From the category archives:

Relocation

2009 Illinois school report cards & rankings released today

October 30, 2009

The Illinois State Board of Education released its 2009 school report cards today. Use ISBE’s eReport Card Public Site to view the complete reports
Another option for viewing the report cards is the Interactive Illinois Report Card. One advantage of this site is that it lets you compare schools.
Both the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times developed [...]

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What to do when Chicago homes for sale details don’t include schools

October 29, 2009

One of the shortcomings of all sites that let you search for Chicago homes for sale is that they don’t always list the neighborhood schools. That’s because only school district numbers are required in our multiple listing system (MLS). School districts may encompass several neighborhood schools. Neighborhood school names are optional in the MLS. Since [...]

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Relocating tougher now for dual income couples

June 19, 2009

Relocating recently got tougher for dual income couples. Chicago’s Daily Herald reported today that Fannie Mae “no longer will permit mortgage applicants to count the income of so-called “trailing spouses” toward the household income needed to qualify for a loan. A trailing spouse is the one who joins his or her spouse or partner in [...]

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Named One of The Best Chicago Real Estate Blogs by Relocation.com!

March 29, 2009

This morning I discovered that this blog was picked as one of “The Best Chicago Real Estate Blogs” by Relocation.com. I am very flattered for a couple of reasons!
First, I work with a lot of relocation buyers, so the honor means a lot to me coming from a site dedicated to helping people relocate. Buying [...]

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How to Identify a True Blue Ribbon School

March 24, 2009

Sunday’s Daily Herald had a very informative article on schools that tout Blue Ribbon Awards not from the U.S. Department of Education, but from paid consultants!
If a school displays a Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence as shown, the award was earned, not purchased from the U.S. Department of Education. If a school displays a [...]

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Chicago & Suburbs Online Rental Search Sites

January 28, 2009

Yesterday I was texting on Twitter (ID franbailey) with a woman who will be moving here with her husband from Miami in a few months. They’ll initially be renting and then plan to buy a home. I’ve been hearing from a lot more people relocating to the Chicago area that plan to rent for [...]

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ChicagoTribune.com’s Community Intelligence

June 15, 2008

Looking for more information on Chicago neighborhoods and suburbs? After you review my neighborhoods and suburbs’ posts, check out the ChicagoTribune.com’s Community Intelligence. For each neighborhood and suburb it shows a map with numerous amenities, market stats, demographics, crime data and schools. Community Intelligence also has several articles most recently featuring Andersonville and Wilmette.
Similar Posts:

Wilmette [...]

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Chicago Parking Space Prices

March 14, 2008

I have a buyer comparing Lakeview condos and Arlington Heights condos. One of the differences I mentioned to him is the fact that parking for Lakeview condos is often not included in the price of the condos. Many Lakeview condo sellers are asking $25K to $45K for their condos’ parking spaces. Rarely is parking for [...]

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MapMuse.Com – Great for Finding Your Favorite Businesses

February 25, 2008

In my February 6th post, “Chicago Magazine Names BairdWarner.Com Best for Real Estate Search!“, I mentioned that the “nifty Google Maps mash-up” that Chicago Magazine raved about is provided by MapMuse.com. If you’re thinking of relocating to the Chicago metro area or moving to another area of Chicago that you aren’t too familiar with and [...]

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How to Find Public Schools for Chicago Homes

February 18, 2008

On Saturday I showed townhouses in the Lakeview and Lincoln Park areas of Chicago to a woman relocating here from Memphis with her two children. The son is in high school and the daughter is in elementary, so schools are an important consideration in her home selection.
School names currently aren’t required for listings in [...]

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Chicago Area High Schools with Top ACT Scores

February 10, 2008

I recently started working with a gentleman relocating with his wife and daughter from Seattle. He was clear that his top criterion in deciding where to buy a home is good schools. Even though his daughter won’t be in high school for several years, he wanted to know where good high schools are located. What [...]

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Finding a Home Within a School’s Boundaries Takes 2 Kinds of Searches

January 14, 2008

For families with children in school, schools are often an important part of the home buying process. On Friday I started searching for a new home for a lesbian couple in Palatine. They want to keep their 8 year old son in the same elementary school, but with another child soon to be on the [...]

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Chicago Area Whole Foods Map

December 26, 2007

My partner’s brother’s family is visiting this week and they’re big fans of Whole Foods. For those of you not familiar with Whole Foods, it’s a grocery store chain which sells high quality natural and organic products. For you Whole Foods Fans out there relocating to the Chicago area, I thought I’d create a map [...]

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Evanston House Prices Up 20%!

November 9, 2007

A woman called me the other day from England asking about the real estate market in Evanston. She graduated from Northwestern University in Evanston and is considering taking a job in Chicago.
Unlike the many of suburbs where I’ve worked this year, the median Evanston house price* for the past 3 months (August – October) is [...]

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Oak Park House Prices Direction Varies by Zip Code

October 6, 2007

I showed 20 houses in Oak Park during the past 2 days to some out-of-state buyers. They asked about what’s happening in the Oak Park housing market and the answer is, “It depends on whether the houses are north or south of Madison Street which divides the 60302 and 60304 zip codes.”
Median house prices [...]

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Why Sellers Should Confirm Their School Districts

September 20, 2007

While getting a house in Bolingbrook ready to go on the market this week, I asked the seller for the names of the school districts for his home. Not having children, he didn’t know and said I could call the schools. I explained that an agent can’t provide the information for a home. It must [...]

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