The chances of a new ordinance being passed in the Chicago City Council just increased with calls from several Progressive Aldermen to pass the Bring Chicago Home plan that would substantially increase the transfer tax of real estate sales from $5.25 per $500 of sales value, to $15.25 per $500 of sales value on any sale of a commercial property valued at $1 million or greater. This additional transfer tax money would be used to pay for various measures to alleviate homelessness in the city. |
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Fighting homelessness is certainly a worthy goal. But the methods being proposed to achieve it are not. The ordinance, if passed, would represent just the latest incidence of a tax increase in a city that is sick to death of paying higher and higher fees for the privilege of living in Chicago. Maybe it would be different if Chicagoans felt they were getting commensurate services for their tax outlays. It is more likely that most Chicagoans feel that costs only ever go up while services stay the same or decline. |
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The three new justices appointed to the Supreme Court during the Trump administration have already made a big impact on the country’s legal landscape. In just their first term, the Court overturned Roe v. Wade in their controversial Dobbs decision while also favoring gun access over restrictions, and religious over individual rights in other cases. |
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Consider these decisions just the opening volley. There is little doubt much more lies ahead. One intriguing possibility not yet on the Court’s docket, but possibly coming soon, is a case challenging the constitutionality of rent control that got filed in New York State and is currently winding its way through the federal court system. If this case does end up in front of the US Supreme Court – as seems likely – the outcome may be very different from what has unfolded thus far. |
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Preliminary plans are in the works for an all-affordable multifamily housing development at the northeast corner of Howard and Paulina Streets. The developer is Housing For All, LLC, which brings together the expertise of several real estate professionals with varied backgrounds and specializations.
Shelly Tucciarelli is one of the team of professionals looking to make this plan happen. Ms. Tucciarelli worked for many years at the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA), including twelve years in the Low Income Housing Tax Credit group and several years as tax credit department head.
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Ms. Tucciarelli is also a member of the Oneida Nation and Executive Director of Visionary Ventures, a non-profit group dedicated to fostering “the creation and preservation of low and moderate-income housing for Native American and underserved communities in the Chicagoland area.” Visionary Ventures and Housing For All are currently working on two other affordable housing projects: 2907 W. Irving Park Road in Chicago and the Fox Valley Apartments in suburban Aurora. The Chicago property will focus on low and moderate-income households from Chicago’s large and underserved Native American community. The Fox Valley property is a historic rehab of a former elementary school into 47 units of workforce housing.
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We live in a time of continuous information. Our phones barrage us with emails, texts, messages and news. Our computers, televisions and tablets stream content with body-cam detail. And since bad news sells advertising more easily than good news, we get overwhelmed by the crisis du jour, which frequently shapes our collective attitudes. Of course, there are real issues and bad news, but it’s important to take a step back sometimes and remind ourselves of the larger picture. |
As apartment investors, how do we process all this news and the bigger picture? For those of you who know me and my colleagues at Essex, we are extremely data focused. Like a baseball team, we track every play, every pitch and every at bat. We keep this data at the ready for our negotiations… and occasional articles. |
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Over one hundred Rogers Park Builders Group members, guests and friends gathered at the Rhapsody Theater on Morse Avenue recently for a night of magic and celebration as we commemorated our 30th anniversary.
Formerly known as the Mayne Stage, the Rhapsody Theater has retained its magnificent splendor under its new ownership, making it an ideal venue for such an auspicious occasion. The theater’s unparalleled acoustics offered me a wonderful opportunity to review our 30-year history—and not one person fell asleep during my presentation! (Though I did catch Jack Crane (CIC) nodding off for about ten seconds when I provided an overview of Year 11.)
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At the conclusion of my remarks, I called to the stage four of the five previous RPBG Presidents—Michael Wallk, Marty Max, John Brauc and Allen Smith—for the annual presentation of the RPBG Presidents’ Award (RPBG founder Paul Goguen was last seen twelve years ago at his Sedona, Arizona, home). |
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It’s hard to resist the urge to gaze into my crystal ball (figuratively speaking). I know I should resist the temptation since I am usually wrong anyway. This is an especially dangerous exercise when the future outlook is cloudy. I think we can all agree, we are in one of those moments now.
There are two things weighing heavily on my mind. One is existential; the other, though probably not life-threatening, is no less unsettling. I’ll start with the one that is literally life and death.
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Many people roll their eyes at Putin’s nuclear threats and presume his pronouncements are just bluster and hot air. I am not in that camp. I think he might be sufficiently unhinged to actually do the unthinkable. This is especially concerning now that he’s been backed into a corner and feels that his destiny as the next Napoleon is slipping from his grasp. I keep worrying that the next text message that pops up on my phone is going to tell me that a “dirty bomb” has spread radioactive material all over some part of Eastern Europe. He will, of course, blame Ukraine for the detonation. If that happens, it’s hard to predict what comes next. But I think we all agree that none of the options are good. |
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For some time, housing providers in Chicago and Cook County have been required to consider applications that show “source of income” from sources not directly related to wages. However, the recent passage of House Bill 2775 – which extends “source of income” as a protected class across the entire state of Illinois beginning on the first day or January 2023 – will have a much larger impact on housing providers elsewhere in Illinois who will have to adjust their requirements to reflect this new mandate and will no longer be able to reject a potential tenant solely on the basis of their work history or wages. |
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Two other amendments were also proposed with HB 2775 but not included with the current legislation. I would not be surprised if these amendments got reintroduced next year. If that happens, this legislation would make even more dramatic changes to the rental housing industry in Illinois. |
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Rogers Park Builders Group encourages and supports responsible residential and commercial property investment, development, and ownership in the Rogers Park community. |
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