Real estate unexpectedly became part of Chuck Lochotzki’s life, long before he became a licensed agent. Lochotzki worked construction during summers throughout college, experience that made him an expert at determining a home’s quality and popular with friends who were in the market to rent or buy properties. “After living in Chicago for many years, friends and relatives continued to ask me to help them find a place,” says Lochotzki, a real estate agent with Compass Chicago. “I was able to point things out that really helped during walk-throughs.” Upon a friend’s suggestion, he took a real estate class, fell in love with the industry, and now it’s become his passion.

Lochotzki assists buyers and sellers on the Near North and west sides of Chicago, from Jefferson Park to Evanston. He also works in the western suburbs, as far west as St. Charles. Currently, 60% of his clients are sellers and 40% are buyers, from first-time to luxury. “I spent several years in outside sales, traveling to many of the neighborhoods in Chicagoland that I focus on now for real estate,” he says. “I know many of the business owners and community happenings in these neighborhoods now.”

Lochotzki lived on the north side of Chicago for more than 20 years — his office is in Bucktown — before recently moving his family to LaGrange. As if the pandemic and a move wasn’t challenging enough, he added a second child to the mix. His daughter Gwen, whom he’s madly in love with, arrived in February. Still, he is having the strongest rolling 12 months in his eight-year career.

A member of the Top Agent Network, Chicago Association of Realtors and National Association of Realtors, he works mostly by referral from friends and past clients. “I am not just worried about closing the transaction,” he says. “I want to build a lifelong relationship and friendship.”