I’m a Realtor in Plainfield, Illinois. I specialize in short sales and foreclosures, so I’m no stranger to the aftermath that can be found within the confines of a former “home”. I’ve seen some really destroyed places; sledge hammers to the walls, feces on the floors of every room, rotting food on the floors and counter tops, obscenities on the walls, roaches, abandoned pets, burst pipes, and the worst thing I’ve ever seen done by a homeowner who lost their home to foreclosure… they completely booby trapped the entire house.

It was a disgruntled homeowner in my neighborhood who pulled all of the live electric wires to the fuse box to the house, and then flooded the basement. If it weren’t for the warning they were “kind” enough to leave on the basement door leading to the basement, someone could have really gotten hurt, or worse, killed. No matter how angry you are, how could you purposely and willingly set out to hurt another human being to that degree? It’s something I don’t think I’ll ever understand.

As I mentioned around Christmas time, the first home Tony and I ever owned (and used sweat equity to build) went into foreclosure. We sold it about a year and a half before the market peaked. The homeowners who bought it treated it like an ATM instead of a home. 6 months into owning it, they took out a $50,000 line of credit. When they ended up in the middle of a divorce late last year there wasn’t any equity left for them to sell. (They must not have known about doing a short sale…)

We only moved about 1/2 a mile away from our previous home when we moved into our current home. We built this house because we knew we needed more space, but we didn’t want to move Mark around in school after switching him the year prior from a private school. Now, I’m not so convinced it matters anymore, but at the time it was one of my main concerns. It was just a lucky coincidence that a local area builder was completing an adjoining subdivision in our vicinity.

It was exactly like the house I just listed at 2503 Joe Adler Dr. that I posted pictures of earlier this week… a beautiful 4 bedroom 2 bath raised ranch that we put all of our blood, sweat, and tears into. We moved so far from where we were raised when we bought it, but we were SO proud of our first home. With the cards stacked against us, we crawled our way to the top. We earned every penny of the equity we had in that house when we sold it, by working hard and making good choices.

I loved that house… and I knew better than to go back and peek inside the windows today, but I had a dream about that house this week, and it finally got the best of me. My friend Laura lives across the street from our old house on Peyla Ln. so I knocked on her door today to make sure they weren’t living there anymore. When I told her I was going to run across the street to peek in the windows, she told me to hold on… she was going to get her shoes!

There wasn’t much to see from the front, other than the lack of attention to the yard and landscaping. The back of the house… on the other hand, told a completely different story.

It broke my heart to see what lay inside.

The kitchen cabinets had been removed. The garbage… OH, the garbage! The carpet had been removed, along with the wooden spindles on the wall that opened to the foyer. The appliances had all been stripped, and the reminder of their presence was echoed by the outlines of paint that now hold their place. The paint on the walls of the family room was still the same from when it once belonged to us, and I remember they day we painted it… and how pretty it looked that night when we put that room back together.

The playroom we made for the kids was now littered with dozens and dozens of Modelo beer cans and yes, more garbage. The cabinetry we added for toys were ripped from the walls. The cheery little room we made for kids to play happily in… was now a dumpster of angry intentions.

I honestly have to say that if I had any indication that the happy little house we once called home would have been victim to this foreclosure mess… I’m not sure I would have left. Don’t get me wrong, I love our home now, but there’s just something about your first home.

I’m guilty of personifying inanimate objects, places, and things. I think that’s what causes me to be somewhat of a pack rat at times. I’ve gotten better… and no, I’m not a hoarder, (’only cause I tell myself that’s what crazy cat ladies do!) BUT, I feel like I let that pretty & happy little house of ours down…

I let someone have it that didn’t love it as much as we did.

Someone that didn’t care about the hallway that Nathalie and Eric took their first steps in.

Someone that didn’t care that we took a leap of faith and started over somewhere new with a shoestring budget and caviar dreams, and made it home.

I know it’s not our home anymore, but it still hurt to see what someone else has done to it. It’s going to be sad to go back inside when it comes back on the market. I will torture myself one more time. I have to.

Of course I’m a real estate agent. Of course I am! I know that “home” is more than drywall and plaster. It’s where you hang your heart, and where your heart’s been hung. My memories don’t belong to 6613 Peyla Ln… but that address belongs to my memory and my heart.

This home we live in now, will be our home until we grow old, God willing. I’m a girl with roots, and jumping around is not my thing. I hope that my kids will always remember their roots and have the same attachment to home and family that I have. Home can be anywhere that we’re all at together, and no matter what the future brings, we are in it 100%.

