Ice fishing results from Silver Lake, Cary, IL .... ..... just across the way from Lake Killarney, Cary IL         FISH OF THE WEEK:  Bill Brown, a Crystal Lake resident, caught a 25 inch, 7 pounds Large Mouth Bass from our own Silver Lake in Cary, Illinois.   Ice Fishing Silver Lake Cary IL is one of the many favorite past times our residents love to do in the winter months.  With so many lakes and water ways throughout the McHenry County area, those that love Ice Fishing love the choices of locations to pick from where they can set up their shelters and fish for prizes like this one!        01/28/2011

Alternative Financing Methods Today's Marketplace When I began tweaking a property search I had for my buyer so as to find some additional homes in his price bracket, he mentioned, "What about builders' homes? You know they've got to have some homes that haven't sold that they're stuck with. Maybe they'd be willing to offer builder or seller financing.  Can you do some research on this for me?" He posed an excellent question, especially in this marketplace.  Builders have gotten hit hard, if not harder, than existing home sales have.  They probably do have some excellent alternative financing methods in today's marketplace available for buyers to purchase their homes. So I did my job and began to research this for him a little bit deeper.  I created a new home construction checklist to ... 01/23/2011

New Homes Construction & Taxes A buyer of mine was looking at new construction homes as a viable solution to purchasing a home.  In fact, I have a number of buyers that are looking at new construction as an option.  Hey, let's face it .... there's just as many short sales and foreclosures in new construction homes as there are in the existing homes. In a later post, I'll be talking more about taking advantage of this marketplace to buy a new construction home with builder financing or other alternative financing methods in today's marketplace.  But for now, the subject that my buyers are always asking me is "what about the taxes?".   Well, in brand new construction, at least in Illinois, the taxes do not kick in until 2 to 3 years after the homes have been built and the complex or subdi... 01/23/2011

  Thriving and Growing Community Lake Killarney Cary Illinois A number of smaller, neighboring communities make up the Village of Cary.  Lake Killarney, Oakwood Hills and Trout Valley are just a few of these neighboring communities. The Fox River runs through Cary and a number of other cities in McHenry County.  The Metra train station remains the hub of the downtown area of Cary with many residents commuting daily to Chicago. The neighborhood airport is located in the nearby community of Lake in the Hills, with the Chicago O'Hare airport about 30 to 45 minutes away.    Trout Valley was originally the site of a horse breeding farm owned by John Hertz, founder of Yellow Cab Company and Hertz Rent A Car back in 1920. Today, The Village of Trout Valley now has their own homeowners associat... 01/22/2011

The neighborhood of Lake Killarney surrounds an 80 acre glacial, private lake with a maximum depth of 40 feet. The neighborhoodof Lake Killarney is located in McHenry County, Illinois and is near the Fox River in Algonquin Township and unincorporated Cary, Illinois. It is 45 miles away from Chicago. Lake Killarney itself serves as a recreational lake. The lake is stocked yearly with various types of fish such as walleye, large mouth bass, small mouth bass, and northern pike, to name a few. Neighborhood Profile for Lake Killarney in Cary Illinois Residents in the Lake Killarney neighborhood, when fishing, practice the catch and release method to assure that the lake remains stocked with enough fish.  Of course, a valid Illinois Fishing License is required to fish in Lake Killarney.  The... 01/20/2011

New Networking Group Cary IL YPIE!  New Young Professionals Group in Cary, IL Great networking group now meeting at Wool Street in Cary, IL.   Exchnge business cards Make new affiliations with other professionals Young Professionals Idea Exchange Meets every other Wednesday  Call Karen for more info at 847.989.4885 or email Karen for more info  :) 01/17/2011

Miss Cary/Miss Fox River Grove Business Scholarship Pageant Seeking beauty pageant contestants for the Mis Cary/Miss Fox River Grove Business Scholarship Pageant that is scheduled to take place on: Saturday, May 21, 2011 at 7:00 p.m. Application deadline is Monday, February 14, 2011. Application Form Click here for qualifications     01/17/2011

Coupons Lake Killarney Cary IL Coupons Lake Killarney Cary IL  - promote, advertise and market your business and generate additional business through FREE Coupons furnished by me! Coupons Lake Killarney Cary IL available to you at no charge.  Ask and you shall receive!  Just let me know of your interest and I'll take care of it for you!   These Lake Killarney Cary IL Coupons available for a limited time only.  Cary IL Coupons available for businesses located in the McHenry, Lake and Boone counties of Illinois only. It's a new year and I'm in a giving mood.  Help me share Cary IL Coupons with you.   Call Karen at 847.989.4885 or email Karen at karen@carypropertypros.com for more information.  Get yourself involved TODAY.  Time is wasting and this offer is ONLY for limited time.   "TOGETH... 01/17/2011

