Technology has been transforming the real estate industry. Less than a decade ago, finding homes for sale on the internet was a waste of time. Today, the internet is where it’s at. When I developed my business strategy years ago, I decided that one of the most important things was to always be on the cutting edge of real estate technology – to always give my clients the best way to buy and sell homes.

This week I am taking a major step forward in home search technology. It’s my pleasure to announce the release of an online map-based search feature on my Illinois real estate website. As many of you who have used my online property search know, the search I had available was a numerical search – basically, put in your requirements, and the system would show you a list of properties that met your search criteria. The downside was that many of you are looking for homes in a particular area. A simple list of properties gives you no idea of where the home is in relation to other properties you’ve seen or the areas you want. I have been searching for a solution that would allow my buyers to go online at any time of the day or night, search for homes in all areas of Northern Illinois and not only see details about each home, but also see where they all are in relation to each other.

Now I’m happy to bring you this solution. After lots of research into different technologies, I feel I’ve come up with the most advanced property search in the industry to offer to you. My new online search tool will allow you to search by two different methods. It will still allow you to search by criteria – number of bedrooms/bathrooms, search price and area. However, it will now allow you to search by map area. By zooming in the main map area, your display will be constantly refreshed on-the-fly with new properties as you scroll the map around. It will also allow you to narrow down your search criteria with a series of tools on the left toolbar. This means that you can limit the properties displayed to those that exactly meet what you’re looking for, and then compare those properties visually. Since this technology is also based on the Google Maps API, you can change your view to a satellite map or hybrid map and actually see what the homes look like.

Once you find a property you like, you can view detailed information about the property – a description, virtual tour, multiple photos and similar vital information. Just like you remember from my previous property search, you can save a search that will automatically send you property updates by e-mail as soon as a property comes on the market. I’ve also added a feature that allows you to “Favorite” your top properties, so you can log in and view your top choices at any time. You can print the property listing, convert it to a PDF and save it to your computer, bookmark it, email it to a friend and request information about it from me or even set up a showing – all online. The property photos appear as a slideshow as soon as you select the listing, but you can also view the photos in full-size by selecting the appropriate option below the photo slider.

While it was very important for me to develop a new visual search tool for you, I also wanted a search tool that had a lot under the hood – not just a bunch of pretty photos on a map. My new search feature offers plenty of home search tools besides the map search that will make selecting the right homes for you an easy, fun and interactive process. An integrated mortgage calculator can help you figure out an estimated monthly payment and the school and community information will allow you lean more about the area. There is even information about how close the home is to a grocery store or gas station. Finally, one of the newest tools available is an integrated Zillow Zestimate that will give you a rough idea of the value of the property. While many of these features have been available before on different websites, my new search tool integrates them into a single full-featured suite that will help you narrow down homes.

Another one of the newest features my search tool offers is an integrated Google Streetview for selected properties. On the property detail screen, select the “Maps” tab. A satellite map will open that shows you an overhead view of the neighborhood with the home you selected highlighted. When available, below this map is an integrated Google Streetview display that will allow you to see the outside of the home – even move up and down the street and see exactly where your selected home is in relation to the other homes in the subdivision. For homes without exterior photos or virtual tours, this will even allow you to see what the home looks like and what the other homes in the area look like.

If you haven’t already checked out my new property search, I would like to invite you to play around with it. Using it is completely free – you will eventually have to register to keep viewing properties but I think you’ll agree that it’s one of the most comprehensive property searches available. Check it out by clicking this link.

I’ve seen a lot of folks predicting a lot of things about the housing market. First, know that real estate is local. Market conditions in other parts of the country will change differently than our area. I feel it’s impossible to “peg” the market in general as far as what’s going to happen. However, in our area, I see a lot of optimism for this year. Let’s take a look at the factors:

There hasn’t been a lot of market activity over the past couple years. Buyers have been waiting for a good deal. Foreclosures are moving briskly but there’s an ever-plentiful supply. This has made it difficult to impossible for existing home owners to move. This pressure has created pent-up demand in the market.

