal forest. The sunlight was illuminating the remnants of yesterday’s rain, skipping through the treetops. For a moment, I felt like a trespasser in this fragile, foreign yet familiar land. The wheels of my car turned and crunched their way into Cuba Marsh. The air was as sharp as my icy steps as I stomped through snow and jagged frozen weeds to get closer. Every living thing I found had been shocked into submission and buried beneath layers of wintry glass. I hurried, with my camera, knowing that the passing minutes plus the heat of the sun would melt away this temporary place. Surrounded by cracks and splashes of disappearing ice, I jumped back into my car, cranked the heat and continued on my way. I think I’ll return in the Spring to catch up with this new neighbor.

Tags: Lake County, Barrington, Deer Park, Illinois, Cuba Road, Cuba Marsh, Winter Weather, Ice Trees, The Luby Group, Liz Luby, Photography

What Does This Video Have to Do With Real Estate?

Absolutely Nothing! But it made us laugh. Have a great weekend, Liz

PS…Kan man ha roligare? means “Can you have any more fun?” It is Swedish

Shazam’s “State of the Market” Report – November, 2007

Beep……………Beep………………..Beep….Beep……………………………..Beep……………………………Beep…..Beep………….BEEP………….BEEP…BEEP,,,,,,BEEP….BEEP..BEEP..BEEP
Whether we are talking about recovery on Grey’s Anatomy or in the Real Estate Market, the idea is the same. The recovery will likely be subtle, slow, and complicated by occasional setbacks. It is with hesitation that I even mention recent positive progress in our local real estate world for fear of jinxing it, however, it is undeniable that within the last six weeks the flat-line condition has seen some rhythmic improvement.

From late August until November 2007, we have noted an increasing number of home sales, particularly under $700,000. The properties that have been sold by The Luby Group during this period have been in beautiful condition and value-priced. Generally speaking, the buyers who purchased the properties realized that it is a tremendous time to buy a home with the interest rates still at near record lows, a great supply of inventory and motivated sellers. The real estate market appears to be coming out of its coma, but the recovery will undoubtedly be arduous in its efforts to return to complete health.

Economists from the National Association of Realtors are reporting nationally that “2007 will be the fifth best year for housing on record”. They are forecasting that existing-home sales will be about 5.5 million with two-thirds of metro areas showing price gains last quarter. Unfortunately, the real estate boom from 2001 to 2005 led people to believe that housing is a quick high-yield investment. Consequently, the public has had to adjust these unrealistic expectations and remember the fact that real estate continues to simply be what it has always been: a solid long-term investment. “Buying a home is not a quick-in, quick-out investment. Home ownership builds wealth over the long-term.” According to Lawrence Yun, NAR Chief Economist, a vast portion of the nation’s mid section is under priced in relation to income, and prices in some markets could rise notably with good local job gains.

I believe the outlook for real estate sales in the upcoming months is good for a number of reasons. There is obviously a certain pent-up buyer demand from those who chose to forego home purchases in 2007 due to the market being in a period of correction. Additionally, many buyers are regaining confidence that home ownership is a great long-term investment and that the 2007 time of crisis could turn out to be a great time of opportunity. The fact that there is ample housing inventory, job stability and favorable interest rates all bode well for the months to come.

In short, we are optimistic, because we are busy. Our phones are still ringing. Clients are calling. Buyers are still visiting our listings online in large numbers. People are still stopping by our open houses and asking us to email them information about new listings. We are writing offers and closing deals…and it’s NOVEMBER 15TH!  Thanksgiving is just one week from today.  Based on the markets we’ve seen, there’s never been a better time to be a home buyer. And if you’re selling, the buyers out there aren’t behaving as badly as you might think. They’re just taking a closer look and taking longer to digest the recent home sales data before biting the bullet. So please feel free to give us a call…STAT! Our real estate defibrillators are ready to go and we’ve got our fingers on the pulse of some of the best deals and most beautiful properties in town.

