Smart home technologies are one of the most pervasive trends in real estate today, and a recent survey from Coldwell Banker and Vivint Smart Home found that among the currently available varieties, voice automation is the most popular. Understanding

Chicago’s housing stock is the No. 6 most valuable in the entire country, according to a year-end analysis from Zillow. Altogether in 2016, Chicago’s residential properties are worth just over $772 billion, topping other major markets like Dallas, Phoenix and

As we mentioned in the last entry in our “A Guide to the 2017 Buyer” series (which covered Generation X) the question of “What does this year’s buyer look like?” is particularly pressing in 2017, and for one reason – the

For years, agents and analysts alike have wondered why so few Millennials are buying homes, but a new analysis of Census data has provided a remarkably straightforward answer – they’re all living at home with their parents, and at

The Chicagoland new construction market continues to put up some of the most impressive numbers in the nation, according to research from Dodge Data & Analytics. In November, Chicagoland saw more than $450 million in total residential construction spending, which is

As we mentioned in the first entry in our “A Guide to the 2017 Buyer” series – which covered Millennials – the question “What does this year’s buyer look like?” is particularly pressing this year. It’s pressing because we start

At the turn of every new year, a question that always picks at any real estate professional’s mind – any good one, anyway, is – what does this year’s buyer look like? The question is particularly important in 2017 because

Home sales in the nine-county Chicagoland area rose strongly in November, according to new numbers from Illinois Realtors. With 6,979 sales for the month, the Chicagoland market was up 16 percent from a year ago. Meanwhile, the median sales

When the U.S. housing bubble peaked in 2004 and 2005, the market seemed to be in grand shape: the homeownership rate was 69 percent; the Case-Shiller National Home Price Index was 184.4, a 135.5 percent increase from 1994; and

President Obama’s legacy will take shape over the coming years, but one thing is clear – he will be remembered as a champion of homeowners, a fact his record bears out. Here are a few of his most notable achievements, as they

When it comes to the housing market’s ever-worsening inventory situation, one factor receives an outsized share of the blame – the historically low levels of home construction. Although the explanations for construction’s low volume differ – NAR has consistently argued that builders

Nearing the end of another year, speculation is now hitting its greatest height for how the next chapter in the housing recovery will take shape. Countless “experts” have offered cursory, drive-by analyses of where the market is heading, but there

Starter homes in the Chicagoland area remain relatively affordable, but they are slipping out of reach for many consumers. That was the finding of a very interesting new study from Trulia, which assessed the status of starter homes in

Affordability is a chief concern in the Chicago real estate market, as it is in many markets. But even though it’s a popular talking point for industry insiders, few understand the true volatility of “affordable.” To some families, the line

There are about 11 million illegal immigrants in the U.S., eight million of whom are a part of the country’s labor force. Although it’s hard to say where President-elect Donald Trump actually stands on undocumented workers – he has promised to deport all of

The news sounds bad: mortgage rates have risen aggressively since the presidential election, and are now at their highest level since July 2015; for the first week in December, rates posted the largest weekly jump since 2013; and the Federal