Installation of sprinkler systems in new single-family homes and town houses would be required under a change approved to a model building code used by states and cities across the U.S. The change was overwhelmingly approved by building code officials who met this month in Minneapolis.

While home builders challenged the move by the International Code Council, raising doubts about whether homeowners would properly care for such systems,  the National Fire Sprinkler Association joined firefighters in backing the effort, citing its life- and property-saving potential.

Individual cities and states that use the code may ignore the sprinkler mandate, which goes into effect in 2009 for town houses and 2011 for single-family homes. But the group’s adoption of the standard means more communities and states are likely to require it.

Media reports, citing industry estimates, put the cost of a  sprinkler system at $3,500 for an average new single-family home.

Tags: building code, homes

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Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.’s bankruptcy filing  on Sept. 15 could mean some good news for the mortgage market. Lehman’s moved led to a shift by investors to the U.S. Treasury market, which in turn pushed down yields that affect home mortgage rates. By the morning of the 15th, the rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage had dropped about a 0.125 percentage point to nearly  6 percent, according to figures from Bankrate Inc. “The Treasury’s whole goal is to get mortgage rates down,” Todd Abraham, co-head of mortgage and government debt investing at Federated Investors Inc. in Pittsburgh, told Reuters news service.

Tags: Mortgage rates

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HINSDALE’S average listing prices for the week ending Sept. 10, according to stats compiled by real estate search engine Trulia:

1 bedroom: $129,946

2 bedrooms: $341,241

3 bedrooms: $559,170

4 bedrooms: $1,208,247

The average listing price for all homes was: $1,251,978

The average sales price for all homes from June to August was $1,034,775, which is an average square foot price of $451; and 69 homes were sold during that period, according to Trulia.

Tags: average sales price, DuPage County, Hinsdale, Illinois, list price, square foot price

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HINSDALE’S average listing prices for the week ending Sept. 3, according to stats compiled by real estate search engine Trulia:

1 bedroom: $134,245

2 bedrooms: $342,963

3 bedrooms: $557,033

4 bedrooms: $1,220,643

The average listing price for all homes was: $1,269,661

The average sales price for all homes from June to August was $1,034,775, which is an average square foot price of $451; and 69 homes were sold during that period, according to Trulia.

Tags: average list price, DuPage County, Hinsdale, Illinois, square foot price

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HINSDALE’S average listing prices for the week ending Aug. 27, according to stats compiled by real estate search engine Trulia:

1 bedroom: $144,993

2 bedrooms: $356,652

3 bedrooms: $577,654

4 bedrooms: $1,200,999

The average listing price for all homes was: $1,262,398

The average sales price for all homes from May to July was $934,223, which is an average square foot price of $582; and 56 homes were sold during that period, according to Trulia.

Tags: average list price, DuPage County, Hinsdale, Illinois, square foot price

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HINSDALE’S average listing prices for the week ending Aug. 13, according to stats compiled by real estate search engine Trulia:

1 bedroom: $144,993

2 bedrooms: $404,668

3 bedrooms: $582,087

4 bedrooms: $1,164,959

The average listing price for all homes was: $1,205,323

The average sales price for all homes from May to July was $934,223, which is an average square foot price of $582; and 56 homes were sold during that period, according to Trulia.

Tags: average list price, DuPage County, Hinsdale, Illinois, square foot price

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Across the U.S., sales of existing homes climbed in July to their highest level in five months, the National Association of Realtors said.

In the Midwest, existing-home sales rose 0.9 percent to an annual rate of 1.12 million in July, but are 17.0 percent lower than July 2007. The Midwest’s median price was $175,400, up 1 percent from a year ago, the Realtors group said.

Nationally, existing-home sales, which includes single-family, town homes, condominiums and co-ops, went up 3.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5 million units in July from a downwardly revised level of 4.85 million in June. But that is a drop from the 5.76 million-unit pace in July 2007.

Total housing inventory at the end of July was 4.67 million existing homes available for sale, which represents an 11.2.-month supply at the current sales pace, up from a 11.1-month supply in June. The rise in supply results from a sharp increase in condo inventory; the single family supply declined, according to the National Association of Realtors.

According to Freddie Mac, the national average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage hit 6.43 percent in July up from 6.32 percent in June.

Tags: , home sales, inventory, median price, Midwest, mortgage rate

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Second quarter home sales in Illinois increased over the first quarter of 2008 but were lower when compared to the same period in 2007, according to the Illinois Association of REALTORS’ second quarter report. Total home sales (and that includes single-family homes and condominiums) were 32,414 in the second quarter, down 25.4 percent from 2007 when the sale of 43,438 homes was reported. The median home sale price for the quarter was $192,500, a drop of 6.8 percent from 2007’s $206,500. 

“While sales certainly have picked up across Illinois during the early spring and summer months, some buyers and sellers seem to be waiting for the all-clear signal to make a move in this market as economic and consumer confidence indicators remain weak,” said Kay Wirth, president of the Illinois Association of REALTORS.

  Wirth added that the new first-time buyer tax credit and foreclosure rescue program enacted by the Housing and Economic Recovery Act “should help stabilize the housing market.”

According to the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp., the second-quarter commitment rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage for the North Central Region averaged 6.12 percent, which was down from 6.40 percent one year ago.

   In the Chicagoland Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area, total home sales (including single-family and condominiums) dropped 28.9 percent in the second quarter to 20,679, as compared with the 29,092 homes sold in the second quarter last year. The median home sale price in the Chicagoland PMSA was $250,000 in the second quarter compared to $256,000 one year ago.

“Research shows that just one sale of a residential home in Illinois results in $28,413 in direct expenditures to other industries such as purchases of new furniture and appliances, repair costs and moving expenses. The housing market’s impact on the state’s economy underscores why REALTORS urge state and local government leaders to keep jobs in Illinois and foster a healthy economy,” said Wirth, a broker with Re/Max Unlimited Northwest in Crystal Lake.

Second quarter condo sales across the state were down—9,141 condos sold compared to 13,897 units sold in the second quarter of 2007. The 2nd quarter median price for a condominium in Illinois was $232,000, up from $223,000 a year ago.

Tags: home sales, Illinois, price

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HINSDALE’S average listing prices for the week ending Aug. 6, according to stats compiled by Trulia:

1 bedroom: $144,993

2 bedrooms: $409,370

3 bedrooms: $590,682

4 bedrooms: $1,169,311

The average listing price for all homes was: $1,216,034

The average sales price for all homes from May to July was $934,223, which is an average square foot price of $582; and 56 homes were sold during that period, according to Trulia.

Tags: average sales price, DuPage County, Hinsdale, Illinois, list price, square foot price

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The current average value of a Hinsdale home is $789,321 compared to a national average of $260,559, according to stats compiled by ESRI, the geographic information system and mapping software company.

Tags: DuPage County, Hinsdale, homes, Illinois

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