Susannah Ribstein

Yes!!!!

Praying for this one. The criminally capricious permitting process in Chicago causes higher prices & interminable timelines for permitted rehab projects, & essentially forces smaller developers to skip permits altogether, which means more unsafe & poor quality housing. bsky.app/profile/stev...

Illinois Gov. Pritzker budget address, Feb. 18, 2026 - housing speech Illinois Gov. Pritzker gave an annual budget address in Springfield on Wednesday, February 18, 2026. He talked about the high cost of living, including for housing…

"Removing barriers for home builders will attract responsible developers to build in places they've been unwilling to build before." I would amend this slightly to say "unable" instead of unwilling. vimeo.com/1166100777

Exciting stuff 🤞Some of this could be transformational in the quantity & quality of old home renovation/rehab, which is a critical form of home building/creation along with new construction. Time to put the "affordable" and "natural" back in Naturally Occurring Affordable Housing.

Actually, on second look that url redirects to the Flickr album. Can't tell if they are the victim or the perpetrator.

It even made up a watermark for an asbestos-interest website url (also made up)!

ZBA approves variations for development at 3651 N. Wilton The Zoning Board of Appeals has approved variations for a residential development at 3651 N. Wilton. Planned by 3651 N. Wilton LLC, the project site is an infill site near the intersection of N. Wilto...

Saving the woodwork in place would probably only be feasible if they were keeping (or lowering) the unit count. At least they are turning 3 homes into 15. With reduced parking! chicago.urbanize.city/post/zba-app...

The Everlasting Meal Cookbook: Leftovers A-Z Leftovers A-Z

I've probably already told you about this (I never shut up) but this cookbook is a life changer for those of us who love leftovers: bookshop.org/p/books/the-...

Wow. I can't tell if this is the most misogynist thing I've ever seen or a dark satire of the most misogynist thing I've ever seen. Probably the former?

What’s That Building? Narrow Bridge Arts Club Built as a synagogue and later housing a series of Christian congregations, this structure now serves as part single-family home, part makerspace and artists club.

This is a fantastic piece about one of the coolest properties (and people!) I've worked with. Listen to the audio for more of Amber's wisdom on low-waste building reuse as both art practice & environmental proving ground. 🧠🤌 www.wbez.org/architecture...

Listing says multiple offers received so it will (almost certainly) sell for more than that. Real estate killjoy at your service. 🫡

To be fair, if it really does need to be taken down to a shell inside, the rehab will easily cost $500k. But in that case $75k would be way too much for an ARV of $300k...

Sorry 😅

6418 S Greenwood Ave, Chicago, IL 60637 | Compass 6418 S Greenwood Ave, Chicago, IL 60637 is a single family home not currently listed. This is a 4-bed, 4-bath property and last sold on 2025-05-30 for $600,000.

This is just one random selection. Farther south and west because there basically hasn't been *anything* for sale north of 63rd and east of Woodlawn in ages. www.compass.com/listing/1790...

My vote for the explanation is a listing agent who thinks the top after rehab value for similar properties in the area is "mid-$300s." 😬😬😬

I didn't get pictures of it but yesterday by 7 pm all sidewalks on Commercial Ave in South Chicago (87th Street and south) were immaculately cleared by plow. It's a lively corridor but has lots of vacant storefronts so it needs a municipal solution like this. I'm assuming it was the SSA?

I have collected many stories in my day about the hazards of dealing with FSBO listings, and now I have a new one!

Did anyone answer?

I wonder if anyone called the owner phone number on the listing? It is also associated with another Sale By Owner Zillow post for a house in California, with a similar "copied & pasted from the foreclosure auction listing" description. My best guess is the scam was farming ID info from callers.

On the plus side whoever finds it (if they are anything like me) will have a treasured keepsake for life

Second Wednesday Home Buddies at Narrow Bridge Arts Club in Woodlawn is this week! Come by 5-7, drink tea, eat cookies, ask real estate/home care questions of your opinionated hostesses (me n @brigidmania.bsky.social) Or mark your calendar for next month! www.narrowbridgeartsclub.net/calendar

I'll write the companion page "People Spend Lots Of Money On All Sorts Of Dumb Things, It's Ok To Spend It On An Old House" 🙂

Hey, it's in the email newsletter they sent out today, too! "Thank you for keeping our business district welcoming!" 😭😭😭

YouTube video by Scott Olson Silicon Valley - Jared's Trick

I think about this one ~weekly www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPar...

Narrow Bridge Arts Club. Two arched stained glass windows in a synagogue with piles of floor boards and construction debris in front of them.

Wednesday! 2nd monthly Home Buddies meet-up at Narrow Bridge w/ me n @brigidmania.bsky.social. A hard to define event I came up with because I wanted to. Real estate questions? Need home reno advice? Stuck picking paint colors? Come over, we have snacks & advice! www.eventbrite.com/e/monthly-ho...

😑

Preaching to the choir here but was your message the first time they heard about snow in Chicago? Truly insane to imagine that they have never had a process for this.

That's nice but isn't the "solution" they need to "work on" just.....people with shovels and salt? The technology already exists

All Residents To Leave As Court Takes Control Of South Shore Building Raided By Feds A county judge appointed a receiver for the troubled building Friday. The receiver will help its few remaining residents move “immediately.”

I didn't watch the entire conference but I am very confused by this push because the building is already being emptied? blockclubchicago.org/2025/11/07/a...

Make sure to stay for the credits. They include 2 "Earth mothers," 6 "Humanist advisors," and one "Okunrin meta" (I had to Google it). Also the bagpipe score is mindblowing.