Mortgage rates are extremely low right now. Close to the levels they were back in 2005 before Greenspan messed them all up. Lenders have tightened restrictions but those that can buy will be getting a good deal on loan rates.

There is increasing national attention being put on the housing crisis and the extreme number of foreclosures. The government may be stepping in at some point this year to stem the tide of foreclosures. Once the foreclosures slow, values will begin to rise.

Rentals are now getting harder to find and rent prices are rising. Rent prices are now getting higher than the cost of owning a condo or single-family home. This increases the number of buyers in the market as renters decide it’s better to buy than pay more in rent.

We’re now entering the spring market – a naturally busy time. This should reduce inventory as buyers begin to take up the slack. If the number of foreclosures begins to slow, we’re going to see a further reduction in inventory for the fall. This points to the possibility of an uptick in the market beginning this fall. I predict conditions will remain flat during the spring and summer as the existing inventory begins to be eaten up by buyer demand but this fall we should see a slightly better market.

What does this mean for home buyers? If you haven’t yet entered the housing market, now is the time. You want to buy when the market is at or close to bottom – not after it has started to recover. If you’re looking for the point at where there’s the biggest inventory at the lowest prices, put yourself in the position to purchase this spring and summer.

In today’s tough seller’s market, homeowners are looking for as many ways as they can to make homes stand out of the crowd. During the winter months, many sellers focus on the interior of a home to make it stand out. While the ground is blanketed in a thick layer of snow, improving the exterior of the home doesn’t make a lot of sense. Many buyers don’t linger outside and other features like a patio or deck are difficult to sell as important features when they’re unusable. However, as spring arrives, sellers must shift gears and the exterior of the home often becomes its biggest seller.

As the weather starts to warm here in Aurora and surrounding Fox Valley communities and the snow starts to disappear, homes that have particularly nice exteriors begin to shine. If your home features a big yard, beautiful garden, nice patio or deck and other fun summer features such as a three-season room, you are now entering the best time to show off these important assets. Perhaps one of the best ways to do this is through landscaping.

Landscaping, when done properly, is one of the easiest, most cost-effective way to get your home to stand out and also perhaps one of the biggest factors in creating buyer interest. It’s no secret that “curb appeal” can make or break a sale right from the beginning. As spring approaches, sellers should be carefully planning out how to use landscaping to help generate potential buyers.

The biggest dividends in helping a home look “homey” can often be some of the cheapest – flowers. Almost everyone loves the look of a nice bed of growing flowers around the home, even if they don’t particularly like to garden. If your home doesn’t have any ready places to plant flowers around the outside of the home, a good investment would be several hanging or free-standing pots full of nice bright spring flowers spaced strategically around the entrance. If you have flower beds, now is the time to make sure the leaves are cleaned out and a fresh bed of mulch is laid.

If you have a patio or deck, consider bringing out the patio furniture even if it’s still a bit too cold to enjoy. These spots are also great locations for plants – either potted or planted around. Make sure they are kept clean and neat at all times. A patio or deck can be a huge asset when selling a home.

I have personally toured the new community of Verona Ridge in Aurora several times. Verona Ridge by Orleans Homes offers luxury homes in a serene community surrounded by woods priced from the low 400’s. I have just received word this week that Verona Ridge has just started liquidating it’s current models and will be designing brand new models for this fall going forward. These new models are expected to bring the entry price for homes in Verona Ridge down into the 300’s – a plan that Orleans Homes likely hopes will spur additional interest in the community. This move is a bit suprising because these model homes are brand new this year but the current market has led many builders to change plans in order to create additional interest to offset flagging sales.

