Listing Your Home During the Holidays There are three axioms you should remember when it comes to selling your home during the holidays. Fortune favors the bold. People buy on emotion, and back up with logic. Times are changing. Conventional wisdom often tells us that selling your home in the winter, during the holidays, can be difficult. What many people fail to realize is that, for the bold, selling during the holiday season can be beneficial. Fortune Favors The Bold 2020 has been what the industry calls a “sellers market.” This year, throughout Kenosha county, inventory is one [...]

Listing Your Home This Fall No one can deny that 2020 has been a challenging year. With so much upheaval and unprecedented events, you might feel hesitant to list your home. What might surprise you, however, is that now is an excellent time to sell your home. The term “sellers market” could be music to your ears, if you are planning to list your home in 2020. This year, throughout Kenosha county, inventory is one of the biggest challenges for buyers. According to the latest Existing Home Sales Report from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), total housing inventory [...]

Realtor Spotlight: Melissa Ishee Hi everyone! My name is Melissa "Mel" Ishee, and I'm so excited to be a new addition to the Cove Realty team. I recently obtained my real estate salesperson license and I am looking forward to the challenges and rewards that this new and exciting career has to offer. I grew up in Illinois where I met and married my husband Brian. We have been married for 29 amazing years! Whew ... where does the time go? I graduated from Midstate College in Peoria, IL where I majored in business/travel. This served me well [...]

It's time to invest back into our community. 2020, it’s been quite a year! How many times have you said that recently? If you’re like me, you’re getting pretty tired of the PP&P.....politics, pandemic and protests. I miss the summer of Kenosha's Harbor Market, Downtown Kenosha's amazing events and enjoying the beauty that is around our city. Not that it’s not important but after watching the news for awhile I sometimes start to feel frustrated and a little sad. Nevermore so was the case after the riots in our hometown a few weeks ago that left parts of Downtown [...]

Understanding a Home's Appraisal Understanding appraisals can help with buying or selling a home. Whether you are buying home in Downtown Kenosha or selling your home near Petrifying Springs Park, the more you know about the value in advance the better prepared you can be. Appraisals are required by lenders whenever they are involved in the financing of a home. The main purpose is to protect the financial institution so they do not lend more than the value of the property. An appraisal is an unbiased professional opinion of the value of a home and is used whenever [...]

Be Prepared With the Right Realtor Being prepared, prior to even looking for your dream home, will make the home-buying process easier and less stressful, especially in the current seller’s market throughout Kenosha County. A combination of strong demand and tight inventory is leading to one of the most difficult and competitive environments for buyers.  Due to a shortage of inventory (currently only 204 single family homes listed in the City of Kenosha) competition can be fierce; therefore, it’s important a buyer understands they may have to pay full price for a home and potentially over the asking [...]

Realtor Spotlight: Rachel Lang Cove Realty is excited to welcome Rachel Lang to our growing team of realtors. If you are looking for a Realtor who knows Kenosha in and out, Rachel Lang is ready to help you buy or sell your home. “We recognize that millennial buyers are looking to work with an agent that’s relatable and recognizes what they value in their perfect home. After 20-years of being Kenosha’s hometown favorite we also recognize that realtors with strong roots in the Kenosha area succeed. We are excited to see what the future holds for Rachel Lang [...]

Mortgage Questions: Buying a Kenosha Home Being pre-approved for a mortgage is critical to understand your budget and to put in a competitive offer on your dream home. Cove Realty’s Kevin Poirier and Gateway Mortgage’s Robb Cibrario, provide expert advice on the pre-approved process.  Pre-Approval Checklist: Copies of Driver’s Licenses Copies of Social Security Cards Most Recent Bank Statements Pay Stubs Retirement/Investment Account Statements Tax Returns (1040) W-2 Forms for the Past Two Years (or 1099)

Top 5 Real Estate Questions During a Pandemic Navigating the real estate market is already intimidating, but in these uncertain times, we all have even more questions. As a realtor that maneuvered the 2008 economic crisis, I have seen drastic differences in this COVID-19 market compared to how real estate was affected back then. The processes that worked in that 2008 financial downturn do not translate to this one, and I wanted to answer my five most frequently asked questions that relate to these extremely unique circumstances. Top Five Questions: Is now a good time to buy? This [...]