Connie Beard, Denbesten Real Estate
Former McLean County GOP Chair
Current Illinois homeowners, as well as would-be homeowners, are facing significant challenges due to the tax-and-spend policies of the federal and state Democrat administrations. The most critical challenges are due to higher prices, rising interest rates, competition for limited housing, and growing real estate taxes. "Illinois housing market is facing several challenges," according to Connie Beard, a Denbesten Real Estate agent and former chair of the McLean County Republicans. (Click on the title above to continue if necessary.)
Affordability has a way of excluding a sizable portion of potential homeowners. Not only can they not afford the loan payments, but other factors such as home insurance and utilities costs also price them out of the marketplace. Connie Beard, Broker at Denbesten Real Estate and former Chairperson of McLean County Republicans, recently weighed in on the issue. “As a Realtor, I keep tabs on many different statistics. Current sales show the median price for homes in our area just at $300,000, a significant increase over last year.”
Interest rates for homeowners have also grown recently due to the federal government’s spendthrift attitude. Higher interest rates make mortgages more expensive, reducing affordability. Excessive spending has increased the national debt to over 32 trillion dollars, and the Federal Reserve Bank has raised interest rates to tamp down inflation.
Exacerbating the problem, Beard notes, “We only have a 1.8-month supply of houses to sell, which is about half of the desired amount.” Housing shortages lead to increased competition among buyers, which drives prices up. Beard continued, “All that creates what we would label a seller’s market, demand exceeding supply. People don’t sell because they can’t afford the higher prices and can’t be sure they will find a home.”
Illinois is well known for high property taxes, and property taxes can affect the overall affordability of homes. They can be a factor for potential buyers and property owners. Recent increases due to successful school funding initiatives in parts of McLean County are a particular problem.
All of these challenges make for a cloudy outlook. Beard noted, “With the exodus of businesses and homeowners escaping rising taxes, the future is uncertain. The majority of homes I have sold in the last two years have been people leaving the state. Our real estate bubble can pop at any time as it did in the crash of 2008.”
State and federal economic policies fueling inflation and environmental policies driving up the prices of utilities have similarly driven up the cost of building new and living in existing homes. Unfortunately, many potential and existing homeowners are being excluded from the American Dream of owning homes by progressive government policies.