Keller Williams Luxury Homes by Keller Williams entered the Chicago real estate market as a division of Keller Williams Realty, the third-largest and only profitable real estate firm in the United States. The Keller Williams Luxury Homes division has provided the resources and opportunity to luxury real estate agents and their clients to expose their business to an international marketplace in a seamless and cohesive fashion. KW Luxury Homes is honored to be named Chicago’s favorite luxury home real estate company by the Chicagoland real estate community.

NOMINEES:
Prudential Rubloff Properties
Sudler Sotheby’s International Realty

Trump International Hotel & Tower were honored by the Chicago Architecture Foundation

Donald Trump's Trump International Hotel & Tower and Kirkland & Ellis LLP's 300 North LaSalle were honored by the Chicago Architecture Foundation on Thursday at the group's annual Patron of the Year awards luncheon.

The coveted honors, given to those who commission buildings, are among the few awards handed out in town that are kept a secret until they're announced from the stage.

This year was no different, as attendees made off-the-cuff bets as to who would win.

The afternoon affair sponsored by Stein Ray & Harris LLP was held at the University Club just off Michigan Avenue and featured a number of high-profile guests, including Michael McCaskey, chairman of the board of the Chicago Bears, and Sunny Fischer, executive director of the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation.

The two served on the jury led by famed architect Stanley Tigerman, who drew a crowd of visitors around his table in his first public appearance since being hospitalized for heart-bypass surgery.

"It's good to be out of there," said Mr. Tigerman, whose recent work includes the Holocaust Museum in Skokie.

Other projects honored were the Charles H. Shaw Technology & Learning Center and Richard J. Klarchek Information Commons in the institutional category and the Chicago Cultural Center: Preston Bradley Hall Dome Restoration and Chicago Main Branch Riverwalk in the government category.

Copyright © 2009 Crain Communications, Inc. Posted by Shia K.

2 Trump Hotel Unit Owners Face Foreclosure

(Crain’s) — Donald Trump’s ritzy new downtown hotel is attracting guests no property owner wants to see: foreclosure lawyers.

In another bad sign for the New York developer, lenders have filed foreclosure suits on two condominium-hotel units in his 92-story Chicago skyscraper, which has been clobbered by the condo bust and the worst hotel market in decades.

The investors who bought the two units from the developer last year are trying to sell them at steep discounts through so-called short sales, or for less than the debt owed on the units. One hotel room is on the market for less than half of what it sold for in March 2008.

Foreclosures and short sales have become routine in the current real estate market, and two lawsuits don’t represent a trend. But they rarely happen so quickly at high-end projects like the Trump International Hotel & Tower, which just opened last year.

The cases also raise questions about how low condo-hotel prices in the riverside project can go. And one broker with listings in the building expects more foreclosure suits in the future.

“No question about it,” says Andrew Glatz, president of Chicago-based brokerage Crown Heights Realty. “There will be a flood of them.”

Mr. Glatz is trying to sell a condo-hotel unit on the 20th floor for $379,000, less than the $493,589 loan balance on the unit. The owner bought the room from a Trump affiliate for $664,000 in February 2008. Wells Fargo Bank N.A. last month filed to foreclose on the unit.

Wells Fargo has also sued to foreclose on a unit on the 24th floor with an original mortgage of $712,000. The unit is on the market for $389,900, 56% less than the $895,000 Trump sold it for in March 2008. Wells Fargo would have to approve both sales if the investors can’t repay the loans in full but want to be released from the mortgages.

Mr. Trump says the two suits and potential short sales say nothing about the project at 401 N. Wabash Ave., which includes 486 residential condos and 339 hotel units. The development is “doing very nicely,” he says, and foreclosure suits in new condo developments are “common all over the place,” not just in his building.

Still, Mr. Trump ran into major loan problems of his own last year, when he and a lending syndicate led by Deutsche Bank Trust Co. Americas sued each other over a past-due $640-million construction loan. The two sides signed a truce in March, and Jason Greenblatt, general counsel and executive vice-president of the Trump Organization, says he expects to reach a more formal settlement in the coming weeks.

That would be good news for the project, which has struggled with slow sales amid the depressed condo market. Sales of residential condos are stuck at 365 units, or 75% of the total, and haven’t really budged in three years, according to Appraisal Research Counselors, a Chicago-based consulting firm that tracks the downtown condo market.

Investors can also buy hotel suites in the building, like they would a residential condo, with the option to occupy the units or have them rented out. But condo-hotel sales stalled out a few years ago and are currently stuck at 191 units, according to Appraisal Research. Though a hot concept during the boom, the condo-hotel has been a tough sell during the bust. Skeptics say hotel units are a bad investment structured in a way to benefit the hotel developer, not the owners.

