Newly elected Alderman Bennett Lawson (44th Ward) ran on a Value Statement that included three basic goals:

Falling neatly into the category of “can’t take no for an answer,” the Progressive / Democratic Socialist wing of the Democratic Party in Illinois is, once again, looking for ways to get around the state’s ban on rent control. Having tried to do this directly every year since 2017 – and having failed each time – this group of radical lawmakers has now come up with a novel new way of achieving their objective.

Two recent articles in Crain’s Chicago Business give us reason to be both optimistic and pessimistic about the business of owning rental property in Chicago.

The first article, by Danny Ecker, “Downtown Apartment Rents in ‘Calm Before the Storm’” (August 25, 2023), makes a case for why rents are poised to increase quickly in 2025. Citing data from Ron DeVries at Integra Realty Resources-Chicago, apartment rents in downtown Chicago are projected to see a big jump in 2025 due to the equally sharp drop-off in apartment unit deliveries that is tied to the rapid rise in lending rates. The article links the rise in rates to the difficulties many developers of multifamily properties are having in obtaining financing for their apartment projects. A tighter lending market means fewer projects will get loans, resulting in less construction and fewer deliveries a few years hence.

It’s been discussed in Chicago for years. It’s already been enacted in other cities and states, including Seattle, Washington D.C. and New Jersey, just to name a few. Now, Just Cause Eviction is being actively considered in Evanston and could be enacted by their City Council later this year. If this happens, it will open the door to similar ordinances across Illinois.

An article in the Fall 2022 Rogers Park Builder lays out the proposal to increase Chicago’s real estate transfer tax on transactions of $1 million or higher. This proposed legislation is known as the Bring Chicago Home Ordinance. More cynically, many of its promoters like to call it the millionaire tax.

It’s probably way too early to say much about the new Mayor and where he’s taking the city. After all, he’s only been in office for a few months since his May 15 inauguration. But hey, you have to start somewhere.

Michael Mini

Executive Vice President
Chicagoland Apartment Association

We are not allowed to reprint Mike Mini’s excellent Letter to the Editor in the June 26, 2023 edition of Crain’s Chicago Business in its entirety due to copyright laws. But we can provide a few highlights and encourage our readers to clink this link and read the letter in full.

NBOA (and RPBG) President, Mike Glasser, never misses an opportunity to educate the general public about housing issues from the housing provider’s point of view. This is a perspective that often gets overlooked, if not dismissed outright, by a local press that seems more inclined to amplify the viewpoint of tenant groups and downplay our own.

View our Election Results Source Data

We all know that elections have consequences. Now that the Chicago 2023 municipal elections are concluded, it is fair to say that most members of the Rogers Park Builders Group (RPBG) and the Neighborhood Building Owners Alliance (NBOA) believe these consequences will include increased conflict between our members and elected officials and a new round of legislative efforts unfriendly to our businesses.

In the last RPBG Newsletter, we looked at the impact of the Illinois Affordable Housing Special Assessment Program (AHSAP) and its impact on housing production in Chicago. The article was, well, kind of long. But, as long as it was, it missed a really important point – one that Stacie Young tried to get me to focus on, but one that I just could not squeeze into what had become a bit of a bear.

Another year, another attempt by the far left wing of the Democratic Party to bring rent control to Illinois. Once again, the ringleader in this effort is State Representative Will Guzzardi (39th District), representing parts of Logan Square and adjacent areas of Chicago’s near Northwest Side.

Bisnow reports that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed SB 102 into law on March 29, 2023. SB 102 does two things:

By:

Doug Imber
President, Essex Realty Group, Inc. and RPBG Director

Like other northside neighborhoods, the Rogers Park apartment market continues to experience strong rental demand. Occupancy rates across most rental properties are in the 95% range, which is generally considered full occupancy by investors.

RPBG Member and Principal of JAB Real Estate, Sam Goldman, came across an interesting report from the Office of the Controller / Office of Economic Analysis with the City and County of San Francisco. The report is recently dated: dated March 10, 2023, and it concludes that the current inclusionary housing requirements in San Francisco (city and county borders are the same) are “infeasible.”

Tom’s contribution to the Rogers Park Builders Group over the decades has been huge. His status, until last year, as RPBG Treasurer was much more than just an honorary title. Tom is a numbers guy and has the resume to prove it. He used his financial skills to benefit the organization for many years, often working behind the scenes to ensure that the group was solvent and could pay its bills. Under Tom’s budgetary leadership, RPBG built up a large surplus that has allowed us to significantly increase our charitable work and make an impact on the neighborhood we love so much.

By:

Mike Glasser, RPBG President
Spring, 2023

When I first took on the leadership of NBOA in the Fall of 2018, I knew that our organization would be advocating for neighborhood housing providers at the city, county and state levels of government.

By:

Steve Cain
Spring, 2023

I’m a big fan of the NPR Politics Podcast. Every Friday, they end their podcast with “Can’t Let It Go,” a roundtable where all the commentators tell listeners what it is that happened during the past week that they just can’t let go of – in politics or in life!

As reported in Block Club Chicago, the last remnants of the Tent City that had taken over Touhy Park on Clark Street were dismantled and removed at the end of March. Block Club also reports that a 72-bed men’s homeless shelter has been approved at 7464 N. Clark Street.

The latest assault on housing providers in Chicago comes from Alderwoman Rossana Rodgriguez-Sanchez, representing the 33rd Ward on the city’s northwest side (Albany Park/Avondale).

I had fun with this last summer, so I thought I’d try it again. I’m always reading stuff that I think is interesting, but that I don’t necessarily get to bounce off anyone else. Well, here’s my golden opportunity!