Laura McGreal
Karen Schwartz
Brokers/Co-Founders
The Laura McGreal and Karen Schwartz Group
Dream Town Realty
In the summer of 2016, brokers Laura McGreal and Karen Schwartz decided to make the transition from being brokers and co-owners of Chicago New Properties to Dream Town Realty, then founding the Laura McGreal and Karen Schwartz Group. At that time they also were also presented with an opportunity to launch and sell LG Development’s newest condo project in the West Loop, The Illume, alongside the Hebson Team. “The project just started construction in December, and we already have over 60 percent of the units sold,” McGreal and Schwartz said. Illume is just one of the many construction projects that The Laura McGreal and Karen Schwartz Group have spearheaded in the city and suburbs since forming their boutique full-service real estate team.
McGreal and Schwartz worked in sales for Chicago developer Pulte for 11 years before forming their own brokerage, Chicago New Properties, in 2014. Representing buyers and sellers in both the city and suburbs, the team specializes in new construction. “Having had 10-plus years of experience working directly for a developer, we believe our vast knowledge of the new construction process — whether working with buyers or developers — has been truly instrumental in our success,” McGreal says.
Their team has been recognized as top producers by the Chicago Association of Realtors and the Mainstreet Organization of Realtors. “We are able to assist our developers from taking a project from pre-launch to post-construction, and are able to guide our buyers through this process as well,” Schwartz says.
Along with moving their brokerage Chicago New Properties over to Dream Town Realty, McGreal and Schwartz’s accomplishments this year included expanding their team. “We added four amazing new team members — Alison Van Bergen, Ryan Blake, Megan Studencki, and Angela Ofslager — to the new group we created under Dream Town,” McGreal says. “With these additions to our team, we’re able to better assist our clients with any city-to-suburb transition, or vice versa. Half of the team is dedicated to the city clientele and the other half is committed to clients transitioning into the suburbs. We’re seeing many young families that are deciding to finally sell their condos in the city and officially make the move to the suburbs. With our team, we can assist with both sides of that transaction, making for a smooth and seamless process.”
McGreal and Schwartz served as members of the Habitat for Humanity’s Women Build Committee in 2016, which enables women to help eliminate poverty housing by building homes and communities. “We were team leaders to 10 other women that helped build a new home for a single mom in the West Pullman neighborhood. This is something we commit our time to every year, and we are humbled by all the people that help out to support this cause, as well as the family we are supporting,” McGreal says.
They also support nonprofit organizations Blessings in a Backpack and Heartland Alliance, and enjoy spending time in their community with family and friends. “In our business we are always on the go, so when we have downtime, we truly like to enjoy spending quality time with family and friends, as well as trying new restaurants and attractions,” Schwartz says.