2nd Annual Coldwell Banker Buffalo Grove Blood Drive

Give a Little – It Helps a Lot!

Please join us for Coldwell Banker Buffalo Grove’s 2nd Annual Blood Drive on February 11th from 12 noon to 6 pm. Last year’s event was quite a success and our goal is to beat last year’s donations. If you donated last year, thank you! If you’re planning to donate this year, try to make an appointment. That will save you time in the lines that we experienced at our first event.

Our drive is coordinated through Lifesource. Recently I read stories of donors  as well as recipient stories. They are inspiring and really drive home the importance of blood donations. Lifesource will again have a mobile unit onsite at our Coldwell Banker office located at 350 Half Day Road in Buffalo Grove. It’s a centralized location so we can make it easy for those in Buffalo Grove, Lake Zurich, Long Grove and surrounding areas to make a donation.

After your donation, stop back in our office and enjoy a few treats. In addition to the joy of giving, we have memories of last year’s fun with realtors and clients in the office after their donations. If you need more information, contact me. We hope to see you there!

Written by on · Leave a Comment

Buffalo Grove IL 2010 Real Estate in Review

How Well Did the Buffalo Grove Real Estate Market Perform in 2010?

Real Estate for Sale Call Terry

The beginning of the New Year is when Realtors analyze the prior year market results. Good realtors know that the real estate market is highly localized and while you can analyze Chicago’s Northwest Suburbs, it gives you just an overview and not a true picture of a town’s activity. Let’s see how Buffalo Grove single family homes performed in 2010.

The number of single family homes sold in Buffalo Grove was up 10.5% over 2009 (230 vs. 208). This is good news as it shows a higher buyer demand for Buffalo Grove homes. More good news is that the market time was down 8.6% (116 days vs. 126 days).

The average sale price in Buffalo Grove was down 3% ($350,170 vs. $360,327), while the median sold price was up 1.3%. This doesn’t mean that every home in Buffalo Grove went down 3% in value. Fewer homes over $500,000 sold in 2010 which brought down the average sale price. For complete results, you can view the entire report by price range. If you’d like to know the value of your Buffalo Grove home, contact me. I’d be happy to prepare a Comparative Market Analysis.

Over the next week, I’ll be analyzing sale data from surrounding towns. Let me know which town you’d like to see next! You can see my article on Lake Zurich 2010 results by clicking here.

All statistical data used is provided by Midwest Real Estate Data, LLC (MRED).

Written by on · Leave a Comment

Yogi Bear Client Appreciation Event

Yogi Bear Movie Saturday, December 18th

Have you responded to my client appreciation event yet? It’s going to be a ton of fun and I’m really excited about it. Through the years, I have done lots of different things to thank my real estate clients not only for their business, but for our continued friendships. This is the first time that I’m hosting a movie event and I’m anticipating a sell-out crowd!

 “Yogi Bear” releases this Friday, December 17th and early reviews are excellent! Reviewers are saying that fans of Yogi are going to love this. It’s a live action/ CGI film that has a greedy politician threatening to shut down Jellystone Park. That wouldn’t happen in real life, would it?? If that happens, Yogi (Dan Aykroyd) and his lovable sidekick Boo Boo (Justin Timberlake) will be left without a home. To save the park, Yogi and Boo Boo team up with Ranger Smith, played by Tom Cavanagh.

I’ve spent the week finalizing the details and making goodie bags for the kids. I couldn’t have done it by myself. Special thanks to Coldwell Banker Buffalo Grove’s marketing coordinator, Nancy D, for all of her help in getting this together ”Yogi Bear”  isn’t just a “kid” movie! I’ve had several clients call to say they are coming because they remember watching Yogi when THEY were kids. If you haven’t responded yet, call or email me. I’d love to see you there!

Written by on · 2 Comments

Should We Holiday Decorate Our Home For Sale?

Holiday Decorating When Your Home is on the Market

Real Estate for Sale Call Terry

Each year as we approach Thanksgiving, my seller clients ask “Should we take our home off the market for the holidays?” After I answer “no” (that’s another whole blog article!), the next question is “Should we decorate our house”? Relying on my 25 holiday seasons of showing and selling homes in Chicago’s northwest suburbs, my answer is yes. Here are a few simple tips that will allow your family to enjoy the holidays while still appealing to potential buyers.