Buyers and Lenders Financing Methods:  Why is it that people in general are so open to being led astray with lenders and what they have to say????  I guess it's because they want so badly to hear what they want to hear when it comes to being pre-approved for a home loan.  Why do so many work with people that are not reliable, trustworthy, or REPUTABLE?     I guess we, as realtors, have to work better to get the word out as to what they, our buyers, need to watch out for and be careful of.  I have, once again, been working with buyers who have been told that they qualify for more than what they actually do!  My buyers get excited about how much house they can afford and begin to look for homes in that price range only to be taken down a peg or two when the actuality of it all comes down... 01/17/2011

When I'm dealing with animal lovers out there, I always mention to them that I would be willing to donate a portion of my commission to the animal foundation of their choice.  They seem to be amazed at this generous offer and it has opened up some doors that would have otherwise been closed.  I follow through with this offer if that is what my clients would like me to do.  I feel good about doing it and my clients feel good about having done a good deed. I know in this market, it's even more difficult to even consider something like this being offered.  But, when you are an animal lover as I am, it's a small price to pay to see that an animal's welfare is tended to.  It makes me feel better about myself and it is actually offering my client's yet another benefit for having worked with m... 01/07/2011

Bright Oaks in Cary Bright Oaks is a townhouse community built in 1975 by Kennedy . Bright Oaks is on Bright Oaks Circle north of Three Oaks Road in Cary, Illinois. Activity in Bright Oaks for the past 6 months Homes Sold Lowest Price Highest Price Average Price 4 $110,000 $131,000 $117,375 4 homes sold in Bright Oaks in Cary from $110,000-$131,000 with an average price of $117,375 within the last 6 months. -Cary- Address City Beds Baths Model List Price Status 24 Linden Ct, 0 Cary 3 1.1 Hickory $95,000 Active 54 Hickory Ln, 54 Cary 2 1.1   $116,500 Active 32 Willow Cir Cary 3 2   $166,900 Active 36 Silver Tree Cir, 36 Cary 2 1 Villa $99,900 Active 72 Pine Cir Cary 3 1.1 Hickory $129,900 Active 40 Wildwood Trl Cary 3 1.1 3 Story $139,900 Active 6 Bright Oaks Cir, 1 Cary 3 1.1   $94,900... 01/04/2011

Cambria in Cary Cambria is a single family home and townhome neighborhood built in 2001 by Concord Homes. Cambria features 235 single family homes and 239 town homes. Floor plans for the town homes range from from 1,646 to 1,763 square feet of living space. Cambria is located in Cary, Illinois on New Haven south of Sage Parkway. Activity in Cambria for the past 6 months Homes Sold Lowest Price Highest Price Average Price 5 $128,000 $279,000 $164,600 5 homes sold in Cambria in Cary from $128,000-$279,000 with an average price of $164,600 within the last 6 months. -Cary- Address City Beds Baths Model List Price Status 414 Geneva Dr Cary 4 2.1 2 Story $329,900 Active 1515 Summerhill Ln Cary 4 3 Windsor $309,900 Active 1303 New Haven Dr Cary 3 2.2 Hanbury $125,900 Active 1393 New Haven Dr, ... 12/27/2010

Arrowhead - Arrowhead is a subdivision of single family homes built in the 1950's. Arrowhead is located in Cary west of Northwest Highway and south of Three Oaks Road. Brigadoon - Brigadoon is a single family home neighborhood located in Cary. Brigadoon is off of West Main and High. Bright Oaks - Bright Oaks is a townhouse community located in Cary. Bright Oaks is on Bright Oaks Circle North of Three Oaks Rd. Brittany Woods - Brittany Woods is a single family home neighborhood built in the early 1990's. Brittany Woods is located in Cary on Silver Lake Road off of Route 14. Cambria - Cambria is a single family home and townhome neighborhood built in 2001. Cambria is located in Cary on New Haven south of Sage Parkway. Candlewood Trails - Candlewood Trails is a subdivision of single famil... 11/01/2010

Thanks to the great home inspection company, HouseMaster, there are a number of great FREE Downloads available through their easy to navigate website, www.HouseMaster.com.  Several guides I thought were pretty interesting may be downloaded at the following links: Fireplaces . . . www.housemaster.com/pdf/guide23.pdf Common Electric Concerns . . . www.housemaster.com/pdf/guide22.pdf Radon . . . www.housemaster.com/pdf/guide17.pdf Preventive Maintenance Checklist . . . www.housemaster.com/pdf/guide14.pdf For many other great brochures log onto the HouseMaster website.  You will find many more guides as well as useful, up-to-date information on other relevant topics to the real estate industry. As always, contact me directly when you're ready to buy, sell or finance your next home. "Did Som... 06/08/2010