Written by Suzanne Luby (a.k.a. “Shazam“)
The Luby Group – Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
Barrington, IL 60010
Suzanne’s Cell: 847-922-7773
Suzanne’s Email: Suzanne@TheLubyGroup.com

Barrington Area Real Estate – Market Snapshot – November, 2007

Barrington Area Market Data: 2005 Through 2007 – Single Family Homes, Townhomes & Condos

In an effort to help home buyers and sellers analyze the real estate market data that impacts their properties, we’re going to regularly post the latest market statistics right here on BurbFeeder.com and on TheLubyGroup.com. We hope you’ll visit us again for updated statistics and to help keep us on our toes. The data will be here!

“Torture numbers, and they’ll confess to anything.”
~Gregg Easterbrook

The chart below goes back three years to show a more recent comparison of properties that sold per month in Barrington. You’ll see the number of Units Sold, the Median Sold Price, Minimum Sold Price, Maximum Sold Price and Total Volume per month in 2005, 2006 and 2007. We have access to a wealth of real estate sales data for specific suburbs and neighborhoods. If you would like us to provide a statistical analysis of home sales in your community, please fill the details of your request in the contact form below. We’ll follow up right away. Thanks, Liz Luby

Tags: Barrington, Real Estate, Market Data, Statistics, Sold Properties, Median Sold Price, Median Sale Price, Minimum Sold Price, Maximum Sold Price, Total Volume

We are Proud to Introduce – STATS CHICK

Finding real estate statistics for recent homes sales in your neighborhood or suburb has never been easier. Visit The Luby Group’s StatsChick page or StatsChick.com for analysis of the most recent market activity near your home.  You can hear Stats Chick’s explanation of The Luby Group’s Market Data Service by clicking on the triangular “Play” button below her.  For a more specific review of your area or for our interpretation of the statistics, please contact Suzanne & Liz Luby at 847-922-7773. Thanks for your time and please let us know your thoughts about Stats Chick. 

Meet The Luby Group

Suzanne Luby
Real Estate Consultant
Suzanne Luby has been selling real estate in the Barrington Area and Chicago’s Northwest Suburbs for nearly 25 years. From first time home buyers to the most skilled real estate investors, Suzanne works with all types of clients and has remained a top producing agent through the real estate market’s many changes. Suzanne’s knowledge, negotiating skills and sales record have earned her consistent corporate recognition, numerous awards and a reputation as one of the most seasoned REALTORS in the Chicago Northwest Suburbs.

In addition to consulting both home buyers and sellers, Suzanne is often called upon to share her knowledge with other area REALTORS by leading workshops at Coldwell Banker’s Barrington office. Every year, she invests a significant amount of time and money to stay up to date with the latest trends in real estate. She has earned such advanced professional designations as GRI (Graduate REALTOR Institute), CRS (Council of Residential Specialists), ABR (Accredited Buyer Representative) and SRES (Seniors Real Estate Specialists) . She is also part of an idea sharing network of top selling REALTORS from across the country.

Prior to becoming a licensed REALTOR, Suzanne and her husband, Tom, raised four children. Five years ago she recruited her oldest daughter, Liz Luby, to join her real estate team. Her son, Jim Luby, is also an experienced and reputable REALTOR in the City of Chicago. Suzanne’s daughter, Erin Luby, is a teacher, administrator and cross country coach at St. Ignatius College Prep High School in Chicago and her youngest daughter, Christine Luby, is becoming one of the top sales people at HumanScale Corporation, a company that sells high-end ergonomic office furniture.

Suzanne also has a degree in education and spent years teaching High School Literature, Drama & Public Speaking classes before the arrival of her first child, Liz Luby, 30-something years ago. Her background as an educator prepared her well for the real estate industry. There is no one more skilled at advising clients and teaching her team about the real estate business. From interpreting national trends locally to guiding clients through daily transactions, Suzanne is a reliable and expert real estate consultant who holds herself and her team to the highest professional and ethical standards.

When Suzanne is not selling real estate, she loves to travel and she is a voracious reader. She especially enjoys reading books about the real estate industry, spending time with her family and taking care of her two grandsons, Liam and Charlie.

Suzanne’s Real Estate License Number: 076316750

Liz Luby
Real Estate Consultant
After spending nearly a decade working as a Broadcast Journalist in the TV News business, Liz Luby earned her real estate license about five years ago and joined forces with Suzanne Luby. Since they formed their partnership, The Luby Group’s annual sales record has nearly doubled and their business continues to grow. Liz has been a tremendous asset to The Luby Group because of her communications background.

