Naperville Real Estate – West Suburban Blog Naperville Real Estate and Aurora Real Estate, Homes for sale in the Naperville and Aurora Areas

Downtown Wheaton IL ¦ Real Estate ¦ Commuters delight

Written by Angus on May 16th, 2012

Downtown Wheaton, Illinois – A delightful mix of old and new

See below for current active real estate listings in the Downtown Wheaton area…

Don’t be fooled by Main Street in downtown Wheaton, it’s just the tip of the iceberg. The downtown area features the beautiful historic campus of Wheaton College, A fantastic Library overlooking Adams Park, a commuter train station and a plethora of great shops and restaurants.

Showing properties 1 - 20 of 81. See more Downtown Wheaton Real Estate.
(all data current as of 5/21/2012)

$399,900 : 726 Howard Street, WHEATON

3 beds, 1 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 1,966 sq ft

Lot size: 7,910 sqft
$262,500 : 111 N Wheaton Avenue ,Unit Number 309, WHEATON

2 beds, 2 full baths

Home size: 1,480 sq ft
$574,900 : 712 N Main Street, WHEATON

5 beds, 4 full baths

Home size: 3,506 sq ft

Lot size: 13,068 sqft
$625,000 : 703 N Main Street, WHEATON

4 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 2,600 sq ft

Lot size: 9,683 sqft
$875,000 : 216 N Gary Avenue, Wheaton

5 beds, 3 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 3,432 sq ft

Lot size: 14,850 sqft
$650,000 : 821 N Carlton Avenue, WHEATON

3 beds, 4 full baths

Home size: 3,124 sq ft

Lot size: 30,056 sqft
$499,000 : 255 E Liberty Drive ,Unit Number 701, WHEATON

2 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 2,013 sq ft
$1,695,000 : 517 W Union Avenue, WHEATON

4 beds, 4 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 5,000 sq ft

Lot size: 12,402 sqft
$369,900 : 820 Irving Avenue, WHEATON

3 beds, 1 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 1,238 sq ft

Lot size: 8,370 sqft
$369,900 : 211 N West Street, WHEATON

3 beds, 2 full, 2 part baths

Home size: 2,268 sq ft
$349,900 : 430 E Illinois Street, WHEATON

4 beds, 2 full baths

Home size: 2,500 sq ft

Lot size: 8,300 sqft
$399,900 : 830 N Washington Street, WHEATON

4 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 2,285 sq ft

Lot size: 9,825 sqft
$699,000 : 407 N Gary Avenue, WHEATON

4 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 3,300 sq ft

Lot size: 13,656 sqft
$425,000 : 713 E Evergreen Street, WHEATON

4 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

Lot size: 10,788 sqft
$674,900 : 709 N West Street, WHEATON

4 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 2,598 sq ft

Lot size: 10,886 sqft
$298,500 : 523 E Illinois Street, WHEATON

3 beds, 1 full bath

Home size: 1,448 sq ft

Lot size: 8,250 sqft
$599,900 : 1005 Warrenville Road, WHEATON

4 beds, 3 full, 2 part baths

Home size: 3,521 sq ft

Lot size: 27,300 sqft
$485,950 : 315 E Liberty Street, WHEATON

3 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 2,090 sq ft
$144,900 : MLS # 08044338 in WHEATON

2 beds, 1 full, 1 part baths

Home size: 1,000 sq ft

Lot size: 3,877 sqft
$189,000 : 906 Irving Avenue, WHEATON

3 beds, 1 full bath

Home size: 1,080 sq ft

Lot size: 9,378 sqft

Listing information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Read full disclaimer.

Posted in Wheaton | No Responses »

Wheaton Real Estate ¦ Changing Market ¦ A Flowering Spring ¦ April 2012

Written by Angus on May 16th, 2012

The Changing Wheaton Real Estate Market

spring of 2012 brings some relief to beleagured homeowners…

Wheaton’s median sales price in April 2011 was $227,000, in April 2012 the median sales price was $250,000 a change (up!) of 10.1%. Deep breath time…..

As you can see by the graph below… Active listings (inventory) are down 27.1%, Properties that have contracts on them are up 57.1% and closed sales were up 15.4%… May looks promising as well, June will be the telling month as that is typically the biggest closing month of the year. With interest rates at an all time low, I’m expecting more good news as the market is remaining quite active.

Posted in Statistics, Wheaton | No Responses »

Downers Grove Real Estate ¦ A Changing Market ¦ Spring has sprung ¦ April 2012

Written by Angus on May 11th, 2012

The Changing Downers Grove Real Estate Market

spring of 2012 brings some relief to beleagured homeowners…

Downers Grove’s median sales price in April 2011 was $195,000, in April 2012 the median sales price was $237,500 a change (way up!) of 21.8%.

As you can see by the graph below… Active listings (inventory) are down 20.5%, Properties that have contracts on them are up 56.9% and closed sales were up 40.5%… May looks promising as well, June will be the telling month as that is typically the biggest closing month of the year. With interest rates at an all time low, I’m expecting more good news.