I’d rather have a shell of a home, than a shell of a family. Sure, we’ll never be perfect… but we’ll always be together. Tony is one Hell of a guy, I tell ya. He is my rock and my best friend.

We are fierce together… just like fire and ice.

Home will always be wherever we are together… but that doesn’t necessarily mean we don’t leave an eentsy-weentsy bit of ourselves behind when we go; or take a little piece of it with us when we leave.

What does home mean to you? What’s your story?

I try to keep my personal life pretty lighthearted on here.  I mean, this is supposed to be about real estate, right?  Actually, I haven’t written many posts not related to real estate lately, so it’s safe to say I’m due for one of those testimonial posts about a great local business that I think you will love, whether you are new to Plainfield IL or have lived her for a long time.  If you have kids, you will appreciate the service that ABC Mom’s Inc. provide.

This post requires a little bit of a back story though.   Let me start there.

I have 5 kids.  Mark is 12, Nathalie is 9, Eric is almost 7, Jason is nearly 4, and little Leo?   He just turned 1.  Yep, that’s a lot of kids, but that’s not where this story starts, or ends.

About a year ago, when Leo was born, my life changed.  I mean, that’s a given, we added another member to the family, so of course it did.  BUT, this was not what I had in mind.

First, was the fire alarm.  Jason pulled it in the church office at Holy Family Parish as I registered the older kids for religious ed.  A week before school, my *almost* 3 year old pulled the fire alarm a week before school was to start.  It was horrible.  I cried the whole way home.  I was now the mother of “that kid”.  Yes-sir-eee, he was mine… and what was I going to do with him?!

Then came the hitting and spitting.

Anyone.  Anything.   If you were within arm’s length of him, you were officially fair game.  Apologies quickly lost their effectiveness with friends and family when they were muttered on repeat.  I was beginning to sound like a broken record, and it never seemed to matter to Jason when I tried to discipline him.

Tantrums.

Oh, there were precious few minutes between them.  His favorite place to have them, was of course, in public.  Actually, if I had to name names, Target was probably his favorite meltdown location.  Usually at or near the checkout.  He could often be caught chewing through a candy wrapper in the checkout line.

Running away from me was another one of his many talents.  It still is.  He likes to take off in the store, in the yard, at the park, in the mall… anywhere that isn’t with me.  Except of course, when he decides he needs to be on top of me.  AND I mean on top of me.  Touching me.  Near me.  ON me.  He’s hot or cold… but it’s always his way.

He won’t wear certain clothes.  Actually he won’t wear any kind of sweatpants.  He calls them “butt pants”.  God forbid his favorite pair of pajamas hasn’t made it out of the wash in time for bedtime.

He’s almost 4, and completely obsessed with his pacifier.  He stands in one place and jumps when he is excited while he flaps his hands at his sides.  WHAT was that all about?!

BUT, thanks to Jennifer Schuler and Dana Burke of ABC Mom’s Inc… I’ve gotten to know my mysterious and quirky little boy a whole lot better.

I was referred to ABC Mom’s by nurse Amy at Dr. Michael Reicherts office in Naperville. I made an appointment at the office because I didn’t know what else to do.  I couldn’t control my own son and I felt like a failure.  As disheartening as it was to have to ask for help… I was so thankful for her recommendation.

ABC Mom’s gave us our family back.

Jennifer and Dana are not judgmental, which was my biggest fear in asking for help.  They don’t point out the negative, or highlight your shortcomings, they help you discover for yourself what needs to change.  They make you want to be a better mom.

I once thought of them as the local version of Super Nanny, but now I know that’s not true.  They never told me I wasn’t doing it right.  They never acted like they could do it better.  They never forced me to make hard decisions about how my heart told me to parent, and the way the experts tell us to it.  They didn’t tell me to stick my kids on the naughty spot and listen to them cry for hours.  They taught me how to love them more, while I taught them better.

There is no shame in wanting the best for your kids.  There is no shame is asking for help.  If you are struggling with behaviors from your kids and don’t know where to turn, call the ABC Mom’s.  They will come to your home and help you with your specific concerns, and the best part is that they do accept many different insurance plans.

