Second Home Sales Hit Record
Four out of every 10 real estate transactions were second home sales for vacation, part-time living and/or investment purposes, according to an annual report put together by the National Association of Realtors ®(NAR). These types of sales hit records in 2005.
Two surveys showed that 27.7% of property purchased in 2005 were for investment purposes and 12.2% were vacation homes. Many second home purchases are not really a 2nd home, but a 3rd, 4th, 5th or more because of good investment returns. What I found interesting is that the median distance of a vacation home was 197 miles from the primary residence, and 47% were less than 100 miles away while 43% purchased 500 miles or more away.
In Illinois I always think of friends and family that bought in Florida, Michigan and Wisconsin. However, there are plenty of Illinois residents that purchase in quaint towns like Galena and others enjoy purchasing a property near downtown Chicago. They don’t want to live downtown full-time but enjoy having a place to go and stay when they want to take advantage of what downtown Chicago offers such as dining, theater, shopping and other attractions.
You can read the entire article here.
