You'd never know it now, but the 4 major feeder-towns that make up the Lincoln-Way area of Will County, Illinois (Frankfort, Mokena, New Lenox, Manhattan) were pretty rural in nature not that long ago. What were once small and quiet villages, are now filled with newly constructed homes, bustling with traffic, and filled with nationally-known franchises that spill into where corn fields once stood.
Manhattan ... where I grew up, was the smallest of these Lincoln-Way area towns. Located at the southern-most tip of this region, it remains the smallest of the towns still today and perhaps retains the most nearby farmland.
My wife and I visited my mom in Manhattan over the weekend. On the drive out there, we made casual comments on the tassling corn and color-changes of the soy beans. We both noted that the sky and air seemed different from even a few short days ago.
Fall and its' harvest-time are not far off ...
During the Fall season when you lived in Manhattan you became familiar with two sites. One was the big grain trucks that drove through town on their way to the grain elevator located along the railroad tracks smack in the middle of town. Later in Fall and close to Thanksgiving time, you saw the town busy with cars and trucks filled with men dressed in hunting gear. Pheasant hunting was popular in our area and the hunters would stop in town to pick-up last minute needs and a coffee for their thermos before heading out to the farms and open land. I tell you, a kid could hear some pretty colorful stories on the sidewalks downtown during that time!
It occurred to me too, that a case could be made for the existence of a strong metaphor or analogy between the current real estate market, Fall, and hunting and harvest season. It seems to me that for those presently thinking of entering, or hoping to enter, the housing market (or refinance), this Fall could prove to be a very fruitful "HUNTING" season. With mortgage interest rates at record lows and a "BUMPER CROP" of available homes to "BAG" ... a buyer could "HARVEST" themselves a great deal on a home.
Just like the Fall though, the current market conditions will not last forever. And although this recession is taking longer than we had thought or hoped it would to improve itself ... history teaches us one thing. It WILL eventually do so. When that improvement occurs, the opportunities that now exist within the market will be lost. Rates cannot stay this low forever. Prices of homes have already stabilized in some areas, and even started to rise again in others.
And, whether you live in Manhattan Illinois or Manhattan New York ... this is also true. As a potential buyer, or someone looking to refinance their home, it costs you nothing to talk to a mortgage professional. It costs you nothing to ask questions. It costs you nothing to inquire about options and possibilities that may exist for you now, or for your future. What do you risk by talking to a lender? Nothing!
So I say, whether located in a big city or small rural town ... come "HUNT" out your financial options and opportunities. Pick-up that phone or type that email to me. Go "HUNTING" for the information you need. Your personal "HARVEST" could be a new home for yourself or new improved credit for the future.
Gene Mundt, Sr. Vice President
Personal NMLS #216987
The Federal Savings Bank
1823 Centre Point Circle, Naperville, IL 60563
Now on Skype! 630-219-1316