Call the ABC Mom’s at (630) 299-4909.  You will thank me later.
I’ll gladly take payment in real estate referrals. Lots of them! :o)

Julie Ferenzi | Realtor
Plainfield IL Homes for Sale
630-673-6233

The following luxury homes in the Grande Park subdivision in Plainfield IL have recently sold:

• 12825 Grande Poplar Cir. sold for $210,000 (S) on 2/12/10
• 26531 Rustling Birch Way sold for $230,000 (F) on 1/8/10
• 26609 Silverleaf Dr. sold for $238,000 (F) on 5/20/10
• 13323 Morning Mist Pl. sold for $270,000 (F) on 3/12/10
• 26232 Whispering Woods Cir. sold for $280,000 (F) on 12/30/09
• 12830 Grande Poplar Cir. sold for $285,000 (F) on 1/26/10
• 13318 Morning Mist Pl. sold for $285,000 on 1/15/10
• 26515 Silverleaf Dr. sold for $287,000 (F) on 4/7/10
• 13008 Grande Poplar Cir. sold for $295,000 on 3/12/10
• 26331 Whispering Woods Dr. sold for $299,000 on 4/13/10
• 12810 Grande Pines Blvd. sold for $300,000 (F) on 1/7/10
• 26531 Rustling Birch Way sold for $300,000 on 3/1/10
• 12921 Alpine Way sold for $315,000 on 5/28/10
• 26127 Whispering Woods Cir. sold for $320,000 on 5/10/10
• 26340 Whispering Woods Cir. sold for $330,000 (S) on 5/25/10
• 26428 Silverleaf Dr. sold for $340,000 on 1/4/10
• 13012 Grande Pines Blvd. sold for $350,000 on 5/25/10
• 13004 Grande Pines Blvd. sold for $359,900 (S) on 2/26/10
• 13413 Lindengate Ct. sold for $365,000 on 3/4/10
• 26415 Silverleaf Dr. sold for $375,000 (S) on 6/9/10
• 26144 Whispering Woods Cir. sold for $390,000 on 6/11/10
• 13310 Rosewood Ln. sold for $395,000 on 1/22/10
• 12903 Peppertree Dr. sold for $410,000 on 1/29/10
• 27022 Rustic Wood Ln. sold for $415,000 on 5/25/10
• 27028 Thornwood Blvd. sold for $420,000 on 5/10/10
• 13324 Wildwood Pl. sold for $466,500 on 5/27/10
• 13315 Rosewood Ln. sold for $515,000 on 5/27/10
• 12908 Peppertree Dr. sold for $540,000 on 6/7/10
• 12916 Peppertree Dr. sold for $545,000 on 5/27/10
• 27030 Thornwood Blvd. sold for $565,000 on 1/29/10

The Grande Park Subdivision in Plainfield IL is comprised of custom and luxury single family homes on premium home sites. The Grande Park subdivision is located near Rt. 30 and 127th  Street in Plainfield IL.  Construction in the community began in 2006 and homesites are currently available for new construction, though many of the custom home builders in that area have spec homes available for purchase.

Students attending public school in the Grand Park Subdivision in Plainfield IL attend the following schools if they are in the Kendall County and Oswego Township section of the subdivision:

• Grande Park Elementary
• Bednarcik Jr High
• Oswego East High School

Students attending public school in the Grande Park subdivision in Plainfield IL attend the following schools if they are in the Will County and Wheatland Township section of the subdivision:

• Walkers Grove Elementary
• Richard Ira Jones Middle School
• Plainfield North High School

If you want to know what your home in the Grande Park Subdivision is worth, or have a property in another subdivision in Plainfield IL, contact me at the tab on the top of this page or call me at 630-673-6233. It would be my pleasure to help you with any of your real estate questions.

Are you behind in your mortgage payments?  I specialize in short sales and I have been helping homeowners in foreclosure for over 5 years.  Call me to see how doing a short sale on your property can help you through this difficult time.

Julie Ferenzi | Realtor®
Plainfield IL Luxury Homes for Sale
630-673-6233

Later this week I am listing an absolutely adorable 3 bedroom ranch with a huge yard in downtown Plainfield IL.  I went there today to take the pictures and determine a value for the home, and I knew right away that I wanted to be the person to sell this house.  It’s just too cute for words.

The fenced in yard is huge, and you can walk to downtown Plainfield from this quiet little street.  The play-set in the backyard stays, and the garden is ready for the spring seeds.  The 2 car detached garage has attic storage and is ready for your tools and lawn mower!

All of the appliances stay (including the washer and dryer), and the kitchen and baths have been updated in recent years.

The seller is willing to finance qualifying applicants who can’t qualify for their own financing right now, but that are good candidates for financing within the next 5 years.  Seller financing will still qualify you for the federal tax credit if you get your contract in before April 30th, 2010.

Don’t miss this opportunity to own a home in the heart of Plainfield IL with charm and character!  More details to come later this week!

