No Man's Land in the Chicago Condo Mortgage Market

Rates dropped today. Got an email from lenders all over the place saying that conforming loans hit 5.5%. That's great news for a down market.

I was dealing with a contractor at my house today when the email hit the phone. We began discussing rates, and he asked what that does for him. I asked if he's conforming and if so then he should call one of the multiple mortgage guys that emailed me today.

He looked at me and asked what conforming means. Now I'm NOT a lender or mortgage broker, but conforming generally means if Fannie and Freddie will buy your loan and that generally means you have to be under the magic 417K number.

Apparently he's not so that ended our discussion. I do have a lot of buyers who need a place over 417K. It is becoming a problem for them to get a loan. Russ Martin, of Perl Mortgage, explains why non-conforming loans have become No Man's Land.

National Historic Registry Home For Sale

For a down market, it's been a bit busy and not just with foreclosures - although short sales and foreclosures abound.

I recently (as in just got back Sunday) took a family vacation overseas. Africa actually. Great trip and just a great time to get away, although quite a shock to return to cold weather.

Discussion over dinner turned to the house I grew up in. It turns out that it's on the market. I spent ten years in this house. Great to see the owners (not the one's my mom sold it to) have kept it up. I guess it explains my bent towards dark floors and formal dining rooms and Northside vintage condos in general.

I remember when my parents renovated the house and my mom asked for the laundry to be moved from the first floor to the second. The guys thought she was crazy. It's the norm now in new construction single family homes now.

It's a great house, hopefully someone makes it a great home. For 10 years I called pictue 20 my bedroom.