Chitownproperty

If you’re in the market for a condo right now but looking for a way to control utility costs after you move in, NewHomeNotebook’s list of green developments might be just what you need. It lists all the active new developments in Chicago that bill themselves as eco-friendly.

What to know before choosing a developer — – chicagotribune.com
The Tribune posted a nice guide this week for how to perform due diligence on a developer if you are buying a new home, with tips for checking up on their track record and history with the city, pricing selections, and warranty items.

Millenium Park has been a catalyst for residential real estate development downtown, causing the center of the city’s urban living to move progressively south. This lengthy profile in the New York Times details the park’s effect on the market.

Buying new construction in the city isn’t all about condos. There are plenty of single-family homes to be found, either as infill or in planned developments. This article from the Sun-Times profiles a handful of these new developments.

The New York Times has a feature today on two highly-anticipated developments in Chicago, the Fordham Spire and 600 North Fairbanks, designed by “starchitects” who are continuing the city’s tradition of ambitous design.

With CBS 2 moving from its current location in Streeterville to new digs at Block 37 (someday), developers have submitted a proposal to the city zoning committee for two new 50-story residential towers. The towers, holding 807 rental apartments, would rise from a shared base featuring shops and offices which the developers, Golub & [...]

Yesterday, city aldermen approved project plans for the Fordham Spire, a 2,000-foot residential and hotel tower designed by architect Santiago Calatrava that will become the country’s tallest building. Although originally met with skepticism, the project, which will be built at 420 E. North Water Street in Streeterville, sailed through the city council on a [...]

The first sprouts of the new Trump Tower have emerged from the construction site, and the Tribune’s architecture critic Blair Kamin says that while the thought of a new skyscraper is exciting, it’s also a little scary:

The first structural columns for the 92-story hotel-condo tower have popped above Wabash Avenue and, all of a sudden, [...]

A quick rundown of this weekend’s real estate news sections:

An overview of the International Builders Show by the Sun-Times focuses on building materials and home fixtures to be featured by home builders in the coming years.
Several new high rises in the city take advantage of their proximity to Millennium Park, including the fabulous Heritage.
There are [...]

A quick rundown of this past weekend’s local real estate news sections:

Ever wonder how builders can work through all that snow? Contractors don’t slow down during winter months, but they do have to take special precautions to make sure concrete and masonry cures properly.
The cost of living in college dorms has risen so high [...]

Sunday’s Sun-Times Homelife section ran a spotlight on the West Roscoe Village neighborhood, a “vintage blue-collar industrial neighborhood.” The area is bounded by Western Avenue and the Kennedy Expressway and Diversey and Addison, bisected by the north branch of the Chicago River.
The neighborhood has drawn interest because of its affordability in comparison to those [...]

The owners of the famed, Mies van der Rohe-designed IBM Building downtown are considering converting all or part of the building to condos. The building is 32 percent vacant after IBM moved out, and Jenner & Block–which rents another 22 percent of the building–will move out in 2010. The conversions will be a tough sell [...]

Parking garage operator Interpark, a division of General Electric, has filed a zoning application with the city to build a 44-story, 335 unit residential tower at 215 W. Washington, the former site of one of the city’s oldest parking garages. The company hasn’t said whether the units will be sold or rented, but expects construction [...]

From the Sun-Times:

Some of the best houses in a new development might be the ones sold last. Savvy builders have learned that when the final units are being completed there had better be a variety of sizes in good locations or they might be on the market for a while.
The last buyers often can pick [...]

A new 28-story condo building is planned for the corner of Lake Shore Drive and Waveland Avenue. The lot will also feature 16 low-rise townhouses. The project signals the end of a three-year zoning fight between the developer, American Invsco, the city, and local aldermen.