If you, or someone you know are looking to purchase a home in Plainfield IL, Naperville, Joliet, Aurora, Bolingbrook, Romeoville or a surrounding suburb, call me at 630-673-6233.  I work with the best attorney and lenders in the marketplace and we are ready and eager to help you find your next new home!

Julie Ferenzi | Realtor®
Plainfield IL Homes for Sale
630-673-6233

As of this month there are currently 205 pending and contingent Plainfield IL homes for sale.  Many of these homes are  contingent upon short sale approval, or financing, but most likely most will close in the next 3-4 months. (short sales take much longer to close than traditional sales…)

The surge to race to the finish line to qualify for the 1st time home buyer credit is not nearly as pronounced as it was last summer, when buyers frantically scrambled to get in on the market.  The market for first time home buyers is lukewarm at the moment, but maybe we can blame the weather in part too.  Much of the window of opportunity for first time home buyers in Plainfield IL has been overcome by the holidays and the cold winter months… but it’s not too late!

Buyers must be under contract by April 30th, 2010, and close by June 30th, 2010.  The credit for 1st time home buyers is 10% or up to $8,000, and for homeowners who have previously owned property that qualify can get back up to $6,500.

If you are in the market for a new home in Plainfield IL or any of the north or southwest suburbs of Chicago, call me at 630-673-6233.  I can help you make an informed decision on the biggest purchase of your life.  I am a full-time Realtor dedicated to the best interest of my clients.  Call me to find out how my level of customer service and market knowledge can help you!

Julie Ferenzi | Realtor®
Plainfield IL Homes for Sale
630-673-6233

It’s about to get a little tougher for buyers with low credit scores below 580 to qualify for an FHA loan.  The minimum required down payment of 3.5% has been increased to 10%.  In addition, buyers are now required to pay PMI (Premium Mortgage Insurance) of 2.25%  (up from 1.75%) of the financed loan amount.

In addition seller paid credits cannot exceed 3% of the purchase price for any buyer.

I think these changes are a good idea, and a necessary change to FHA standards.  Buyers need to be held accountable for their investments. Higher down payments will ensure that buyers are less willing to lose their own money by walking away from their initial cash investment.

If you are looking to buy a home in Plainfield IL, or a surrounding suburb, call me to find out how much you qualify for!  I work with one of the most experienced loan officers in the industry.  Call me at 630-673-6233 to find out what loan program best fits your needs.

Julie Ferenzi | Realtor®
Plainfield IL Homes for Sale
630-673-6233

It’s going to start to get a little harder for some FHA buyers to qualify for a loan.  Starting April 5th, 2010 buyers will now need a FICO score of 580 or higher to qualify for a 3.5% down loan.  All buyers with a FICO score of 579 and under will require a 10% down payment in addition to PMI insurance, meaning loans just got a whole lot more expensive for FHA buyers.  But it is very important to note that most lenders will not lend to buyers with a FICO score of less than 620.

All FHA loans after April 5th, 2010 will include an increase in PMI insurance of .5%.  There are also plans for seller concessions to be reduced from 6% to 3%, but no date has yet been released for that change.

Traditionally FHA loans were not FICO score driven, but as the market continues to soften, financial regulations are being put in place for buyers.  Plainfield IL home buyers need to pay special attention to these requirements when trying to take advantage of the first time home buyer credit.

If you are thinking of buying a home in Plainfield IL, or a neighboring community?  It’s important to move quickly to take advantage of the tremendous opportunity between now and April 5th.  Don’t miss out on the most affordable time to purchase a home… right now!

Call me at 630-673-6233 to get connected with a local Plainfield IL loan officer for your complimentary loan pre-approval from one of my preferred lenders!  There has never been a better time to buy a home in Plainfield IL!  Don’t get locked out of today’s market!!!

Julie Ferenzi | Realtor®
Plainfield IL Homes for Sale
630-673-6233

On November 6, 2009, legislation was passed that extends and expands the tax credit given to those purchasing a home for the first time, and also to long time homeowners who are purchasing a replacement primary residence.  It also raises the income limitations previously set for homeowners seeking to claim the credit.

Anyone that qualifies for this tax credit needs to enter a fully binding contract by April 30, 2009, and close on their new home by June 30, 2009. I am unclear as to how the “fully binding contract” will come into play with short sale contracts since they are not fully binding until they have bank approval… I’ll have to see about getting more info about this from my short sale negotiator.

The tax credit has done a lot to bring a lot of first time home buyers over the fence in Plainfield IL this fall.  These are buyers that had been waiting to see what the market was going to do, and the previous deadline of closing by November 30, 2009 has been the motivation to move quickly toward the end of September.