In a lawsuit filed in September, a Trump condo-hotel investor alleged that the company formed to develop the project broke earlier promises over the hotel units, deciding, for instance, to keep profits from the hotel’s ballroom and meeting space after stating earlier that the money would go to the hotel unit owners. Mr. Greenblatt says he can’t comment on the complaint because hasn’t seen it.
A group of four condo-hotel investors filed a virtually identical suit against the project in 2008 that “was resolved to everyone’s satisfaction,” says Shelly Kulwin, an attorney for the investors in both suits. Terms of the settlement are confidential, he says.

The market for hotel units is especially thin these days because many lenders, leery of the risks, won’t finance purchases of them. And the hotel market is in a deep slump, driving down occupancies and room rates at many hotels. Declining room revenues would make it tough for many owners to cover the mortgage payment, property taxes and assessments.

Unless an investor can buy a unit at a steep discount, owning a hotel suite “absolutely doesn’t make sense in today’s market,” says Mr. Glatz, the broker. “Right now, people have to feed them on a monthly basis and they’re losing money.”
While acknowledging the difficult hotel market, Mr. Trump says his hotel is doing well and has managed to keep its occupancy high. He declines to disclose the hotel’s occupancy or average daily room rates, but Mr. Glatz says the hotel has slashed rates to fill rooms.

Where the hotel market goes from here will be a key factor determining the future value of the Trump condo-hotel suites. But some units in the building could be poised for a big fall based on estimated values of comparable properties; the recent sale of a minority stake in the Peninsula Chicago, one of the city’s most expensive hotels, valued the property at $460,177 a unit, well below the $1-million-plus Trump received for some of his hotel units.

Distress could play a role, too. While two short sales aren’t likely to depress values of other units in the building, a higher number could, says Gail Lissner, vice-president of Appraisal Research, the consulting firm.

“I think it’s all about the quantity,” she says.
By Alby Gallun, Nov. 18, 2009

The condo hotels are a separate company from the residential units which continue to sell well. Maybe Trump should buy them back and just run this as a hotel like Elysian is doing? The hotel is beautiful and is has a high occupancy - and having a hotel instead of hotel condos would solve the problem of difficult financing for those beautiful residential homes at Trump!

Far From Shore

This is written by one of my best child-hood friends from Rugby Row in Madison, Wisconsin. I've known Marge since she was 3 and this is a true story of what happened to one of her sons just a few years ago in California. Riveting!

Far From Shore: A Mother's Memoir of a Shark Attack

Available on Amazon
Please visit our website

Trolley Tour of New Construction

Trolley Brunch Tour

Join us for a city tour of select New Construction Buildings.
Enjoy some food and drinks, and talk real estate!

* What: A trolley tour of some of our fine New Construction properties
* Where: Meet at the offices at 676 N Michigan, on Huron, next to the Omni Hotel
* When: Sunday, November 15th from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
* RSVP: triciafox@triciafoxgroup.com or (312) 446-7373

RSVP is mandatory as seating is limited.
Please provide us with your name and the name of your guest.

Tour Schedule
1. 10 E Delaware
2. Walton on the Park
3. Aqua
4. 65 E Monroe
5. The Legacy

Click here for more information or to RSVP

Credit buoys sellers' hopes

When Congress voted overwhelmingly Thursday to expand the first-time homebuyer tax credit to include repeat buyers, it brought a ray of hope to segments of the Triangle housing market that have not had much to cheer about of late.

The bill, which awaits President Barack Obama's signature, adds a credit worth up to $6,500 for repeat buyers who have lived in their houses at least five years. The legislation also significantly raises the annual income limits required to be eligible to qualify for the tax credits.

The number of people eligible for the new credit is large, and real estate agents hope it will increase sales of houses that are priced beyond the reach of most first-time buyers.

Laurie Kelly, whose North Raleigh house is on the market for $430,000, is optimistic that the new credit will help her both sell her house and buy one in Virginia.

Kelly's husband recently started a new job in Washington, and the family's house has been for sale since the summer.

The Triangle housing market has a glut of houses priced above $400,000.

"We have a beautiful home," she said. "We just have so much other beautiful competition."

The offers Kelly has gotten have been contingent on the buyers selling their existing homes. Kelly hopes the $6,500 tax credit will help those people sell, which in turn will benefit her.

"It's just a domino effect," she said.

Most people who have taken advantage of the first-time homebuyer tax credit in the Triangle bought houses priced below $300,000, which has greatly reduced the inventory of houses at those price points.

About 1.42 million U.S. taxpayers have qualified for the credit through August, including nearly 45,000 in North Carolina, according to the Internal Revenue Service.

Real-estate agents in the Triangle and across the country had grown increasingly nervous about what might happen if the tax credit were allowed to expire Nov. 30.

In the Triangle, the credit was thought to be the main reason that house sales bottomed out this fall. The number of houses sold during September in Durham, Johnston, Orange and Wake counties was 1,595 - up a half percent from the same period a year ago, Triangle Multiple Listing Services data show.

