What can I buy in Evanston, IL for $500,000?Let's talk about single-family homes for this post.  A half-million dollars doesn't buy what it used to in Evanston.  That used to be a lot of money and would purchase a fairly luxurious home.  (gee, when did I start channeling my father?)... today, it still buys a nice home, but far from luxurious... just a nice home.  Here are a few representative examples:        5 Salem Lane, is a 3 bedroom, bath-and-a-half with a one-car attached garage currently listed for $479,000. The MLS description says it's a charming 3-bedroom featuring a large living room, bay window, separate dinging area, European kitchen and first-floor family room, and a myriad of upgrades.  Represented by Jan & Margie Hazlett of @properties.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~      ... 06/30/2015

The Summer Hot spot I want to talk about is the Evanston Lakefront beach and there are six in this community. My favorite is the South Blvd Beach. This is one of the most unknown beaches and my favorite. I took some photos at sunrise and want to share them with you.To see the sunrise at the Evanston Lakefront is to be in paradise. It is worth going out there early in the morning before you start your day. You will experience almost totally peace and quiet and a breath taking beach.There is not much more I can say except to show you what I am talking about.Evanston IL South Blvd Beach at Sunrise  06/28/2015

Evanston IL is full of beauty. Especially in the Summer time. Everywhere you look there is something magnificent to view. Being a long time resident I know the town well and this is a chance to share with you the readers and maybe even convince you of what we have to offer and even suggest a visit to town. If you did, please look up old Noah.Today was an especially nice day with blue skies and 70 degrees. A light breeze and the chance to view the city from a high-rise prompted me to write this and share with the world. I was working and showing property from the Optima Views at 1720 Maple right in my backyard of town. I even created a video so you can get even better view of what I saw.Upon entering downtown Evanston IL I saw the most vivid purple bush. It is really sharp and shows off ... 06/27/2015

Yesterday we got 8833 Lincolnwood Drive under contract in the Evanston, or actually the Skevanston area which is zip code 60203. Skevanston is a great value for people and that is why we went this route. It's a 3 Bedroom 2 bathroom unique ranch house and was listed at $399,000. My client is the buyer and very happy we are getting this, it was on the market for only a few days and had many showings. It would have been gone had we not jumped in and submitted an offer immediately.If you just want some information and are interested in seeing what is on the market you can feel free to click Evanston Condos for sale, Evanston Houses for sale, Skevanston Real Estate for sale and have a direct connection to the Multiple listing service for your own access.Skevanston is a small part of Evanston... 06/26/2015

Picture what your dream house and neigborhood will look like and try to find it.We all have this image in our mind and so take this image and try to make it a reality.Buying a house is a long term investment so please take the time to picture what your looking for in a home.  06/26/2015

It is not hard for me to give 5 reasons why I love my home town of Evanston IL. There is so much to offer in Evanston. We are a community sitting right on the edge of Chicago and have a feel of a little city and not quite a suburb. In Chicago it is often hard to park your car and in Evanston it always easy. We have the beautiful Lake Michigan lake front with six different beaches and that includes one dog beach and one boat launch. I love to hang out at the beaches and walk in the parks or Lakefront Beaches.The architecture in Evanston is wonderful There is a wide range of homes that includes historic landmarks, the Chicago style Bungalow, large mansions, Queen Anne Victorians and just about anything else in between. I am a member of the Evanston History Center have enjoyed taking part ... 06/24/2015

My buyer client went under contract on 1210 Chicago Ave #308 in Evanston IL, 60202 today. This complex is called Chicago Avenue Place and is very popular. The trick was visiting this property and writing a contract immediately and being sure that it was the right price and right place. There is a lack of inventory in really good condos at this time. This is a 2 bedroom, 2 bath condo listed at $280,000 and on the market for single digit days. Our client is so happy to get into this complex and is excited to move to Evanston.Right across the street is a Trader Joe's and a Whole Foods, the public transportation via the Metra and El trains is one block away. Considered an idea location for Evanston this complex has a large indoor pool, exercise room in an elevator building.Interested in the... 06/23/2015

The Fountain Square Art Festival in Evanston IL will take place June 28 and 29th between 1:00 AM and 6:00PM. This is the 35th year for the Art Fair and is always well attended. The art work comes from 150 juried artists so you know there will be some excellent talent. I am definitely going to attend and recommend anyone who can do so too. You will not be disappointed.Along with the art work there is a children's art tent,  live music and lots of food available. The festival is at the intersection of Sherman Ave and Church going south all the way down to Davis street. "Now celebrating its 35th year, Fountain Square Art Festival is the largest and oldest fine arts fair on Chicago's majestic North Shore. Featuring the eclectic works of more than 150 juried artists, this sprawling art showc... 06/23/2015

Kraig Kenning is almost unknown outside of the Chicago area. He is better then most famous and rich guitarists in the world. I go to the Custer Street Fair every year to catch his performance outside and in a cool setting of Evanston IL. I wonder why this man is not super famous and known all over the world? I am sharing this with you so maybe this will help people find out about Kraig and learn to enjoy his music the way I do. Here is an article about Kraig Kenning. Kraig, if you read this I want you to know that you are a super star in my world. Please do not stop coming back to Evanston IL and the Custer Street Fair.Please enjoy this video with me  06/22/2015

The Custer Street Fair was really fun this year. I had to work most of the day but made it over at about 5:00. It was rocking in full swing. There was much music, food and great crafts. We really had a fun time. One of the acts we really like is the belly dancers. They get everyone dancing and it is a blast. If you ever get a chance to check this event out, I would recommend it.The Belly DancersAt the end it started to rain a bitThe Belly Dancers 06/21/2015

