Following the footsteps of IPO and Trojan in Chicago: Panda's quest to unload his townhome.

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PANDA_IHB

PANDA_IHB

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<a href="http://www.redfin.com/IL/DES-PLAINES/716-1st-Ave-60016/unit-716/home/18740678">http://www.redfin.com/IL/DES-PLAINES/716-1st-Ave-60016/unit-716/home/18740678</a>

<a href="http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/716-1St-Ave-Unit-716_Des-Plaines_IL_60016_1106315156">http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/716-1St-Ave-Unit-716_Des-Plaines_IL_60016_1106315156</a>



My real estate agent just told me that photos of my home is up and it will take until the end of the week to get into realtor.com and redfin.com, but i wanted to share with all of you my listing as soon as i could.



Of course where i live is nothing like Irvine where the average time that the home sits in the market is between 4 - 6 months here. I purchased this townhome after three unsuccessful attempts to secure a Casalon Town Home (Plan B1 $459,500 at the time) in Quail Hills back in June of 2003. The week I got back from Irvine, I put a down payment on this phase one townhome that i am listing now. The builder was asking for $359,500 for a 2550 square feet four story brick town home back in 2003. At the peak of the Chicago market the home was being listed for $484,000, and now the home is being listed at $399,900.



I negotiated the painting cost down to $2700 from $3000 to paint the whole house and $400 for staging costs using all of our own existing furntiture. I negotiated with my agent to bring down his commission to 4% from 5%. Total cost to take to get this townhome ready for market was $3,100. I am hoping that i can securely take out the equity i had put into the home in 2003 without any losses after paying commissions and fees, and transfer this equity as a down payment for my future Irvine home purchase.
 
[quote author="skek" date=1233027933]Good luck, Panda. So where will live after your townhouse sells? Chicago or Irvine?</blockquote>


Skek,

I am hoping to make the move this year to an IAC apartment in Irvine if and when my townhome sells. It seems that my wife's accounting firm is reducing their staff size at the Irvine office, but growing their staff in the Chicago office. So there are couple of things i still need to really think through. I just know that i need to be in Irvine ready to buy between 2010 - 2012. This i am sure of.
 
Bravo Panda. Best of luck. I know you will get a good price. By the way are there still people burried in those chairs under that snow?
 
[quote author="morekaos" date=1233030334]Bravo Panda. Best of luck. I know you will get a good price. By the way are there still people burried in those chairs under that snow?</blockquote>


Yeah mon! That's Panda's dinner for tonight. It is our second refrigerator for frozen people.
 
[quote author="IrvineRealtor" date=1233030484]Good luck Panda,



Thanks for the reminder of how happy I am in warm Orange County.</blockquote>


You are not kidding IR2. When I arrived at Ohare last night, it was 5 degrees. I was starting to get so jealous of all of you.
 
You have a nice place, Panda. I really like the vaulted ceilings and your floors in the living and dining room. Nice big corner tub too. I am sure you will get some offers. You must be looking forward to not having so many stairs to climb in the future. Thanks for sharing.
 
$400 for staging is pretty cheap.



Painting is always good as it gives a house an upgraded look.



So what does your garage look like? Heh.



Good luck... and keep us updated!!!
 
[quote author="T!m" date=1233040810][quote author="irvine_home_owner" date=1233039737]

So what does your garage look like?</blockquote>


And what do you use it for?</blockquote>


First year in business, I used half of my garage for inventory space.
 
[quote author="irvine_home_owner" date=1233039737]$400 for staging is pretty cheap.



Painting is always good as it gives a house an upgraded look.



So what does your garage look like? Heh.



Good luck... and keep us updated!!!</blockquote>


Hmmm, no wonder I couldn't negotiate prices down to $350 with the staging lady. She said, "No Panda, this is as low as i go."
 
Good luck Panda, definitely keep us posted on the progress of the sale. Sorry that I couldn't make it to lunch...I thought it was Friday afternoon (when I had my interview) and not on Saturday. We'll definitely have to catch up the next time you come out to So Cal.
 
[quote author="PANDA" date=1233026255]<a href="http://tours5.vht.com/Viewer/PhotoGallery.aspx?ListingID=50018286&Style=IDX">http://tours5.vht.com/Viewer/PhotoGallery.aspx?ListingID=50018286&Style=IDX</a>



My real estate agent just told me that photos of my home is up and it will take until the end of the week to get into realtor.com and redfin.com, but i wanted to share with all of you my listing as soon as i could.



Of course where i live is nothing like Irvine where the average time that the home sits in the market is between 4 - 6 months here. I purchased this townhome after three unsuccessful attempts to secure a Casalon Town Home (Plan B1 $459,500 at the time) in Quail Hills back in June of 2003. The week I got back from Irvine, I put a down payment on this phase one townhome that i am listing now. The builder was asking for $359,500 for a 2550 square feet four story brick town home back in 2003. At the peak of the Chicago market the home was being listed for $484,000, and now the home is being listed at $399,900.



I negotiated the painting cost down to $2700 from $3000 to paint the whole house and $400 for staging costs using all of our own existing furntiture. I negotiated with my agent to bring down his commission to 4% from 5%. Total cost to take to get this townhome ready for market was $3,100. I am hoping that i can securely take out the equity i had put into the home in 2003 without any losses after paying commissions and fees, and transfer this equity as a down payment for my future Irvine home purchase.</blockquote>


Save yourself $3K and paint it yourself bro. Painting is one of the easiest things you can do yourself.
 
Didn't we teach you anything about realtors writing in ALL CAPS?! Also, there is a typo - <em>ENJOY *MAINTENANCED* FREE LIVING TODAY. </em>



Cute place PANDA, wishing you luck in this tough market.
 
Thanks Troop,



I am going to need all the luck i can get with low mortgage rates at the moment. An agent called me today to tell me that she has someone coming to see my place on Saturday. Come June 2009, I think we are going to experience some ungodly drops in home prices and inflation picking up steam in the second half of this year. I believe home prices in OC will be 2001 prices (best case scenario) and 1997 prices (worst case scenario). Because Chicago real estate was slighly appreciating (1-2%) during 1990-1995 decline in California, I thought that the midwest was immune to the housing recession. I couldn't of been more wrong. My goal is to unload before June of '09.
 
Good question Socal,



I haven't figured that part out yet. Makes me a little nervous seeing how bad the job market is in OC. Though the job market and housing is bad here, I am sure it is much more magnified over there. It would be painful to move to a rental here, and then move to a rental again in an IAC apartment. In an ideal situation, I would love to just move to an IAC apartment and rent for 2 years and then buy between 2011 - 2012. I may need to ask my wife to just quit her job if her firm does not transfer her to the Irvine office, but that conversation will come up more seriously once the home sells. It seems that i need to make my decisions very carefully especially during times like this.
 
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