Southgate in The Glen

Golfing in The Glen

by

It’s spring, and that means golf.  Here in The Glen we are fortunate to have two – count them TWO – wonderful golf courses, both within walking distance of any Glen home.

A wonderful thing about living in The Glen is the availability of  The Glen Club and Glenview Prairie Club.  Both courses are of high quality and they are open to the public. The Glen is a Chicago area north shore residential and retail development.  There are over 2,000 luxury homes of all types, and home prices range from the $300’s to over $2 million.

The Glen Club is well known and highly regarded. It’s an 18 hole championship course designed by the legendary Tom Fazio. The course is beautiful to look at and challenging to play. Golf Magazine has rated it the fourth best courses you can play in Illinois and among the Top 100 in the United States. When it opened in 2001 Sports Illustrated listed it as a top 10 new course. A stately 48,000 square feet clubhouse provides overnight lodging and first class dining. The club offers private corporate memberships, but it is also available to non-member individual golfers.

The Glenview Prairie Club offers Paddle Tennis courts as well as golf. The course is meticulously maintained (by The Glen Club!), and it is beloved by Glen residents who prefer a shorter round of golf.

Many Glen homes have great views of these picturesque golf courses. Fifty-five magnificent “estate” single family homes in the Southgate subdivision border The Glen Club’s course as do nine stunning townhomes in Tower Crossing. Several homes in the lovely Westgate and Patriot Commons neighborhoods also have great views.

If you are a golfer who may be interested in living in the Glen please contact me for additional information. I am a long time Glen resident and an award winning Realtor with @properties.

Margaret Ludemann, The Glen Realty Group, @properties

847-401-1802   margaretludemann@gmail.com

Kids in The Glen

by

Kids. Lots of them. Right here in The Glen!

In fact we have 1,336 children (ages birth through the 12th grade) in the 1,254 privately owned homes in this upscale residential and retail community in Glenview Illinois. As a long time Glen resident and as a Realtor who focuses heavily on The Glen, I know what a wonderful place this is for children. I have a 15 year old son who has grown up here, and he loves everything about it. Gallery Park, Lake Glenview, soccer fields, tennis courts, Kohl Children’s Museum, Arclight Movie Theater, and so much more.

We have eight developments with privately owned homes in The Glen, not counting Westgate which is under construction. Here is a breakdown of children in each:

Chapel Crossing: 167 homes 284 kids 1.7 kids p/home

Landings: 143 homes 236 kids 1.65 kids p/home

Southgate: 299 homes 413 kids 1.38 kids p/ home

Cambridge: 244 homes 234 kids 0.96 kids p/home

Regency: 148 homes 76 kids 0.51 kids p/home

Tower Crossing: 154 homes 73 kids 0.47 kids p/home

Patriot Commons: 68 homes 16 kids 0.24 kids p/home

Glen Shore: 31 homes 4 kids 0.13 kids p/home

Not surprisingly the developments with the most single family homes have the highest percentage of children p/home: Chapel Crossing and Landings. Southgate and Cambridge have a mix of single family homes and attached housing. On the other end of the spectrum, the developments with the most attached housing (mainly townhomes and condos) have the lowest percentage of children p/home: Tower Crossing, Regency, Patriot Commons and Glen Shore.

If you would like to know more about The Glen please give me a call.

Margaret Ludemann, Realtor, @properties

847-401-1802   margaretludemann@gmail.com

Homeowner associations’ role in a home sale

by

Home sale transactions in The Glen generally involve homeowner associations after an agreement has been reached between buyers and sellers. When the Village of Glenview Illinois took ownership of the former Naval Air Station Glenview in the late 1990’s it developed a master plan for its use. The result is what we now know as The Glen with large areas of luxury homes, a retail area known as Glen Town Center, commercial space for corporate and professional offices, and open space as well.

The residential areas were divided into several large parcels, and home builders were allowed to submit bids for development. This resulted in the following neighborhoods being built: Cambridge, Chapel Crossing, Glen Shore, Landings, Southgate, and Tower Crossing. Three additional developments have since been built: Regency, Patriot Commons, and Westgate. The latter two are still under construction. Homeowner associations, generally referred to as HOAs, were created; and they are governed by boards of directors composed of residents.

