North Shore Views

Listing Descriptions That Can Scare Buyers Away

A recent article by Michael Estrin of Bankrate.com highlights the red flags in real estate listings that can send potential buyers running for the hills. Some of them may surprise you:

1. Listing a property without pictures. Buyers assume that there must be something wrong with the house.

2. Lack of transaction details. For example, a short sale listing that doesn’t address whether the lender has approved of the price.

3. Hyperbole. Buyers can be turned off by superlative claims like, “Best property on the market.”

4. Price too good to be true. Listing a home at a very low price can attract lots of buyers, BUT it can also attract UNQUALIFIED buyers looking to get a bargain.

5. The flipper. Phrases like “recently remodeled” sound good, but can actually be a red flag to those in the know. It can imply that this is a flip that may have been done without proper permitting or with shoddy workmanship and cut corners.

6. “As is”. These days those two little words can mean that the previous owners have taken everything out of the house that wasn’t nailed down (and some things that were, like appliances, cabinetry and bathroom fixtures).

You can read the full article here.

Tags: Real estate listings

Luxury Condo Values at Mallinckrodt in the Park

If you’re looking for a home that has the character and charm of a vintage building, but with all the modern amenities, a condo at Wilmette’s Mallinckrodt in the Park might be for you.

Prices have been significantly reduced on the remaining units at  Mallinckrodt at 1041 Ridge Road. These luxury condos feature high end finishes, in-unit laundry, heated indoor parking, convenient location and gorgeous park setting. Most of the units can be customized to the client. Three finished models are also available for sale.

Attention dog lovers: this is one of the only condo buildings in Wilmette that allows dogs as well as cats.

Several different floor plans are available in sizes ranging from 1,180 to 2,193 square feet.

Prices ranging from $235,000 to $499,000 are 30% below original list prices.

Mallinckrodt is an age-determined building, meaning that at least one of the deed-holders must be 62 years old. No one under 18 years old can be a permanent resident.

Mallinckrodt is a 5 story 180,000 square foot Italian Renaissance structure built in  1918 as a convent and a college. It was converted to 81 condos after a group of citizens petitioned to prevent the historic building from being torn down for development of single family houses. The adjacent 14 acre park is held in perpetuity by the Wilmette Park District as open space.

The models are open most weekends. Or, give me a call at 847-687-5957 if you’d like an appointment to see the available units.

Tags: dog-friendly condos, Real estate, Real estate listings, Wilmette, Wilmette condos for sale