Nearly every street in our great city of Chicago has been plagued with foreclosed aka. Bank Owned REOs, and therefore taking on a new name of a "distressed property". My daily routes and showings consist of 75% distressed homes that are either vacant or semi occupied(squad). Therefore I see a lot of things at all* market levels. Some of the most interesting places land over on my Flickr photostream. Glad to see you make it over there at some point.

So what exactly is a distressed property?

Distressed properties are homes that are in danger of facing foreclosures proceedings, or that have already been scheduled for sale as a result of default on the part of the homeowner.
In most cases these dwellings have already been vacant for an existing period of time making it even tougher to brink back to shape.

When does a property receive the status?

A property is said to be distressed when a homeowner gets behind on mortgage payments or a tax payment and the lender or appropriate debt collector begins to start the necessary proceedings to sell the home in order to collect the outstanding debt. Therefore the home is already falling into disrepair while the lender still sorts out the paper work.

When a property is tagged as a distress house, this means it is not in the most preferred physical state. However, this does not mean that distressed houses are not worthy to be invested on. If you are looking for a distressed property, you might want to try out our Foreclosure Database on DesignatedAgents.com or any of Chicago Neighborhoods.

Can't help to wonder about the future of our 'L' system (sometimes called "L", El, EL, or L) as I compare it's progress and up keep to immediate surroundings (e.g. Silver Tower in the background). It's astonishing to know that the oldest section of the 'L' dates from 1892, making it the second-oldest rapid transit system in the Americas after New York.

Sure, you can say the structure has a character of it's own just the way it is, I will absolutely agree with that -but are we really happy with it, or the way it presents itself? I for one am not so sure about that.

I say, tell Mr. Daley to get his Graffiti Blaster to stop wasting their precious pressure on cultural art around town and fill those tanks with some nice gray paint, preferably from Carbit Paint company, as they are Local. Maybe that will get the Cta duo some 'fresh paint' ideas.

I am curious to know what you think. Do you like to appreciate the System for it's significant design and adaptation to the city around or the distressed, aged and real dirty urban look?

Today as I drove to a showing in the Tri Taylor neighborhood of Chicago, a thought (more like a twit ) came to my head. I realized that the single most exciting thing about today's real estate market is the idea that
"Foreclosures = Creative Freedom."

How, you ask?

Consider that most REOs (bank owned properties) had been vacant for at least 3 months, vandalized, and/or the previous rehab job was a disaster. Therefore, you can almost be sure that you'd do a significant amount of work there. With this comes the freedom to really get what you want for under the market value-- that is, if you do your numbers right. Programs such as the FHA 203k offer that fexibility with peace of mind and space to get creative.

There really is no better way of describing what I am talking about than taking a look at my daily flickr photo set or visit my twitter roll (bit self promotion here). Each property, with its unique feel, calls for the appropriate attention to bring it back to life. No matter if it needs some simple TLC or a gut rehab, the mind must be set on what you want to do with the structure even before you consider signing on the dotted line. And there really is no excuse for not being "in the know", with today's technology, free web resources and the live feedback available through the net.

The amount of data available for research and analysis is staggering. After all, we are starting a whole new era, a realm of sharing, which ultimately will result in success for all parties. So next time you see a "For Sale" sign on a boarded up structure, do a bit of research on this type of property and imagine what it can become. Amaze yourself and others, and remember that getting there is half the fun. Enjoy!