The governor’s plan to borrow more than $300 million over the next decade for public and subsidized housing raised hopes Thursday that rundown complexes such as Bowles Park in Hartford might get a second chance. “This is what we need,” June Downer, president of the Bowles Park Tenants Association, said. “We’ve had trouble keeping up the grounds, fixing the insides of apartments. Some of them are downright falling apart.” For years, Downer has been pressing for repairs: holes in apartment ceilings and walls; leaking plumbing in bathrooms and kitchens; and the stench that often wafts up from the basement. “The smell hits you like a two-by-four,” Downer said. Get full post…

Youve been looking online at homes for sale in Chicago. Youve identified a few that youre financially qualified to purchase and youd like to see them. Heres how to request showings.

How far ahead of time you need to request showings depends on where in Chicago the homes are located.

If the homes are located in the city closer to the suburbs than downtown, you might be able to see them with less than 24 hours notice. However, showings typically must be confirmed by the sellers, so dont expect to be able to see homes for sale in less than a couple of hours.

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For the first time in over a month, the Best-Execution rate for 30yr fixed mortgages rose from a rounded average of 3.875% to 4.00% today.  The underlying borrowing costs associated with 3.875% didn’t rise by a significantly painful amount, but the small increases across the board, combined with one huge move by a huge lender, was enough to bring the average rate closer to 4.0% than 3.875%.

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January 12th, 2012 by Geordie Romer Categories: Home Buyers, Home Sellers, Leavenworth Real estate market

Home sales in Leavenworth and Lake Wenatchee continued to chug along in the 4th quarter of 2011 and I dont think anyone was particularly surprised with the results.

All in all, 2011 looked a lot like 2010.

The median home price in Leavenworth fell from $310,000 to $307,000. This is down 12% from a peak of $349,000 in 2008

Average home prices in Leavenworth fell from $362,000 to $353,000.

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The deal Co-operative Bank is offering a five year fixed rate mortgage at 3.39 per cent.

The good points You can’t get a lower five year fixed rate at the moment. The nearest is and offering from Yorkshire building society at 3.59 per cent.

The bad points To qualify you’ll need to have a current account with the Co-op as well as a deposit of at least 25 per cent. If you have only a 15 per cent deposit, the rate climbs to 4.24 per cent. The application fee is steep at 999.

Conclusion The Co-op is currently offering 200 if you switch current accounts to it so, combined with this offer, that could be a powerful inducement. How

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