1. Whether you call it minimalist or KISS (Keep it Simple Santa), less is more. If you usually have a 10’ fully decorated tree, perhaps this year you can try a smaller tree decorated with white lights and a few well-placed ornaments. If any size tree overpowers a room, this is the year for the table-top tree.
2. If you decorate outdoors, use a winter theme instead of a religious one. A simple wreath on the door and pots filled with greens create a sense of warmth at the front door. Leave the blow-up snowmen for next year at your new home!
3. Decorate your dining table for a holiday dinner. Winter whites, silvers and golds work really well. Complement this with a centerpiece of natural items such as pine cones and evergreen branches.
4. Use sensory staging to create a mood. Cinnamon or pine scents evoke a warm feeling in almost everyone. Burn a holiday scented candle for an hour or two before a showing and then extinguish. Never leave candles burning if you’re leaving for the showing.
5. Play soft, instrumental holiday music. Think Kenny G!
6. Keep your home well-lit and warm.

This past weekend, I showed 14 homes in Long Grove, Lake Zurich, Hawthorn Woods and Buffalo Grove to several different buyer clients. More than half of them were decorated for the holidays. Those that were moderately decorated, well-lit and smelling scrumptious caused the buyers to want to stay in the home longer. One of them may even be getting an offer in the next day or two!

Written by on · Leave a Comment

Fun Holiday Events at Knupper Nursery in Palatine

Knupper Offers Holiday Events for the Whole Family!

Visions of greenery, berries and bows are filling my head! Those who know me know that I love to garden. That doesn’t stop just because the weather has gotten colder. Now I’ll put my efforts toward creating beautiful winter pots. I’ll be crafting them for the front of my Long Grove home and my Coldwell Banker office in Buffalo Grove. Knupper has everything that I need to do that along with some great holiday events that are fun for the whole family.

This weekend (Saturday & Sunday, November 13th and 14th), Santa will be stopping by for that first photo op with the kids. Why not take this opportunity to get that perfect picture before all of the craziness of the holiday season?

The Winter Container Garden Workshop takes place next weekend. When I first started making winter pots, I attended this workshop and it’s full of great information and a lot of fun. I loved the help that I got from the staff and seeing what others were creating. The fee is $45 and includes all the materials you need. The first workshop takes place on Friday, November 19th at 2pm.

The weekend of November 20th and 21st brings the Christmas Festival to Knupper. Santa’s reindeer will be there on the 20th from 1pm – 3pm. Children can pet and feed the live reindeer. Let’s not forget our pets. Pet pictures with Santa can be taken on November 21st from 1pm – 3pm. I love that they’re accepting donations for Save-A-Pet at that time.

These are just a few of the events that Knupper is offering for the holiday season. For a full list of holiday happenings, visit their website. Knupper is located at 1801 N. Rand Road in Palatine.

Written by on · Leave a Comment

Get Your Lake Zurich Home Ready for Winter

6 Winter Maintenance Things You Can Do in a Weekend

The trees are bare, the days are growing shorter and the weather is getting colder. Whether you live in Lake Zurich, Long Grove, Buffalo Grove or any other Chicago land area, now is the time to take a winter maintenance walk around your house. Improvements made now will not only help to prevent costly repairs but will also help to keep you safe and cozy during the long winter months ahead. Here’s a list of 6 easy things to do that can be accomplished in a weekend:

1. Check your smoke detectors and install fresh batteries. Make sure that your fire extinguishers are fully charged.
2. Have your furnace checked out to be sure it’s in good repair. Typically this service also includes a test for carbon monoxide leaks. Have a supply of filters on hand. A clean filter great improves the efficiency of your furnace.
3. If you have a fireplace, have your chimney cleaned. This will prevent dangerous creosote build-up and help to prevent a chimney fire.
4. Clean leaves from the gutters to prevent ice damming and leaks.
5. Drain your exterior hoses. Disconnect the water supply from the house and leave it on until all water is drained.
6. Check around your windows and doors for leaks. An easy way to do this is to hold a lighter around the frame. If it flickers, there’s a leak. Caulk the leaks around windows if you can. If not, there are plastic sealing kits available at Lowe’s, Home Depot or Menards. For a leak around the bottom of a door, install a new door sweep.

If you need a referral for service people to accomplish some of these tasks, give me a call. I have a list of reliable people that I would be happy to share with you. When you finish, surround yourself with people you love and celebrate with a warm drink!

Written by on · Leave a Comment

Buffalo Grove Area Didier Farms Pumpkin Fest Begins Saturday!

Fun Fall Activities for the Whole Family!

 Saturday, September 25th, begins a Buffalo Grove area tradition – the Didier Farms Pumpkin Fest. For many years, my family and I enjoyed a visit to the farm stand, a hayride and picking the very best pumpkin. The pumpkin picking could take a long time as they each searched for their favorite.