Generally speaking if a home is being sold in an area governed by a homeowners association – whether it is The Glen or elsewhere – that association will likely be asked to provide governing documents such as articles of incorporation, bylaws, covenants, rules, and regulations. They also are asked for financial information and the status of legal actions. Attorneys representing the buyer, seller, and lender review these documents. It is important for the buyer and the lender to understand the financial and legal health of the association. Among other things they want to know whether there are outstanding obligations that could impact the new owner. If there are lawsuits or excessive debt a buyer may not wish to complete the purchase and/or the prospective lender may choose to deny the home mortgage application.

The HOAs that I am aware of in The Glen are sound, and seldom do I hear of problems that result in a failure of a housing purchase. I am a Glen resident, and I am an active Realtor in the local real estate market. If you may be interested in buying or renting a home in The Glen, please contact me at 847-401-1802 or margaretludemann@gmail.com.

Margaret Ludemann, @properties Realtor

Regency at The Glen sales are picking up steam

by

Judging from 2015 real estate sales in the Glen’s Regency development, it’s obvious that this new’ish neighborhood is already turning over to second owners. While the development only sold out last year, several homes of early buyers have re-sold and others rented in the first half of this year. This is good news for buyers looking for Glen properties at somewhat smaller sizes with more modest price points than many other local neighborhoods.

Here’s a little background. Pulte Homes constructed 104 luxury townhomes, 38 ranch villas, and 2 single family homes in the Regency at the Glen development in Glenview Illinois. The townhomes are offered in 4 different models ranging in size from 1523 sq ft to 1835 sq ft. There are 2 models of villas (duplexes) ranging in size from 1883 sq ft to 2493 sq ft. Regency is located literally across the street from two wonderful golf courses, The Glen Club (18 hole championship course) and Glenview Prairie Club (9 holes). It’s also a short walk to Glen Town Center’s many shops and restaurants.

Six Regency homes have already been sold by their original owners in the first half of 2015, 4 of these were townhomes and 2 were villas. The townhomes each sold in the $400s, and the villas sold in the high $600s. There are 4 more Regency homes (all townhomes) under contract between their original owners and new buyers; these are expected to close in the third quarter of the year. Four townhomes have also rented this year.

So now is a great time for buyers who want to live in the Glen. Regency homes are on the market as well as single family homes, row homes, townhomes, and condos in other areas of the Glen including Chapel Crossing, Cambridge, Landings, Tower Crossing, Patriot Commons, and Southgate. I’ve lived in the Glen for 12 years, and as a leading Glen realtor I am familiar with each neighborhood and housing type. If you may be interested in living in Regency or any other area of the Glen, please contact me.

Margaret Ludemann, @properties Realtor

MargaretLudemann@cbexchange.com   847-401-1802

The real estate market is strong this year…nationally and in the Glen

by

As a realtor I’m asked about the real estate market every day.  And since I live in The Glen, a luxury home development in Glenview Illinois, everyone wants to know how homes are selling here.  Well, the market is strong, thank you very much.

Home sales are up nationally and in in the Glen. New construction is leading the way; and in the Glen that means in the Westgate and Patriot Commons neighborhoods.  It’s anticipated that new home sales will be up over 20% across the country. Existing home sales nationwide will likely increase 5% to 7% this year which is also strong.

The strength of home sales is primarily due to three factors:

  1. First time home buyers. Rents have increased substantially this year, encouraging many renters to purchase homes.
  2. Lending standards have eased up which is increasing the buyer pool.
  3. Continued low interest rates. Mortgage interest rates have trended up modestly in the last few months (about a quarter point), but they remain low by historical standards. Thirty year fixed rate loans are currently at about 4.1%, and jumbos are at this same level. Many home sales in the Glen – particularly in the Southgate, Tower Crossing, Chapel Crossing, Landings, and Cambridge neighborhoods – involve jumbo loans. Jumbos typically carry a somewhat higher rate, though that is not the case currently. Interest rates may increase a bit more in 2016 and 2017 making now a good time for buyers (and therefore for sellers, too).

The Glen is a wonderful place to live. In addition to all of the beautiful homes, the community lifestyle is hard to beat. There are two great golf courses, both within walking distance of any home in the Glen. The central marketplace is called Glen Town Center which has numerous restaurants (casual and upscale), many shops and boutiques, a movie theater, and a book store. If you are interested in living in the Glen, please contact me. I am a long time Glen homeowner and an award winning realtor affiliated with @properties.

Margaret Ludemann   margaretludemann@gmail.com   847-401-1802