Lexington Homes Woodleaf at The Sanctuary Club, Kildeer, IL |
CHICAGO, IL – With
many experts proclaiming the real estate market has finally bottomed out, the
industry is still holding its collective breath as it looks toward 2013 with
great hope and anticipation.
Chicago-area real
estate experts, below, give an overview of their top real estate trends for
2013.
The Year We’ve Been Waiting For:
According to the
Commerce Department, U.S. builders started construction in October 2012 on the
most homes and apartments since July 2008, evidence that the housing recovery
is gaining momentum and making consistent gains.
Jeff Benach |
“Like other
builders, we're seeing a few things that have allowed us some cautious optimism
going forward,” said Jeff Benach, co-principal of Lexington Homes.
“Due to signs of
improvement in the market, we've been able to back off on incentives and
discounting at most communities. Also, buyers are not expecting as many
promotions or deals as in the past few years. We opened four communities in
2012 and hope to open two or three more in 2013. We’re ready to be running on
all cylinders again.”
Brian Brunhofer |
Brian Brunhofer, president of Meritus
Homes, which opened two new-home communities in 2012 and plans to open two
more in 2013, reports a similar uptick. “Traffic levels at our communities
continue to increase. There’s a sense that buyers want to get on with their
lives, and they are ready to purchase.”
Comeback of the
Custom Home:
Custom home activity
basically fell off the radar over the past few years, but with renewed
confidence in the economy and increased demand for high-end housing,
semi-custom and custom-home construction has been seeing signs of life.
Case in point, Lexington Homes launched a new
custom-home division called Portfolio Homes in October and opened its
first custom-home community, Woodleaf at The Sanctuary Club in Kildeer, Ill.
“There’s been a resurgence in custom home
sales in 2012, due to great values in the luxury market,” said Benach. “Record
low interest rates and pent-up demand will continue to fuel luxury real estate
sales in 2013.”
For a complete copy of the company’s news
release, please contact:
Kim Manning,
312-267-4527
Mark Thomton,
312-267-4523
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