The Home Front

(Above) A coach house (left in photo) in Chicago’s Old Town neighborhood. Click on image to view larger version. ADU photos by Don DeBat. A new Chicago ordinance now allows Additional Dwelling Units, or ‘Granny Flats,’ to be built citywide, signaling a significant step toward addressing Chicago’s affordable housing shortage. By Don DeBat “Granny Flats” finally are rising out of their rocking chairs in Chicago, a world-class city that is desperate for construction of new affor

(Above) 2017 photo of a flooded Chicago Riverwalk. As recent monsoon-like rains inundate neighborhoods, Chicago homeowners are grappling...

The Chicago Park District’s new master plan for Grant Park threatens to overlook the city’s rich 16-inch softball history, pushing the...

(Above) Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi (left in photo) and Lyons Township Assessor Patrick Hynes. Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi is...

The evolution of 16-inch slow-pitch Chicago-style softball is filled with unique strategies, like the creative ‘shuffle’ technique and...

(Above) Driver Shane van Gisbergen competes in a NASCAR Cup Series race at Grant Park on July 6 (AP Photo/Erin Hooley). Residents and...

Home loan interest rates have dipped for five straight weeks, with the average 30-year fixed mortgage now at 6.67 percent. This decline...

The Chicago North Side home resale market has transformed into a tense battleground, with buyers scrambling to secure properties as...

(Above) Dining/Great Room of an Airbnb in Old Town. Interior photos by Andrew Charles Miller. (Click on images to view larger versions.)...

(Above) Google Street View of 200 West Monroe Street in the Loop. Valued at $100 million when purchased in 2014, the 23-story building...

A conflict is brewing between landlords and tenants in Chicago’s North Side apartment rental market over non-refundable move-in fees. A...

(Above) Buildings in the Old Town Historic District. Photo by Don DeBat. With a 36-story apartment tower set to rise in Old Town, and the...