Illinois RealEstateRama

The month of May brought strong home sales gains and higher median prices to the Illinois housing market, according to the Illinois Association of REALTORS®. Statewide home sales (including single-family homes and condominiums) in May 2015 totaled 14,980 homes sold, up 5.6 percent from May 2014 when 14,187 homes sold.

U.S. Senator Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), along with U.S. Representatives Robert Dold (R-Ill.-10), Mike Quigley (D-Ill.-5) and Daniel Lipinski (D-Ill.-03) introduced the Great Lakes Water Protection Act (GLWPA), which would set a 2035 deadline to end sewage dumping in the Great Lakes, provide clean water for the next generation, and minimize the economic impact beach closures have on local communities every year.

Since that time, Speaker Madigan and President Cullerton have refused to pass real, compromise reforms that will grow the economy, pay down the debt and end the era of wasteful spending and broken budgets while implementing parliamentary maneuvers to keep the governor from acting on the budget bills.

Tune in to ABC’s local morning news in Chicago or Good Morning America to see metro Chicago Realtor Amy Kite side-by-side with real estate magnate Barbara Corcoran in an endorsement commercial.

Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (IL-17) and Congressman Ron Kind (WI-3) continued their push for improved rail and pipeline safety last night by introducing an amendment to the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations bill that provides $500,000 in additional funding to the Pipeline & Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). Their amendment was unanimously approved by the House of Representatives

U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Representative Cheri Bustos (IL-17) announced $6,698,797 in federal funding that will go toward infrastructure improvements and upgrades at Chicago Rockford International Airport. The grant will be used to build a terminal building expansion that will help travelers move more efficiently through the gate holding area

Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (IL-17) and Congressman Ron Kind (WI-3) continued their push for improved rail and pipeline safety last night by introducing an amendment to the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations bill that provides $500,000 in additional funding to the Pipeline & Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). Their amendment was unanimously approved by the House of Representatives

Today, during the Energy and Power Subcommittee hearing to review the Department of Energy’s (DOE) first Quadrennial Energy Report draft report, U.S. Representative Bobby L. Rush (D-Ill.) sought to garner bipartisan support for Quadrennial Energy Report (QER) legislation that he will soon be introducing. Rush’s bill would amend the Department of Energy Organization Act to replace the current requirement for a biennial energy policy plan with a quadrennial energy review

Chicago-based Baum Realty Group, LLC (“Baum”), one of the Midwest’s leading retail brokerage firms, is pleased to announce that Baum’s Investment Sales Team brokered the sale of a multi-tenant commercial condominium in Chicago, IL

The transactions include an expansion by RTC, Inc. and a new lease with APL Warehouse Logistics Management, Inc. in two of its buildings in Crossroads Business Park in Bolingbrook, and a new lease with Midwest Air Technologies, Inc. in 1341 Enterprise Drive, a 324,115-square-foot speculative warehouse it delivered in May in Romeoville.

In January 2014, the Chicago Department of Transportation issued an updated version of the “Rules and Regulations for Construction in the Public Way.”  The periodic revision of the regulations is part of the Department’s ongoing efforts to ensure safe and quality construction and restoration in the City of Chicago

the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) announced a final rule clarifying “waters of the United States” under the Clean Water Act. The rule includes protections for sources of drinking and recreational water, including streams and wetlands that are upstream from larger bodies of water. Rep. Jan Schakowsky issued the following statement in response to the rule

Congressman John Shimkus (R, Illinois-15) issued the following statement after the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized its controversial Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule

U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced legislation today that would give veteran-owned small businesses access to surplus federal property, reducing overhead costs and helping these small businesses grow. The Veterans Small Business Enhancement Act would expand the Government Service Administration’s excess federal property program, which makes available items that federal agencies no longer need – from computers and office furniture to tools and construction equipment. Durbin also introduced this bill in the previous Congress

The strong start to Illinois’ spring housing market continued in April with gains in year-over-year home sales and median home prices, according to the Illinois Association of REALTORS