Finding The Right Contractor
Following the tragedy of natural disasters, all too often is the exploitation of the disaster victims by unscrupulous people. In the urgency of the moment, trying to protect their property from further damage and to begin the clean up and rebuilding process as quickly as possible, bad decisions get made under pressure, on the spur of the moment, that result in fraud, and/or subpar work for the money paid.
The Ogle County Sheriff has posted the following statement to alert recent storm victims to some basic steps to avoid being scammed by these unscrupulous people.
Victims of storm damage should never sign a contract or pay cash to a repairman who shows up uninvited on their doorstep. Check to make sure a contractor is bonded and insured, verify their address, website, etc. Check to see if they are a member of a reputable home builders association and review their BBB record.
The BBB advises obtaining three bids for any job and make payments to the company, not an individual.
Get all bids in writing detailing the work to be completed. Don’t forget job site clean up of the old building materials being replaced. Pay in thirds and use a credit card to reverse charges if fraud is suspected. Never pay cash for repair services.
The State of Illinois, Attorney General, has prepared a pamphlet on how to avoid home repair fraud called Home Repair: Know Your Consumer Rights. Copies of this pamphlet are available from the HBA of the Greater Rockford Area.
If you think you have been defrauded by a contractor of have any questions, please bring it to the attention of the State’s Attorney in the county where you live or the Illinois Attorney General’s Office.
Builder Bookstore
Check out the new BuilderBooks website which features:
· Easy navigation
 · Mobile capability
 · Compare products
 · Social media tools like "Share with a Friend"
 · Wish lists
 · And More
Below is the unique HBA of the greater Rockford Area link to the NAHB Builder Bookstore.
https://builderbooks.com?acc=HOMEBU28
NAHB BUILDERBOOKS.COM "BOOKS THAT BUILD YOUR BUSINESS"
Housing Affordability June
Affordability Slips as Home Values Strengthen
Nationwide housing affordability slipped several notches as recovering markets witnessed significant firming of home prices in the second quarter, according to the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI), released on Aug. 13. In all, 69.3% of new and existing homes sold between the beginning of April and end of June were affordable to families earning the
2014 Mid Year Permit Update
| NEW CONSTRUCTION UPDATE: JUNE, 2014 | |||||
| ROCKFORD, WINN. CO., | SAME MONTH | YEAR TO DATE | |||
| LOVES PARK, MACH. PARK | JUNE | LAST MONTH | YEAR TO DATE | YEAR AGO | YEAR AGO |
| SINGLE FAMILY PERMITS | 5 | 4 | 33 | 3 | 26 |
| total value | $553,668 | $626,945 | $3,844,524 | $389,760 | $3,147,590 |
| REMODELING PERMITS | 130 | 102 | 419 | 84 | 403 |
| total value | $1,244,101 | $892,584 | $3,917,548 | $681,408 | $5,656,152 |
| RAAR NEW HOMES SOLD REPORT | N/A | N/A | N/A | NA | NA |
| avg. days on market | N/A | n/a | N/A | NA | NA |
| median value | N/A | n/a | N/A | NA | NA |
| mean value | N/A | n/a | N/A | NA | NA |
| RAAR ALL HOMES SOLD REPORT | 400 | 399 | 1,841 | ||
| mean value | $102,721 | $96,935 | * | ||
| NAT'L NEW SNGL FAM. HOME SALES | 406,000 | 504,000 | * | 497,000 | * |
| median value | $273,500 | $282,000 | * | $249,700 | * |
| mean value | $331,400 | $319,200 | * | $161,000 | * |
| ATTACHED UNITS | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| BELVIDERE, BOONE COUNTY | |||||
| SINGLE FAMILY PERMITS | 2 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| total value | $184,000 | $750,000 | $1,118,800 | $1,762,500 | $3,168,874 |
| REMODELING PERMITS | 7 | 3 | 15 | 6 | 30 |
| total value | $345,866 | $282,300 | $873,799 | $71,170 | $575,015 |
| ATTACHED UNITS | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Homeownership Rate
Homeownership Rate Continues to Decline
The seasonally adjusted national homeownership rate fell to 64.8% during the second quarter of 2014. This marks a drop of 4.6 percentage points since the peak rate of 69.4% during the second quarter of 2004, according to the Census Bureau’s quarterly survey.
The homeownership rate declined by 0.3 percentage points year-over-year. The current rate is also below the 20-year historical average of 66.9%.
The data continue to show declines in homeownership across all age groups, with the largest declines being experienced for younger households. For example, the homeownership rate for those under age 35 currently (second quarter of 2014) stands at 35.9%, which is 7.7 percentage points lower than the peak rate of 43.6% (second quarter of 2004). For those 35 to 44, the homeownership rate is currently 60.2%, 9.9 percentage points lower than the peak rate of 70.1% (first quarter of 2005).
The homeownership rate will continue to decline as pent-up housing demand is unlocked, as such new households are more likely to be renters than homeowners.
Vacancy rates for owned and rental housing continued along the declining trend that has been in place since 2010. The rental vacancy rate declined to 7.5% during the second quarter, the lowest rate since 1997. The homeowner vacancy rate fell to 1.9%, matching the lowest rate since 2005.
