In the rapidly changing residential real estate industry, success hinges on mastering the local market. But as brokers focus their attention on providing the greatest insight for their clients, staying tuned in to what’s happening in the industry itself can be an even greater challenge. That’s why we publish our Truth About Agents issue every year.

Record-low rates that have driven market for the last two years are inching back up, but experts say don’t expect them to spike anytime soon. What does it all mean for mortgage brokers and real estate agents?

When deciding to start their business, Davina Arceneaux and her husband Kelly Jackson hoped to provide Illinois homebuyers with individualized, yet streamlined, options for lending.

Top producers are just like you. They start the new year off with a clean slate and work from the get-go to keep their numbers up in a business that, these days, at least, never seems to slow down.

Which communities are the hottest? How have buyer preferences changed? And how are buyers winning bidding wars?

Throughout the year, our monthly cover stories reflected the changing tides of the real estate market. Check out the top 10 issues which most interested our readers during this remarkable year.

We spoke with Chicago real estate leaders to learn what they see coming down the road for the industry. Check out our Q&A to learn more about what they’re planning for over the next 12 months.

Welcome to the 16th annual Agents’ Choice Awards, where we honor the best and brightest of Chicagoland real estate, according to the 35,000-plus votes cast.

The real estate brokerage business has gone through a metamorphosis over the last few decades and continues to pivot as online competitors grow and local competition remains fierce. In this issue, we speak with some of the biggest names in Chicagoland real estate.

There were 6.46 million homes sold in the United States last year, according to the National Association of Realtors, and agents from a single company represented well over a million of those buyers and sellers: Realogy. 

Joan Smothers launched Smothers Realty Group in 1996 and built her company to be the No. 1 brokerage in La Grange. So why would a successful broker-owner trade their independence to join Compass?

Wild fluctuations in the cost of building materials, rapidly changing buyer preferences and a variety of other factors have compelled builders and developers to find innovative solutions to get their projects completed.

This is the issue where you get to learn more about the outstanding agents, lenders and affiliates of the residential real estate industry who set the example for their peers. Learn everything from how they got into real estate to what drives their business to how they continue to grow year after year.

The past 18 months brought ups and downs to the housing market throughout Chicago and the city’s suburbs. With pandemic restrictions lifted and COVID-19 cases at lows not seen since last spring, agents and clients are still dealing with a lengthy inventory shortage and high demand that pushed prices up in many markets.

What are some of the tried and true methods of successful branding? How has it changed with social media and the tumultuous year that had brokers reinventing themselves? We talk with some of the biggest names in the Chicagoland real estate industry to find out more.

While masks and social distance requirements may eventually fall by the wayside, much of the new real estate technology that has surfaced during the pandemic is likely to stick around for the foreseeable future.