Posted in Downers Grove, Statistics | No Responses »

Naperville Real Estate ¦ A Changing Market ¦ Spring has sprung ¦ April 2012

Written by Angus on May 8th, 2012

The Changing Naperville Real Estate Market

spring of 2012 brings some relief to beleagured homeowners…

Naperville’s median sales price in April 2011 was $320,500, in April 2012 the median sales price was $327,750 a change (up!) of 2.3%.

As you can see by the graph below… Active listings (inventory) are down 21%, Properties that have contracts on them are up 90.5% and closed sales were up 44.3%… May looks promising as well, June will be the telling month as that is typically the biggest closing month of the year. With interest rates at an all time low, I’m expecting more good news.

Posted in Naperville, Statistics | 1 Response »

A handy product for homeowners #2- Greasy – Sticky stuff

Written by Angus on December 12th, 2011

Another product that I have had great success with is Krud Kutter Cleaner/Degreaser. As a bonus.. it’s an Krud Kutter Cleaner Degreaser - A great product when you are getting your home ready to sell eco-friendly product that is non-toxic.

I first heard about Krud Kutter when I was getting my accreditation as a Home Stager (AHS). This is a great all around product for homeowners that does things that your average antiseptic/window cleaner/pine stuff don’t neccessarily do well.

It’s great for cleaning around your stove/oven and range hood… it made quick work of our Thanksgiving mess…

My favorite thing about Krud Kutter is using it to clean woodwork (not the painted kind) If you have wood railings in your home… you might notice that as the humidity rises that the railings might get “sticky” (especially if you have children) or your wood doors might have some fingerprint “grime” on them. We use a rag and Krud Kutter to clean the wood and then some Old English to bring the luster back.

Posted in Buying Tips, Home Staging, selling tips | 2 Responses »

Thinking of buying a home in Naperville District 203? Get Educated!

Written by Angus on December 12th, 2011

There is potential that if you buy a home in Naperville School District 203, that the schools that your children would attend could change. Stay “in the loop” by following their website at:

Naperville School District 203 Attendance Boundaries Updates

You can also view the updated State School Report Card for the district at:

Naperville School District 203 State Report Card

Posted in Naperville, School District 203, Schools | No Responses »

Grocery shopping in Naperville

Written by Angus on December 12th, 2011

Grocery shopping is not just a quick trip to one store anymore.

Growing up in Chicago, my mom would “let” me do the grocery shopping. Depending on where we were living… this was a trip to the local Jewel, A&P or Potash Brothers. I loved shopping then, and I still love grocery shopping now.

However, the shopping has gotten more complicated because none of the stores are good at everything.

I regularly shop at Caputo’s, Casey’s, Costco, Dominicks, Jewel, Michaels Fresh Market, Sam’s Club, Trader Joe’s, World Market and Whole Foods.

Michaels and Caputo’s have great produce sections. Large open areas and bins piled high with fresh produce at great prices. These two stores also have great, reasonably priced deli counters. A pound of meat might cost 1/2 what it costs at the big name supermarkets. But Caputo’s (111th and rt59) is special.. the deli looms large, premade dishes and an extensive selection are just the tip of the iceberg at this place. As Grocery Shopping in Naperville IL - Michael's Fresh Market much as I love Michaels (next to Sam’s at rt 59 and Ogden) I would have to rate Caputo’s as a Naperville business that you need to know… also the best fresh bread department in town… Yum!

For your staples: cereal, milk, soda etc… Jewel, Dominicks and Meijer are the places to go and while they are pleasant places to shop, they are missing the boat in produce, meat and deli. Dominick’s has a very good web site where you attach coupons to your phone number (or card) so that you don’t have to worry about forgetting them.

Grocery Shopping in Naperville - Casey's If you like meat or quality prepared foods try Casey’s Food Market at Gartner and Washington (right by Trader Joe’s.. yum!) Casey’s always has a staff of butchers working, these guy’s know what they are doing… it’s pricey, so I save it for special occasions (love their heart of rib eye steaks – like Filet Mignon except with texture, flavor and richness)

Grocery Shopping in Naperville IL - Trader Joes and Whole Foods Whole Foods is conveniently located in the same mall as World Market (the BEST place to buy coffee) just across the street from Costco, this is like the one-two-three punch of greatness… the only problem is deciding where to go first….

Posted in Best places to live, Just for fun, Naperville, Observations, quality of life | No Responses »

A handy product for homeowners #1- Wood Scratches

Written by Angus on December 8th, 2011

Old English Wood Scratch Cover If you have natural /stained woodwork, cabinets or furniture you’ve probably been subject to some of the same things that we have… scratches and other blemishes. We could blame it on the kids, the dog, the carpet installers.. but, wherever the fault lay… sometimes the finish just gets scratched.