 Over the years the Didiers have expanded the fall event to include pony rides, children’s mechanical rides, Sunshine Crafts painting activities and the Inflatable Pumpkin, a bouncing moonwalk. But that’s not all! Birthday parties are also available during the Pumpkin Fest.

My kids are grown now and we still talk about the fun of pumpkin picking. A visit to Didier Farms makes for some great memories. Didier Farms is a very popular place in the fall. That’s the one thing I’m not looking forward to – the traffic as I travel from my home in Long Grove to my Coldwell Banker office in Buffalo Grove. But it’s worth it as I think about all those families making memories.

 Didier Farms is located at 16678 Aptakisic in Lincolnshire. For more information, visit the Didier Farms website and have some fun this weekend!

Written by on · Leave a Comment

Kitchens…Remodeled!

Adding the “Wow” Factor to Your Kitchen

Kitchen "After"

 Home buyers today are looking for updates and upgrades. It doesn’t matter if they’re looking at condos in Arlington Heights or single family homes in Buffalo Grove, Long Grove or Lake Zurich. One of the most important upgrades is the kitchen. The updates can range from painted cabinets and new hardware, countertops and flooring to total overhauls.

Kitchen "Before"

Recently, a homeowner in Buffalo Grove made a major kitchen improvement. He purchased new cabinets, changed the configuration, added granite countertops, flooring and, well, you get the picture. Everything is new! The home had been on the market and buyer feedback was that it was out of date and overpriced. After the rehab, we relisted the home and are getting rave reviews. It’s only been on the market for a few weeks and we are awaiting an offer! Our feedback, although it is offered at a higher price, is that it’s priced well and shows better than the competition.

If your kitchen is looking a little tired and you just need a cosmetic update, you may opt for a less expensive overhaul. Painting your cabinets, installing new lighting and hardware and replacing your flooring and countertops can give you an updated look for a fraction of the cost of a total rehab. This couple did just that and are enjoying their updated, modern kitchen.

A Kitchen Facelift

The National Association of Realtors reports that homeowners receive a 79.5% average return on a kitchen update. The current real estate market in Terry’s Towns appears to be telling us that the number is much higher..

Written by on · 4 Comments

“When the well is dry, we know the worth of water.” ~ Benjamin Franklin

10 Easy Water Saving Tips

 “Water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink” is a quote that most people are familiar with. But did you know that only 3% of the earth’s water is drinkable and 2% of that is inaccessible? I was reminded of that yesterday during a presentation on green building practices and how they affect us in Lake County. There are literally hundreds of ways to conserve water and I’d like to share 10 easy tips that you can implement in your home today.

~Turn off the water while brushing your teeth or shaving to keep excess water from going down the drain.
~Put food coloring in your toilet tank. If it seeps into the toilet bowl without flushing, you have a leak. Fix it and save up to 1,000 gallons a month!
~Fix leaky faucets and consider installing faucets with water-saving aerators.
~Spread a layer of organic mulch around plants. It saves time, water and money.
~Use a broom instead of water to clean steps, driveways and sidewalks.
~Make sure the dishwasher is fully loaded before turning it on.
~Use leftover water for houseplants instead of pouring out a half-full glass of water.
~When doing laundry, use the appropriate water level and load size.
~Adjust your lawn mower to a higher setting. It will shade roots and hold moisture better than if it is closely clipped.
~Cut  your shower time down by just two minutes and save hundreds of gallons a month.

I just heard about west coast builders who require that buyers of their real estate sign a document disclosing that the builder will not guarantee that there will always be a water supply. I can’t imagine how that would play in Lake Zurich, Long Grove and Buffalo Grove real estate. I’m sure that I don’t want to find out, so I won’t be waiting until the well is dry to make changes!

Written by on · 4 Comments

Buffalo Grove Real Estate Best Buy!

Strathmore Home Completely Updated!

This expanded Roxbury has just undergone a major rehab! It has all the things that discriminating buyers are looking for AND it’s in a great location in Buffalo Grove’s popular Strathmore subdivision!

This home had been on the market before. The seller decided that he would do all of the updates and improvements that agents and potential buyers had suggested after viewing the property. Well, he did it and he did it beautifully!

The kitchen remodel is fabulous with 42” cabinets and granite countertops. They even added a granite-topped island. New lighting and glass back splash add a contemporary flair. This is truly a kitchen to be proud of!

The kitchen is just one of the updates. Location and condition are superb and it’s priced at $389,900 -the right price! This home has everything going for it including desirable Stevenson High School! I invite you to take a photo tour and then contact me for your private showing!

Written by on · Leave a Comment