PADDY LONGS BEER AND BACON PUB REVIEW

PADDY LONGS BEER AND BACON PUB REVIEW

 

I read several good reviews about Chicago’s Paddy Long’s Beer and Bacon Pub, so I decided to visit last Tuesday!  This is a small neighborhood bar, that has an immense supply of craft beers and bacon!!! Who can go wrong with bacon!!!  It was pop culture trivia night when I went and Paddy’s was filled a good size crowd of friendly people.  I ordered a very tasty Half Acre blonde ale, which accompanied my “Bacon Board” of Irish, Danish, Jowl, and Cracked Black Pepper Bacons.  The bacon was awesome, especially the hard to find Jowl Bacon, which was my favorite!  Before I left, I also tried a small glass of high ABV Belgium Ale called Delirium Tremens, which is brewed with Belgium candy to give it a sweet finish.  This was one of the most awesome beers ever!  I would most definitely go to Paddy Longs again!

 

Happy Eating!!!

The Best Shortcut Streets in Chicago

           Living in Chicago, we all know the expressways are everything but express!!! Sometimes getting on the e-way will cause you to lose time, as opposed to street routes.  As a realtor in the city, I know Chicago like the back of my hand and I have found a few hidden shortcuts that I would like to share:

·        Loomis St. to Roosevelt Rd. [1400W, 1200S] (North to South)

·        Roosevelt Rd. to Sacramento Ave. [1200S, 3000W] (East to West)
 
·        Sacramento Ave. to Elston Ave.-ends near Belmont Ave. {3000W,3200N] (North to South)
 
·        State St. to Roosevelt Rd. [0E/W, 1200S] (South to North)
 
·        Indiana Ave. [200E] (Quick way to get from 69^th St to 95^th St. South)

·        South Chicago Ave. at 69^th St. to 95^th  St./Torrence Ave. [400E, 9500S/2634E] (quick way to get to Indiana)

·        California Blvd. to Montrose Dr. [2800W, 4400W] (North to South)

·        Racine Ave. to 95^th St. [1200W, 9500S] (South)

·        76^thSt.-Lakefront to Damen Ave. [7600S, 2000S] (South; East to West)
 
I hope these quick routes will be useful!  Be safe and Happy driving!!!

WEEK OF 01/21/13: LOWEST DAILY 30YR FIXED MORTGAGE RATE

01/21/13- Today’s lowest 30yr fixed home mortgage rate in Chicago: 3.46%

First time home buyers: What to expect

Are you considering buying your first home? Where do you start? What do you expect?  Here are the steps of  buying your first home:

·        Contact a Mortgage Loan officer to determine your credit worthiness and maximum home purchase price; You can also contact a Realtor, who can provide a small list of reputable mortgage lenders.

·        Once you have your pre-approval letter from your lender, you can start to view homes with your Realtor.
·        When you find your dream home, you will submit an offer to purchase (with the help of your Realtor), which can be accepted or countered by the seller.
·        After all parties have agreed on pricing and terms, you now have a fully executed contract!  Within the first 5 days after acceptance of offer, you must submit the Earnest Money (usually $1,000 via Certified Funds), conduct a home inspection with a licensed Home Inspector, and have your real estate attorney review the purchase contract to amend if needed.
·        Your mortgage lender will have you submit an application for mortgage financing, where you will gather financial information such as employment info, bank statements, w-2’s, etc.  Your home mortgage lender may also ask for appraisal fees upfront, at your expense.
·        Before closing, a final walk-thru will be performed on the home to make sure it’s in the same condition when inspected and broom cleaned.
·        Closing on the home will take roughly 45 days with financing, and 14 days for Cash deals.

I hope the steps above were helpful.  Please feel free to contact me for more information.

 

Happy house hunting!!!

Chicago Open House “horror” story

              Due to the recent assault on a Realtor in my area, I decided to share a similar scary experience.  About 3 weeks ago, I hosted an Open House on the north side of Chicago; Something just didn’t seem right with the home, possibly due to the next door neighbors arguing and fighting loudly outside! Anyways, upon entry to the home, I noticed that the alarm system’s keypad and door/window sensors were on the floor and there were open and unlocked windows. After inspecting the home, which had a ton of cubby- holes and hidden areas, I deemed it safe.

              After 30 minutes passed, with no visitors, a man came to the property.  He stated the seller had given him “permission” to park “a car” in the garage. As he barged in and started to feverishly look into drawers and cabinets for a garage door opener, I became extremely worried.  Me and the listing agent knew nothing about this arrangement, so the seller was called.  After I told the man, we have no knowledge of this arrangement and we would contact seller, he became agitated and left.  He soon returned with another man and stated he had the seller on hold on his cell phone, but this situation was odd and unsafe as the man tried to get me outside of the home, but I declined.  I locked the door and left the men outside by the garage and called the seller again, where he did verify the validity of the man’s story.  Even so, the men seemed unsavory and this whole situation was like an NBC “Date Line” story, so I left! 

The moral of the story is: If a situation is questionable or unsafe, leave immediately…Safety first!

 martial arts in June 2012, I moved up in rank the middle of September!!!  Progress and change is
After starting martial arts in June 2012, I moved up in rank the middle of September!!!  Progress and change is good!

The beginning of First Home Chicago's blog...

Today is a start of a new endeavor!  I hope to keep Chicagoans informed on Real Estate and living life to the fullest!