For heavy duty blemishes, you may have to resort to using a stain. We’ve done this and also used stain to make small scratches disappear. This takes a bit of commitment and some preparation.

A couple of years ago our flooring guy (Rob at Exploring Flooring (630) 393-2020) told us about Old English Scratch Cover and it was a game changer. Light and medium scratches just disappear with a rag and a swipe.

We also use Old English to wipe down and refresh our oak cabinets… the product comes in two different shades (test on a small area first) but we’ve found that we usually use the darker one, even on our medium toned cabinets. We gave all of our cabinets a good going over as we were replacing the hardware (think of those handles as “jewelry”) and then everything was just so fresh.

When we put our last home on the market we used Krud Kutter To get rid of finger/handprints on the doors and stairway railings and then wiped everything down with Old English, it made us wish that we had done it sooner… when we moved into the new place we did it all immediately.

While I am sure that there are other products out there that will do similar things, I’ve had great success with this little (less than $5.00) bottle of magic for homeowners.

I’ve found it available for sale at local grocery and hardware stores.

Posted in Buying Tips, Home Staging, selling tips | 1 Response »

Looking for a Naperville swim club?

Written by Angus on March 14th, 2011

Naperville Swim Conference - A league of 23 Naperville Swim Teams Competitive swimming?

If you are looking for resources for children (5-18) swim clubs in Naperville you will find a comprehensive list here at the Naperville Swim Conference (NSC) website. The NSC is a league of 23 local teams and more than 3000 swimmers. You can find some of the pool communities here and you often do not need to live in the community to join the pool.

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Another option for swimmers is the fine Heritage (FRY and Koehler in Naperville) YMCA Porpoise’s Swim Team

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For Adults; Naperville is also home to the competitive swim team: The Naperville Waves.

Naperville Waves - Swim Team - Masters and Triathalon - Swimmers over 18

The Waves are an Adult (over 18) team, a competitive Masters Swim club featuring practices for several different levels of experience, from beginner to advanced. Masters Swimming and Triathalon competitions are encouraged, but not required.

Posted in Naperville, Swim Club | No Responses »

An unwelcome visitor in the white house

Written by Angus on March 8th, 2011

Ironically, it was house number thirteen on our tour of Wheaton and Glen Ellyn. A white clapboard house on a large lot, standing alone on a dead end street on the western edge of Glen Ellyn.

Not a big house, but the buyer was attracted to the spacious front porch and the list of updates the MLS listing revealed. We had an appointment, rang the bell, and waited an appropriate amount of time before accessing the Sentrilock lockbox.

A shotgun style floor plan so that when we opened the door we were able to see all the way to the back of the house …. our initial impression was that the home was nicely staged. We stepped inside and got that skin crawly feeling that something was wrong. My eye was drawn to the back of the home where I noticed something on the floor by the back door, as I looked more closely, it appeared to be half of the blinds from the door and I also noticed that the door appeared to be chewed/scratched up…

Starting to get concerned about what kind of animal was big enough to cause that kind of damage several feet off the ground, I headed back toward the front… and started to notice what I had missed before… lamp on the floor, pictures askew and more window damage near the fireplace (even higher off the ground!) I’m starting to wonder… Raccoon? Rabid dog? Tasmanian Devil? Whatever it was, it was scared or cranky (or both)… I was just hoping it was gone!

The buyer was torn, she wanted to see the house, but also wanted to get the heck out of there. Needless to say, she’d feel more comfortable if I were leading the way. Being the brave soul that I am; I grabbed the nearest weapon that I could find (a piece of wooden statuary) and started up the stairs. The buyer following close behind; I reached the top of the stairs and went to the left towards the master bedroom (more window damage) when I noticed that the buyer had emboldened herself and had gone right toward the bathroom.

Between us lay the 2nd bedroom, I approached cautiously (not feeling emboldened at all) the room appeared normal with a bed sitting high on the floor… just outside the doorway I kneel down and look under the bed… when something came flying out at me! Completely forgetting my awesome weapon, I couldn’t process what was happening fast enough, when suddenly it flew past me and down the stairs… yes, that’s when things got squirrely.

Recovering from my surprise, I notice the buyer is cowering in the bathroom (could I have let some sort of inadvertent sound escape from me?) apparently, she hadn’t seen the beast (maybe I gasped when startled) and so I told her “it’s just a squirrel”

Unfortunately, the panicked squirrel is now downstairs where we have to go. We head down a Be careful of dangerous tenants! nd don’t see the little guy anywhere… we had decided to leave when the squirrel jumped out of the fireplace and ran right at us. He stopped two feet from us, gave us the pounce look, skittered left… skittered right… gave us a little more pounce attitude and took off back up the fireplace.

The bedroom sizes weren’t going to work for the buyer (for this we risk life and limb?) so I called the listing agent with that information and let him know that he had an unwanted tenant.

Posted in Glen Ellyn, Housing Adventures, Just for fun, Wheaton | No Responses »