Quite a few years ago I came across a beautiful subdivision in the Northwest Suburbs of Chicago called "Trout Valley".  Just the name of the subdivision put a smile on my face. This subdivision is known for it's privacy, variety of housing styles and community involvement.  Meandering through the subdivision is a man-made Trout Stream exclusively for the enjoyment of the members of the Trout Valley Association and their guests. Now, if you like recreation, this is one subdivision that has it all.  If you buy a house here you are entitled to a number of neighborhood amenities that are exclusive to you.  Some are FREE but others may cost you a little to enjoy.   Trout Valley offers: Trout and Bass Fishing in their Stream and Ponds Horseback Riding and a Stable your Horse Community Swimmin... 06/04/2010

665 Knollwood Dr., Cary, IL 60013  4 Bedrooms/ 2.1 Bathrooms       MLS# 07507997                  $300,000 Welcome home! Beautifully updated colonial in desirable Foxtrails. Minutes walk to neighborhood park. Kitchen with SS appliances and gorgeous granite countertops with island seating. Updated MBA with soaker tub. His and hers WIC and sitting area in MBR. Pella doors, newer roof, newer high-efficiency mechanicals including furnace, a/c, electronic air filter, front-load washer. Bonus is the $7,500 village HVA to you. Click on the link below for more details and pictures: http://www.housebyzip.com/MLS=IL07507997&s=active RE/MAX Territory 847-956-2800 05/11/2010

Trout Valley in Cary, IL is one of the most beautiful older subdivisions in the Northwest Suburbs of Chicago.  Just the name of the subdivision puts a smile on my face.  As the name may suggest, Trout Valley in Cary, IL offers trout fishing in an area that you wouldn't normally think of for a trout fisherman. Trout Valley in Cary, IL has a man-made trout stream, exclusively for the enjoyment of the members of the Trout Valley Association and their guests, that meanders the entire stretch of the picturesque subdivision.  This area is known for it's privacy, variety of housing styles and community involvement. Now if you're not into trout fishing but like recreation, Trout Valley in Cary, IL has it all.  If you buy a house here you are entitled to a number of neighborhood amenities that a... 03/25/2010

Thanks to the great home inspection company, HouseMaster, there are a number of great FREE Downloads available through their easy to navigate website, www.HouseMaster.com.  Several guides I thought were pretty interesting may be downloaded at the following links: Fireplaces . . . www.housemaster.com/pdf/guide23.pdf Common Electric Concerns . . . www.housemaster.com/pdf/guide22.pdf Radon . . . www.housemaster.com/pdf/guide17.pdf Preventive Maintenance Checklist . . . www.housemaster.com/pdf/guide14.pdf For many other great brochures log onto the HouseMaster website.  You will find many more guides as well as useful, up-to-date information on other relevant topics to the real estate industry. As always, contact me directly when you're ready to buy, sell or finance your next home. "Did Som... 03/16/2010

  Can you turn off your lights for just one hour for the good of our planet? Hey, I just signed up on the new Earth Hour website for 2010 and I thought you might like to take a look and possibly sign up, too. Earth Hour is on  March 27, 2010 at 8:30 pm, and it looks like it's going to be THE BIGGEST EVER. As of today: 92 countries are now participating in Earth Hour, making this the largest call to action against climate change in history.  366105 people have signed up so far to participate in North America.  5632376 Wordwide Supporters!   2775 in Crystal Lake and Cary, IL! Click Here To Find Out How Many People Are Signed Up In Any Area! On Saturday, March 27, 2010, at 8:30 pm, Debra Kukulski of RE/MAX Unlimited Northwest will take part in Earth Hour—the world’s largest global climate... 03/07/2010

Cary IL-Short Sales Agent-Educating and Helping Buyers and Sellers of Short Sales. As the months roll by it is still very apparent that the foreclosure crisis is not going to be ending anytime soon. The economy may be showings signs of recovery but with over 10% of the population without a job, it is dishonest of anyone to say the light is at the end of the tunnel. In Cary IL we still have properties for sale as short sales and foreclosures. Sadly many borrowers that default are not choosing the right option, perhaps because they are embarrassed to seek assistance from a short sale agent in Cary IL-or they do not know and understand that a short sale is a much better option than going into foreclosure. Don't let your Cary IL home go into foreclosure-I understand you may feel angry-embar... 02/19/2010