It was the first year-over-year increase in any month since 2007.

Stacey P. Anfindsen, a Cary appraiser who analyzes MLS data for Triangle real estate agents, said he's doubtful the higher priced homes will receive the same boost from the repeat buyer tax credit.

"There are more people with $50,000 jobs than $200,000 jobs," he said. "If you try creating buyers in the $400,000 and up price range you're really just going back to what we were doing before."

Among the causes of the meltdown in the housing sector were the lax lending standards applied to homebuyers. Anfindsen agrees lenders have stopped making risky loans, but he said the $6,500 tax credit may be small when compared to the decline in personal savings and home values experienced by many.

April, June deadlines

The repeat buyer tax credit is already getting the attention of people who have been casually looking to move into a new home but were not in any hurry. The bill passed by Congress requires that first-time and repeat buyers put homes under contract by April 30 and close by June 30.

Chris Shelton, 32, has been considering selling his North Raleigh townhouse and buying a larger single-family house. Shelton works as a mortgage banker for SunTrust, and he said many of his clients are in the same boat as he is.

"If they were looking now they're really going to want to buy," he said. "It would allow you to knock $6,500 off the price knowing that you're able to get that tax money back."

In voting to extend and expand the first-time homebuyer tax credit, policy makers agreed with the real estate industry that removing the incentive would endanger the housing market's fledging recovery.

"You have a combination right now of the real-estate community not only very pleased but breathing a big sigh of relief," said Ross Rhudy, general manager of Ammons Pittman GMAC Real Estate in Raleigh. "If there's going to be any real recovery in the housing market this was a crucial piece to it."

The question now is when the housing market will reach the stage when such incentives are considered no longer necessary.

Michael Walden, an N.C. State University economist, said that question is increasingly being asked about a number of different government programs that have been launched over the past 18 months to help stabilize the economy.

"The argument for this [program] would be this recession is a residential housing-induced recession and we have to get the residential housing market back on track in order to solidify this emerging economic recovery," Walden said. "You could make the argument that although it's costing us money in the short run, if it is getting us out of the recession quicker it's worth it."

BY DAVID BRACKEN - STAFF WRITER, NewsObserver

KELLER WILLIAMS WINS CHICAGO CITY-WIDE LUXURY REAL ESTATE AWARD.

Chicago upstart Keller Williams International Realty has sneaked up from nowhere to win the 2009 FAVORITE LUXURY REAL ESTATE SERVICES CITYWIDE AWARD from Chicago Agents’ Choice Awards. Just 11 years in the Chicago real estate market, the local Keller Williams Region now boasts 14 offices and about 600 agents.

While relatively new to Chicago’s Gold Coast, Keller Williams Realty has just surpassed Remax and Prudential as the THIRD LARGEST real estate company in the United States with 72,431 Agents, 683 Offices, $66Billion in Revenue, and $27m in Profit Share. Keller Williams keeps a low profile and sells, services and closes business by utilizing a new model of entrepreneurial agent production. Keller Williams Gold Coast Managing Broker Craig Hogan says, “Successful Real Estate business today is not business as usual. The old dynamics don’t work. We need to target market, meet the clients, surpass in service, and earn our keep. No one works like an owner and at KW we are all owners! We are now the 3rd largest company in U.S. and the only major franchise to show growth this year!”

According to two of the industry’s most comprehensive annual surveys, Keller Williams Realty brokerages continue to defy the pervasive downturn in the industry by growing and expanding. RISMedia’s Power Broker Report and REAL Trends’ REAL Trends 500 rank the largest residential real estate brokerages in the U.S. based on transaction sides and sales volume. This year, Keller Williams Realty had more brokerages on both lists than any other real estate brand.

In the REAL Trends 500 report, Keller Williams Realty dominated, with its offices comprising more than a quarter of the entire list. Of all the major brands represented in the report, Keller Williams was the only company to boast growth in both number of agents added to its ranks and in total transactions closed.

Within RISMedia’s Power Broker Report, Keller Williams Realty again had the largest majority on the list – accounting for 35 percent of all the brokerages listed. The report also ranked Keller Williams Realty #1 in number of agents and total closed transactions.

“These results prove what we already knew – Keller Williams Realty is experiencing the next phase of our growth during this shift,” said Mark Willis, CEO of Keller Williams Realty, Inc. “Our agents and offices are capitalizing on the opportunities presented in today’s market and powering forward.”

“Two years ago, when the market began to shift, we mobilized to make sure our people would have the training, support and technology to tackle the market and they have truly blown us away with their accomplishments,” he added.

“When we do what we do best – coach and train our associates to higher levels of personal productivity and profitability – growth takes care of itself,” said Mary Tennant, president and COO of Keller Williams Realty, Inc. “Keller Williams Realty, the franchise company, didn’t rank on these lists – our people did.”

