April new construction numbers excellent, but stats could be misleading On the surface, April was a fabulously positive month for new construction. Not only did housing starts jump 20.2 percent from March (the second largest jump ever recorded), but their

A study from ULI found that while most people are happy with their living arrangements, many are lacking in some fundamental amenities, like healthy food Real estate supports a wide spectrum of standards, encompassing a plethora of lifestyles and preferences

Housing in Chicago’s city market is doing quite well, but what neighborhoods are particularly competitive? Good news abounded in the latest Real Time Housing Market Tracker from Redfin, which offered an exhaustive overview of Chicago’s housing market in April.

Significant challenges remain on the homebuilding front, according to new NAHB research “Booming” is a word that has not been associated with Chicagoland’s housing market for some time, but no other adjective is more appropriate for the market’s new

Looser lending standards may not be the panacea for housing’s sideways growth For years, housing professionals have been holding their breath for looser lending standards to ride in and boost the market into a new era of prosperity, but

Despite an influx of investors to the market, cash sales continue to dwindle throughout the nation. It is a new market for traditional buyers, despite a recent report of surging investor activity, as once again cash sales fell in

A recent study ranked Winnetka near the top in terms of wealth and affluence Winnetka is the second-richest city in America, according to a new analysis from 24/7 Wall St. In its study, which looked at a number of economic

A new report from CoreLogic shows foreclosures are falling across the nation, mostly The nation’s foreclosure inventory is in decline, falling 25.7 percent year-over-year in March, which represents a continued effort to regain the market normalcy enjoyed in pre-crisis

A new study uses homeownership rate to rank the best and worst presidents for housing…but it’s a bit more complicated than that. In early May, economist Roger Thomas of ValueWalk.com released an analysis (of sorts) on homeownership rates from

A new report from RealtyTrac confirms investors are gaining traction in the flipping market. But is there enough inventory to go around? Single-family home flips were up in 2015’s first quarter, according to a RealtyTrac U.S. Home Flipping Report.

While unemployment continued declining in the new jobs report, slow wage growth points to an overall tighter labor market. The Labor Department released its April jobs report today and the response has been somewhat neutral, as limited gains tell

What suburban markets in Chicagoland are the most competitive? Last week, we reported on the top-selling suburbs in Chicagoland, and how Aurora and Naperville were once again at the top of the hill. Such a list, though, is heavily

We keep hearing how low inventory is in today’s housing market, but why is that the case? The National Association of Realtors’ existing-home sales report for March was an altogether positive take on housing, with sales rising 6.1 percent

What is the state of new construction in Chicagoland, as the market creeps towards recovery? New construction in the 10-county Chicagoland area stumbled somewhat in 2015’s first quarter, with new home sales falling 4.2 percent from 2014 to 1,047

A new Zillow analysis shows in stark terms just how damaging inequality is for housing’s future. Call it “The Great Housing Divide.” Although homeownership – on the strength of record-low mortgage rates – remains incredibly affordable, rising levels of

March represents another month of home price appreciation, according to CoreLogic. CoreLogic released its March Home Price Index (HPI) today, and the findings reflected a continued strengthening of prices nationwide. Including distressed sales, national home prices rose 5.9 percent in