As a former news Anchor and Reporter for KFXB-TV in Dubuque, IA and WHBF-TV in The Quad Cities, IL, Liz mastered the art of news writing and story-telling. She now uses those skills to promote The Luby Group’s brand and effectively market it’s listings both in print and online. During countless interviews with various news sources, Liz learned to get to the root of an issue by asking relevant questions and being a good listener. Today, these skills help her better assess the needs and goals of her real estate clients. As a former morning news producer and writer for Fox News Chicago, Liz developed her skills as a team leader. Under intense deadline pressure, she consistently produced and earned recognition for high quality newscasts. Today, she applies these skills in the real estate realm by guiding seller and buyer clients through transactions with a knack for problem solving and expert attention to detail. Like Suzanne, Liz makes continued learning a high priority. She is one class away from earning her CRS (Council of Residential Specialists) professional designation and is part of a network of top selling REALTORS from across the country.

When Liz is not selling real estate, she loves spending time with her family and playing guitar with her husband, Bill. She enjoys reading, running and photography. She has also recently taken up blogging, which fits right in with her love of journalism and story-telling. Liz plans to use her blogging hobby to help give The Luby Group’s clients increased online exposure and better access to information about local real estate.

Liz’s Real Estate License Number: 076389102

Susan Prokos
Buyer Specialist
Susan is a very big asset to The Luby Group because she has lived in the Barrington area for over 15 years with her husband and three sons. From the neighborhoods to the schools to the sports teams, Susan knows the community very well and she welcomes the opportunity to share her knowledge and experiences with her clients.

Prior to becoming a licensed REALTOR, Susan and her husband, Dean, raised three great sons who are now 17, 19 and 21. Two are in College and one is still a Senior at Barrington High School. Even her golden retriever, Chief, is male. With so many men in her household, Susan has become a pro at understanding the male psyche! Ask her anything about the hottest sports teams. She definitely knows how to talk the talk.

When she’s not selling real estate, Susan and her family love being on their boat. They own a marina in Wisconsin which they have run since 2003. She is also a former school teacher. She taught special education and other classes for eight years. The skills Susan developed as a family business owner and an educator prepared her well for real estate. She is a sharp business woman and a hard worker with great inter-personal skills and a fun, likeable and laid-back attitude.

“I feel fortunate to be a part of such a talented team of REALTORS and I love the “hunt” of finding a home that fits perfectly into my clients’ lifestyles and their needs.” – Susan Prokos, Buyer Specialist

Susan’s Real Estate License Number: 476424962

Christine Snelgrove
Client Care Coordinator
Christine Snelgrove joined The Luby Group two years ago as a Licensed Assistant. She is an invaluable member of the team, preparing the print marketing materials and managing The Luby Group’s Client Care Systems. As a licensed REALTOR, Christine is a vital team participant with a thorough understanding of the business.

Christine has a BA degree in Interior Design and a MS degree in Business/Human Resource Management. Prior to joining The Luby Group, she held professional positions in Finance and Human Resource Management. She was previously the Assistant to the Manager of the Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Barrington office.

When Christine is not busy managing The Luby Group’s Client Care Systems, she spends time with her family, including her husband, the V.P of Topco, Inc., a son at Embrey Riddle Aeronautical University, a daughter at Utah State University and a son who is a freshman at Barrington High School. Christine has lived in many locales throughout the United States and Canada, residing in Barrington for the last twelve years. Her experiences provide her with an intimate knowledge of selling homes and the relocation process from beginning to end.

“It has been a pleasure working with this dedicated team of real estate professionals. Suzanne has an expansive knowledge of the real estate business and Liz’s expertise in web marketing, up-to-date ideas and energy are impressive.”

Christine’s Real Estate License Number: 476423952

Who Gets BANNED from Starbucks?