“We’re confident we’re in businesses with some of the most talented and focused individuals in the industry and we are so proud of all they’ve achieved,” added Willis.

And being Chicago’s Agent Choice Awards Winner this year is quite an achievement for this little engine that could.


About Keller Williams Realty Inc.:
Founded in 1983, Keller Williams Realty Inc. is the third-largest real estate franchise operation in the United States, with 683 offices and 72,431 associates in the United States and Canada. The company, which began franchising in 1990, has an agent-centric culture that emphasizes access to leading-edge education and promotes an economic model that rewards associates as stakeholders and partners. The company also provides specialized agents in luxury homes and commercial real estate properties. For more information, or to search for homes for sale visit Keller Williams Realty.

Fed Sees No Need to Raise Interest Rates Soon

The Federal Reserve signaled on Wednesday it was not close to raising interest rates, saying that the economy remained weak even though the recession appeared to be over.

The central bank said it would keep its benchmark interest rate at virtually zero, and it made no change to its longstanding mantra that economic conditions were likely to warrant “exceptionally low” rates for “an extended period.”
For practical purposes, analysts said, policy makers are still at least six months away from tightening monetary policy.

“Economic activity has continued to pick up,” the central bank said in a statement after its two-day policy meeting. But policy makers quickly cautioned consumer spending would be sluggish, businesses were still cutting back and economic growth would be “weak for a time.”

Despite speculation that the Fed might hint about raising interest rates in order to head off future inflation, it was unclear on Wednesday whether policy makers even discussed a change in the wording of their guidance.

Policy makers did elaborate on the economic indicators they will be watching most closely. Those will be the level of “resource utilization,” which primarily means the unemployment rate, the trend in inflation, and the stability of inflation expectations.

The government estimated last week that the nation’s economy grew at an annual pace of 3.5 percent in the third quarter, its first quarterly expansion in a year. But much of that activity stemmed from temporary stimulus measures like the home buyers’ tax credit and the “cash for clunkers” program.

The Fed chairman, Ben S. Bernanke, has cautioned that the recovery was fragile and that unemployment would remain high through the end of next year. The average forecast of Fed policy makers anticipates that the jobless rate, now 9.8 percent, will peak above 10 percent next year and remain well above 9 percent until some time in 2011.

Within the central bank, officials have begun debating when they should start signaling a rollback of its rescue measures. But while some of the Fed’s more hawkish policy makers have publicly suggested it might soon be time for tighter policy, Mr. Bernanke and other officials have made it clear they thought unemployment and slow growth were still the main economic threats.

The central bank did make a tiny reduction in its effort to prop up the mortgage market. It said it would buy slightly fewer bonds issued by agencies that guarantee home loans — $175 billion, rather than $200 billion it originally expected. But it said the change stemmed from a shortage of such securities. The Fed made no change to its much bigger program to buy $1.25 trillion worth of mortgage-backed securities by the end of next March.

“The one consistent theme with all the Fed speakers is that they’re not going to raise rates any time soon,” said Drew Matus, a senior economist at Bank of America-Merrill Lynch. “That is the one consistent theme that gets hammered home time and again.”

Beyond saying that “economic conditions” would continue to warrant “exceptionally low” rates, policy makers said those conditions included “low rates of resource utilization,” “subdued inflation trends” and “stable inflation expectations.”
Fed officials face competing challenges as they try to get monetary policy back to normal over the next several years. They need to make a judgment about timing — tightening too early could send the economy back into a downturn, as happened during the late 1930s; waiting too long would set the stage for inflation.

But policy makers also want to avoid jolting financial markets, which will require them to communicate their plans in advance. They are also grappling with novel questions about their exit strategy. In their statement on Wednesday, Fed officials made it clear they were still seeing little risk of higher inflation, adding that “substantial resource slack” — a euphemism for high unemployment and unused factory capacity — would keep inflation “subdued.”

The Fed’s preferred measure of inflation, which excludes prices of food and energy, has climbed by less than 1.5 percent over the last year, well within Mr. Bernanke’s unofficial comfort range of 1 to 2 percent.

The overnight Federal funds rate, the interest rate that banks charge for lending their reserves to each other, has been held between zero and 0.25 percent since last December.

In addition, the Fed has tried to pump up financial markets and the economy by more than doubling the size of its balance sheet, creating more than $1 trillion in new money for its emergency credit programs and to drive down long-term interest rates by buying Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities.
Fed officials have already cut back some of their emergency loan programs and stopped buying Treasury bonds, and they have said they would soon stop buying mortgage securities.

To tighten monetary policy, Fed officials will have to raise interest rates and start cutting the size of its balance sheet by selling the securities it has acquired.

By EDMUND L. ANDREWS
Published: November 4, 2009, New York Times