Articles filed under Real Estate

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  Designing a bathroom, or two, for marital bliss Jul 24, 2014 5:30 AM
  By Joseph Pubillones Next to sharing a bed, sharing a bathroom is the most intimate experience two people can have. Bathrooms host activities ranging from the physiological to those of personal hygiene. While many couples do not mind sharing space, others cannot abide by a “yours, mine, ours” space concept. Different organizational habits have a lot to do with disagreements about bathrooms between people who otherwise love each other.
  

   

• Another suburb returns to ComEd, drops alternative supplier Jul 24, 2014 6:48 AM
  By Katlyn Smith In a move reflecting the changing power market, ComEd will once again supply Hanover Park with electricity, a reversal expected to add an extra $12 to $17 on the average homeowner's monthly electric bill. As Addison, Antioch and Lombard have found, prices with an alternative provider would have been higher. “The tide is changing every year,” Hanover Park Trustee Bill Cannon said.
  

   

• Popular craft beer bar coming to Rolling Meadows Jul 24, 2014 12:08 PM
  By Deborah Donovan Bigby's Pour House, a popular craft beer bar in Addison, will open a Rolling Meadows site next month where the Caribou Coffee used to be on Algonquin Road.
  

   
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  Menards gets final approval in Vernon Hills Jul 23, 2014 4:40 PM
  By Mick Zawislak After nine months of review and several changes, a proposed two-story Menards home improvement center at Milwaukee Avenue and Gregg's Parkway in Vernon Hills has received official approval from the village. The final change requires the store's facade to be biege rather than the corporate green.
  

   
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  Elgin assisted-living facilities break ground Jul 23, 2014 5:15 AM
  By Elena Ferrarin Two new nursing and rehab facilities are being built in Elgin and are expected to open sometime next year. Elgin Memory Care, a nursing and personal care facility at Shannon Parkway and Daisy Lane, should be completed by next summer; Addison Rehabilitation and Living Center, a skilled nursing facility at 1760 Capital Street, might be done by early next year. Both are on Elgin's west side.
  

   
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  Deal reached to save Town Center in Wheeling Jul 22, 2014 2:24 PM
  By Deborah Donovan An agreement announced Monday between Wheeling and four other governing bodies apparently will save the $150 million Town Center planned for the site that once held Wickes Furniture.
  

   

• Arlington Hts. will help pay for Goedke House updates Jul 21, 2014 6:21 PM
  By Melissa Silverberg Arlington Heights may be contributing up to $75,000 toward a remodeling project at the Albert Goedke Apartments, a building for low-income, elderly and disabled adults in the village. The village board voted to approve the financial support earlier this month, although the bulk of the nearly $6 million project will be paid for by the Housing Authority of Cook County.
  

   

• Aim to keep frost at bay when insulating basement walls Jul 20, 2014 12:01 AM
  By Henri de Marne Q. I have a concrete block foundation that ranges from fully exposed to totally below grade. The basement area is dry, and I intend to finish the space. What method of insulation would you recommend for the walls, and would you recommend a vapor barrier?
  

   
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  Renters living large in small apartments fuel building boom Jul 20, 2014 7:22 AM
  Bloomberg News Young professionals are paying top-market rents to live in new upscale apartment towers sprouting in downtowns across the country. They’re sacrificing living space for a prime urban location and extras such as cooking classes, dog-wash stations and poolside Wi-Fi. Developers, in the biggest U.S. apartment-construction boom in almost a decade, are shrinking the size of units so they can command luxury rates without narrowing the pool of potential tenants.
  

   
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  Small improvements to your outdoor space Jul 20, 2014 12:01 AM
  By Christine Brun Warm weather beckons that we spend more time outdoors. This is the time of year when you suddenly, and often desperately, notice you have inadequate accommodations in your yard, deck or balcony area.
  

   
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  It’s rather fashionable to hide things under the mattress Jul 20, 2014 12:01 AM
  By Megan Buerger Restoration Hardware’s catalogs might be getting bigger, but its furniture is shrinking. Among the many limitations of living in a smaller home or apartment is the lack of storage options. To accommodate, retailers are capitalizing on a piece previously relegated to children’s rooms and college dorms: the storage bed.
  

   
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  Landlord-friendly ways to unleash your imagination Jul 19, 2014 12:01 AM
  By Rose Bennet Gilbert Q. We are grad students renting a nondescript little house for a year. I’ve always loved decorating, but my artsy hands are tied. Maybe you have some suggestions that won’t compromise our security deposit?
  

   

• Real estate pricing websites can’t be perfectly accurate Jul 19, 2014 12:01 AM
  By Edith Lank Q. How reliable are websites such as Zillow and others that list an estimated value of my home? I purchased my home in 2013, which was new construction for $185,000. On websites, they say my home is worth about $160,000.
  

   

• Maintain safeguards with association accounts Jul 19, 2014 12:01 AM
  By David M. Bendoff Q. The treasurer of our self-managed association pays all association bills and performs the reconciliation of the association’s checking account. Is this a good idea?
  

   

• A new challenge to the HECM reverse mortgage program Jul 19, 2014 12:00 AM
  By Jack Guttentag The United States today faces a retirement funds crisis: a rapidly growing number of persons who are retiring without the financial capacity to support themselves during ever-increasing life spans. The HECM reverse mortgage program, which allows older homeowners to convert some or all of the equity in their homes into cash, ought to be a major policy tool for dealing with the crisis.
  

   
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  Round Lake Beach approves Meijer plan for Mallard Creek shopping center Jul 19, 2014 7:30 AM
  By Mick Zawislak Round Lake Beach officials this week approved a development agreement for a proposed Meijer superstore and related uses at the Mallard Creek shopping center. Long vacant Walmart and Dominick's stores would be demolished as part of the proposed revamp of the old shopping area. "It's a big step," said Jon Wildenberg, director of economic development.
  

   
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  Keep pets in mind with these home renovations Jul 19, 2014 12:01 AM
  By Kelly Lee-Creel As pet ownership hits an all-time high, pet-friendly remodeling has gone far beyond the basic doggy door. It now includes features like dog-washing stations and customized kitty litter cabinets.
  

   
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  Fewer buyers want fixer-uppers, broker says Jul 21, 2014 11:15 AM
  By Jean Murphy Brian Knott, a broker with RE/MAX Horizon in Elgin, has observed steady progress in the residential real estate market since 2010. The volume of business has consistently risen and, he said, suburban home values have increased at a healthy rate.
  

   

• Don’t overlook details when moving to a new home Jul 18, 2014 12:01 AM
  By Al and Kelly Carrell This is the most popular time of the year to move. We’ve talked about some super tips for packing, but here are some of our favorite tips to help make moving into the new home a little easier.
  

   

• More landlords, tenants take video as a precaution Jul 18, 2014 12:01 AM
  By David Myers Some might find it “creepy,” but there’s a good reason why a growing number of owners and renters alike take a video recorder or similar device with them while visiting a property a few days before the scheduled move-in date.