I’m addicted to my grande skim latte just as much as the next person, but there’s something so amusing about watching Starbucks servers deal with this singing intruder.  Wouldn’t it be fun to see this guy’s antics in our neigborhood? – GENIUS. Have a great weekend, Liz

TheLubyGroup.com’s TOP 10 Bogus Visitor Email Addresses

If you’ve read any of my previous posts, then you know that we’re in the throws of a major web presence overhaul. We’re adding all kinds of cool property search tools to our websites and we’ve given our main website a total facelift. Please feel free check out the new look and the goods at TheLubyGroup.com to access details about thousands of homes for sale in the Chicago Northwest Suburbs, Barrington, Inverness, Palatine and Arlington Heights. We still have plenty of listing info and stats to add, but we’re taking things one step at a time and having a little fun in the process.

All day yesterday I was collecting and organizing the email addresses of every visitor who has ever stopped by our website, and I had to laugh at some of the bogus email addresses people come up with. Don’t get me wrong, for the most part the visitors to our site are serious. They log in with their full names, phone numbers, property and email addresses. We love having these types of visitors and, over time, many of them become our clients. But we also get a kick out of the others, like Joe@Shmoe.com, Fred Flinstone at Bedrock@comcast.net and even good old Jeff Butthead at JButthead@Butthead.net. We don’t mind you looking, we understand what it feels like to not want to give up personal info and we’re not here to bother anyone who’s not interested in hearing from us. But we DO want to showcase some of your most creative “don’t bother me” email addresses and we’ve compiled a list of your TOP TEN BOGUS ONLINE ALIASES:

#10 * NoThanks@JustLetMeLook.com * Login: 7/2006
#09 * JoMamma@yahoo.com * Login: 12/2005
#08 * Abbott@Costello.com * Login: 06/2007
#07 * DontWannaRegister@yahoo.com * Login: 02/2007
#06 * NoneOfYourBusiness@NoChance.net * Login: 11/2005
#05 * Stinky@Winky.com * Login: 11/2006
#04 * PimpGeorge@yahoo.com * Login: 06/2006
#03 * Elvis@Elvis.com * Login: 11/2006
#02 * Bart@Simpson.com * Login: 07/2006
#01 * BeamMeUp@Scottie.com * Login: 11/2006

Believe me, there are others that get an “X” rating or are simply to mean to mention. (REALTORS have feelings, too!) There’s just something about that login screen that so often rears its head online. Until you trust the source on the other side, I don’t blame you for proceeding with caution or under the alias of your favorite superhero. It’s fun to see the humor in these few because we go there too sometimes. In the end, we hope to earn your confidence by providing enough information to make us worth your while.

Thanks for reading.
Sincerely,
Liz Luby, REALTOR®
The Luby Group – Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
847-691-3150

Learning As We Go

Looking for a resource which will connect you with a wealth of information about the Chicago Suburbs? You can already learn a lot by visiting TheLubyGroup.com, but soon you’ll find so much more right here at our new Weblog, BurbFeeder.com. I’m Liz Luby of The Luby Group with Coldwell Banker in Barrington. We’re tackling this blog building thing with a combination of excitement, energy and complete cluelessness.

After all, we are experts in selling real estate, not deciphering computer code. Right now words like Widgets, Wikis, Pingbacks and RSS Feeds are from a language that’s a bit foreign to us. But we’re in the process of adding them to our vocabulary and finding ways to use these technologies to help sell homes.

We already put priority emphasis on using the internet to help increase exposure for the properties we have listed. We’ve got some of the best systems in place on TheLubyGroup.com to give home buyers access to information about properties on the market. But we want to take it all to a new level. Internet marketing strategies are constantly evolving and we’ll continue to do what it takes to give our home sellers and buyers an edge when it comes to technology.

We’ve done a lot of research, found a blog publishing system that we think will work well and off we go. In the coming weeks and months, we’ll add useful posts, links and many other tools to this site. We’d love your feedback and we always welcome your involvement. If you’d like us to set up a blog for your specific neighborhood, just say the word and we’ll find a way to make it happen. In the meantime, thanks for your time and your confidence. If you don’t know who we are, here’s a photo from last summer’s “UnCork Barrington” wine tasting event – I’m also just practicing uploading photos:

More to come,
Liz Luby – The Luby Group
Coldwell Banker
303 E. Main Street, Suite 100
Barrington, IL 60010
847-691-3150
TheLubyGroup.com

http://TheLubyGroup.com
http://LubyProperties.com
http://BarringtonHomeBuyer.com
http://BarringtonHomeSeller.com
http://BestByOwners.com

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