I have 3 closings this week, and all 3 of my buyers are taking advantage of the first time home-buyer credit!  Real estate typically slows down in the winter months, so it would great if we see this momentum throughout the end of 2009 and into 2010.

If you are looking for a new home in Plainfield IL or a surrounding area, call me at 630-673-6233.  I’m a full time Realtor who knows the Plainfield IL home market.    I can help you find your new home both in Plainfield IL or a surrounding area community in plenty of time to take advantage of the tax credit!

Julie Ferenzi | Realtor®
Plainfield IL Homes for Sale
630-673-6233

I hope this post doesn’t come off the wrong way… because the worst thing that can come out of this is that I sound like a megalomaniac.  Actually it’s almost exactly the opposite.

There are a lot of people out there that don’t care much for Realtors.  Let’s face it, there are plenty of agents out there that have done a really good job of disgracing the industry; but for every agent that portrays all of the negative stereotypes associated with helping people buy and sell homes, on the flip side, you might just get lucky and find someone like me.

I eat, sleep, and breathe real estate.  I just love it.  I always have.  I’m not in it for the money, because, in case you haven’t been watching the news, real estate hasn’t been a very lucrative profession lately.  This is the worst housing market since the great depression.  Yet, somehow I just can’t talk myself out of being excited about what I do.  Sometimes it involves a paycheck, and unfortunately even after many long hours invested in working with a client… sometimes it doesn’t.  Not everyone finds exactly what they are looking for at a price they can afford, but that’s just part of the business.

All Realtors have access to the MLS.  For what it’s worth, you pretty much do too.  Anyone can search for homes on the Internet, that’s why I now have my website linked directly to Realtor.com.  Anything else is just a lead capturing tool for agents to use to convince you to do business with them.  I’ve had those fancy personalized home search pages on my site before, and I realized that the truth is, if I provide you with valuable information and I am an informative resource to you in the home buying or selling process in Plainfield IL or a surrounding community… I don’t need to launch a stealth marketing campaign to earn your business.  I’d rather attract clients who chose to work with me, rather than attack innocent victims who just happened to stumble across my website doing a Google search with a barrage of unsolicited emails and phone calls.

I’m not sure what to think of the amazing turn of events I’ve been lucky enough to intercept, but I am so thankful and happy to be working with the best group of buyers I have see all summer.  The first time buyers credit has placed an absolutely wonderful  and amazing group of new home buyers in my life.  All three families are closing on their new homes in the next 30 days!  Chad and Sophie Peterson, Dane Justice and Jennifer Carter, &  Dennis and Molly Kim.  They have all been SO much fun to work with!  Of  course, by nature, I never want the fun to end… so I’m just going to have to find an excuse to keep in touch or get together again once they are settled into their new homes!  Dinner in downtown Plainfield?

I’d like to think that the #1 reason you’d like to work with me (other than being good at what I do, of course!)  is that I’m fun to work with!  I’m casual and down to earth.  My hair is often thrown back into a ponytail, I’ve never worn a business suit to work, and my modest Dodge Caravan has the same long lost stash of french fries hiding under the seats of my car as most of my clients, thanks to my 5 darling kids who often live life on the run with their busy mom :o)

I know you have a lot of Plainfield IL real estate agents to chose from.  Your business if important to me.  I know that if you like what I’ve done for you, I have a better chance of not only keeping your business… but earning it from your family and friends as well!

 I always make helping you find your new home a priority.  I never ever forget how exciting it is to buy a new home, and for all the crazy things that happen along the way, having a sense of humor is not only necessary survival skill in this market… it’s a job requirement.   

Julie Ferenzi | Realtor®
Plainfield IL Homes for Sale
630-673-6233

Time is running out in Plainfield IL for buyers to take advantage of the first time buyers tax credit of up to $8,000.  If you are a first time home buyer you need to close by November 30th, 2009.  This poses a big problem for buyers that are tangled up in short sales because there is no guarantee of if and when those contracts will close.

The inventory of homes available has dramatically decreased in the last 3 months since the details of the first time buyers tax credit were announced, but there are still great opportunities for home ownership available.

I can help you take advantage of the first time buyers tax credit by searching for homes that are not short sales and that are available for a quick close in Plainfield IL, by sellers who are motivated for an offer on their property!  I’m clearing my schedule for qualified buyers to take advantage of this amazing opportunity before time runs out.

Call me today so you can get into your new home in Plainfield IL by November 30th… and get your first time home buyers $8,000 tax credit!

Julie Ferenzi | Realtor®
Plainfield IL Homes for Sale
630-673-6233