(iStock, Wikipedia Commons/Illustration by Alexis Manrodt for The Real Deal)
The number of newly licensed Chicago residential brokers has been on the rise, fueled by a hot Chicago housing market and Covid-related layoffs.
The Chicago Association of Realtors reported a 40 percent jump in new member compared to 2019 numbers, according to the Chicago Tribune. The organization also reported that inquiries in its pre-license classes spiked 65 percent from July through December, compared to the same period in 2019. CAR represents 14,500 members statewide.
New brokers included residents laid off from the pandemic, like Lauren Schwartz, who in April lost her job booking hotel reservations, the Tribune reported. She earned her broker license last fall and joined a relative’s real estate group at Dream Town Realty, according to the report.
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Assembly member Harvey Epstein and Sen. Pete Harckham (NY State Assembly, NY State Senate, iStock/Illustration by Alexis Manrodt for The Real Deal)
During his State of the City address last year, Mayor Bill de Blasio pitched legalizing basement apartments citywide. That proposal hasn’t progressed much, but state officials are now taking steps to push that vision forward.
A recently introduced bill would require cities and towns throughout the state to legalize accessory dwelling units, better known as granny flats. The measure defines them as “independent living facilities” on the same lot as a single-family residence or multifamily building.
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SL Green CEO Marc Holliday with 11 Madison Avenue and 100 Park Avenue (SL Green, Google Maps/Illustration by Alexis Manrodt for The Real Deal)
On Thursday’s earnings call, SL Green CEO Marc Holliday linked the company’s upcoming shift in headquarters from the Graybar Building to One Vanderbilt with his sunny outlook on the New York office market. The real estate investment trust owns both buildings.
He noted an improvement in “the psychology and the market vibe” in recent months, as tenants have made plans to return to the offices by late summer. SL Green’s new chapter, Holliday said, “coincides with the reconstruction of New York City.” That will be marked by the Covid vaccine rollout, “the easing of Covid restrictions, the promise of federal stimulus for cities and states, and a gradual return of the workforce to offices and other places of business,” he said during the Q4 call’s opening remarks.