Today we closed on my listing at 1572 Maple #302 in Evanston IL 60201. A 3 bedroom 2 bath 2200 square foot condo in the middle of downtown Evanston IL. HW floors, 2 garage parking spots in the attached and heated garage with 2 spots, all KitchenAid Stainless appliances, side by side washer and dryer, Fire place, private outdoor space and a solarium all seasons room, 3 balconies, full of light from all directions, Noise abatement windows, much storage space. Closing price was $655,000.Understanding your Expectations and Exceeding themColdwell Banker Evanston(800) 858-7917 06/19/2015

Just a reminder that the fantastic Custer street fair is this weekend. This is one of my favorite Evanston events and it gets better and better every year. A verity of food, crafts, entertainment and bumping into friends is what makes this so good. The 2015 Fair is going to be the best yet. Let us pray for great weather, the prediction is good and in the low 70's with a chance of rain. I hope to see you out at Evanston's Custer street fair. If you see me say Hey Noah and I will be so happy to talk and have a good time. A little bit of information for you, this year's Fair hours are from 10:00 am till 9:00 pm. Visitors to Custer Fair are happy to be there. Smiles greet you wherever you go. From the historic Main St. and Chicago Ave. store buildings to the tree lined Washington St. reside... 06/18/2015

This condo was signed up tonight and will be on the market in a couple of days. It is a 2 bedroom 2 bath condo in downtown Evanston. A very fine and popular building, Oak Courts is right across the street from the Evanston Rose Garden. The condo has hardwood floors upgraded bathrooms, double oven in the eat in kitchen and is 1100 square feet with an elevator in the building. It can be yours for only $245,000.You will see more photos and information within a couple of days but if you are interested in this property, call Noah Seidenberg at Coldwell Banker Evanston at (800) 858-7917 Here is the Evanston Rose Gerden which is steps away from the Oak Courts Condo Building  06/17/2015

I was very honored 2 weeks ago to be given a title as an Evanston Community Ambassador at the city council meeting. I was chosen to participate in this volunteer position and am very proud to serve my community in doing so. We went through 2 three hour classes and then were given city of Evanston employee ID cards with our photos. The mayor of Evanston, Elizabeth Tisdahl and the city council applauded us and here is photo from the event. You can see me, Noah Seidenberg in the rear row third from the right.Our position is to help the community through volunteering at local events and there are many. Because of many years as a resident of Evanston IL I have learned much about the community and feel like I am qualified to answer any questions and help people find out almost anything about ... 06/17/2015

Today we will be looking at the Real Estate scene in Evanston IL through June of 2015. Stats look good, there is a 12% gain in new listings compared to one year ago but the numbers are the same for closed sales. We have a slight increase in inventory at 2.6% which is really good news because we are in a seller's market and need more homes to sell.At this time there 143 Single family homes available for sale in Evanston IL and 125 homes under contract and waiting to close. In the last 30 days there have been 45 houses that have sold and are closed. Excellent numbers to show an active Spring market in Evanston IL. In the Evanston Condo for sale scene there are currently 227 properties available for sale and 142 under contract and waiting to close. In the last 30 days, 66 condos have close... 06/16/2015

I was in the store today and saw a bunch of people standing around talking about the Jackfruit and how it was on sale for a buck a pound and is rarely available. I purchased a piece that cost be $1.04. I started talking with a few people who had come specifically for this exotic fruit and they were raving about it.It is really funny looking and caught my eye right away. I went home and ate some of it and was really surprised. It is just fantastic. I found a little more information on NPR and you can read the article or just watch my video lesson.  The Jackfruit 06/16/2015

We got a really fine 1 bedroom loft style condo under contract today for an out of town client. The people are very happy because we scooped this up after only a short time on the market. This is one of the nicest buildings in Downtown Evanston Called Church Street Station at 1640 Maple. Steps away from everything in downtown Evanston including the Metra and El and also a full amenities building that has everything. Listed at $224,000 we have an excited family who is purchasing this for their daughter who is going to be attending Northwestern University for an advanced degree.My niche is helping people find condos for people including many Northwestern Students in downtown Evanston IL. It takes a skill of knowing all the buildings and acting upon that very fast. I have seen much frustra... 06/14/2015

Stop by 319 Dodge in Evanston IL on Sunday and take a peak at a very nice 3 bedroom Ranch House with 2 full bathrooms. A very nice property that has been in the same family since it was bult in the late 50's. All hardwood floors and a really nice deep back yard make this home a winner at only $280,000.Stop by and I will tell you more.Coldwell Banker Evanston(800) 858-7917 Please watch this video slide show 06/12/2015

By Art Wilson, Realtor Evanston's May Property sales were 94, down -2.1% from 96 in May of 2014 and -9.6% lower than the 104 sales last month. May 2015 sales were at their lowest level compared to May of 2014 and 2013. May YTD sales of 369 are running 15.3% ahead of last year's year-to-date sales of 320.  The Median Sales Price in May was $332,500, up 7.3% from $310,000 in May of 2014 and up 5.1% from $316,500 last month. The Average Sales Price in May was $461,576, up 24.1% from $372,001 in May of 2014 and up 16.3% from $396,981 last month. May 2015 ASP was at highest level compared to May of 2014 and 2013.  The Total Inventory of Properties available for sale as of May was 373, up 10.4% from 338 last month and down -1.1% from 377 in May of last year. May 2015 Inventory was at a mid ra... 06/12/2015

I saw this huge Dragon Fly during a showing in Evanston IL yesterday. He (or she) is huge, it scared my client but I just snapped a photo. The insect was about a foot long. It looks like a Florida sized Dragon Fly. Have you ever seen one this large? The netting you see I am told is to keep birds from flying in. 06/10/2015