For current buyers who are looking for quick-delivery homes between $500,000 and $850,000, this opens up at least three beautiful homes for consideration. With prices slashed deeply on these homes, they represent an excellent opportunity for a few lucky buyers to get option-packed model homes at a discount. For additional information on these and other quick-delivery homes being offered by Orleans Homes in Verona Ridge, you can call me directly at 630-346-1041.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve received more rain than I can remember here in the Fox Valley. It wasn’t as un-relenting of a deluge as the Century Rain of 1996 where we got 17 inches in 24 hours, but it was a consistent build up of rain over the course of perhaps a week or so. There were several smaller violent storms that blew through causing wind damage to certain areas and dropping trees throughout the region.

The majority of the worry that many homeowners in the area have felt has been due to the water. Many of the Fox Valley communities are river communities. There are several large waterways that run through the area including the Fox River and DuPage River. River levels were running at decade-high levels and in some cases spilling over bridges and banks and flooding lowland areas. Another issue has been the that when you have that much constant rain, storm sewers can become clogged or just overwhelmed.

For the last week, we’ve seen a reprieve in the rain – there has been several dry days and the water levels have fallen drastically giving homowners a chance to clean up and dry out. Perhaps one of the most prevalent issues people experienced during the rain was water in the basement. If you are a Fox Valley homeowner dealing with water in the basement, the first thing you need to do is protect your belongings – get them up out of the water and get them dry. Next is pumping out the standing water and cleaning up the debris and finally, a good humidifier is a requirement. Remember, concrete is porous and retains its moisture well. Moisture is a good breeding ground for molds and other fungus. You need something to take the excess moisture out of those spaces.

After the biggest snowfall of the season, winter sports junkies are heading out to brave the cold and partake in a little winter fun. Two of my favorites when I was growing up – sledding and skating are alive and well in the area. You just need to know where.

 Sledding and Skating- two activities synonymous with winter in the Midwest. Every year, children of all ages re-discover the fun of ice skating. In the winter, there are many places that actually create outdoor skating rinks. Three of the best locations are Timber Trails Park, Davis Park and Langum Park all in St. Charles. Davis Park, is located along 10th Street between Horne and Fellow Streets and Timber Trails Park is located 1/4 mile north of 17th Street off of Dean Street. Both parks feature man-made skating rinks where visitors can participate in recreational skating from 12-5PM when the weather permits. For folks interested in ice hockey, Langum Park, located 2 miles south of Main St. between Riverside and 7th Ave. features a rink specifically designated for ice hockey. Be sure you contact the park district at 630-513-5188 to make sure these rinks are open before visiting.

Growing up, sledding hills in my area were the stuff of legends—passed down from kid to kid over the generations—which ones are better, steeper, faster etc. In the Fox Valley, some of the best sledding hills are rumored to be in Langum Park facing Rt. 25, in Timber Trails Park, in Fabyan Forest Preserve by the windmill along Rt. 25, in Oakhurst, Aurora and on Johnson’s Mound on Hughes Rd. Some of these hills might be off-limits to sledders, so make sure you verify that you’re able to use them before visiting. 

The area also features the world’s first snowboard-exclusive park – Raging Buffalo Snowboard Park. Courses include rails, jumps, table-tops and other snowboard-friendly items that will keep even the biggest adrenaline junkie busy this winter.

If you’re been missing the white stuff this winter, now’s the time to get your fix. Get out and have some fun before it all melts away.

Here’s a little preview of one of my features that will be coming out in a couple weeks in my new issue of the “Neighborhood News” – a newsletter focusing on Aurora real estate and real estate in surrounding communities.

 Cross Country SkiingThe Fox Valley area offers many opportunities for people of all ages to do some cross-country skiing. Many of the park districts and forest preserves open up trails  to skiers in the winter.Cross Country Skiing is a great winter pastime for those looking for an outdoor activity to help burn those holiday calories. It also allows residents and visitors of the Fox Valley to view some beautiful winter scenery. Some of the Kane County forest preserves that are known for great cross-country ski trails are Burnidge Forest Preserve, Fabyan Forest Preserve and  LeRoy Oaks Forest Preserve. All of these locations offer groomed trails for skiers when weather permits.