Foreclosures Offer Free Christmas Marketing

In a year end blitzkrieg to clear their already tainted books, major U.S. banks have teamed up with local retailers to offer promotions inside foreclosed properties in a last ditch attempt to lure home buyers into properties that even members of Chicago's vaunted homeless community have derided as "making our here shelters look like da damn Drake."
Albany Park

Hansel & Gretel Fireplace Scares Nanny

In an effort to find some new amenity that homeowners will waste their money on, Grimm Brothers Construction, a local Chicago builder, has begun adding child-friendly fireplaces to their finished basements, with a promise that "your kids will learn the skills to enjoy life organically, creating combustion from both wood and flesh."
Old Irving Park

Pop-Up Restaurant in Foreclosure

Driven by a lack of restaurants in the Old Irving Park area, one homeowner decided to create his own in-home bistro, hoping its BYO status would attract budget conscious parents looking for a night time escape. Unfortunately, the diners were not aware that it was 'bring your own everything'. The bank is including the restaurant with the home sale.
Old Irving Park

Thanksgiving Trix Tossed in Toilet

Two days before Black Friday and a day before that other holiday, a bowl of Trix cereal has found its way into the Glacier Bay Commode located on the second floor of this Edgewater two flat. The aggrieved party has threatened to eat those soggy little balls for Thanksgiving dinner, in front of Uncle Karl and everyone. The seller of the building, otherwise known as "cruel cruel mommy", has yet to respond.
Edgewater

Seller Stages Home to Attract Those People

The seller of this converted Ukrainian Village storefront was adamant she appeal to those people, you know, she squawked, the ones who get it. Ninety-four days later, nobody seems to get it, except those that aren't permitted to buy the property due to a school across the street.
Ukrainian Village

Landlord Solves Triplets' Breastfeeding Issues

The tenant of this Humboldt Park four flat was having difficulty holding down a job while also striving to breastfeed her triplet girls until the landlord presented her with another one of his crazy Eddy solutions, this one guaranteed to feed "the whole litter at once." Shortly after the appearance of 'miracle mommy in the sky', more limb shaped protrusions began to descend throughout the building until crazy Eddy realized he couldn't feed the whole place, and decided to sell.
Humboldt Park

Afghan Immigrant Struggling with Native Rugs

Despite growing up among the world's most sought after floor coverings, this Edgewater resident left his native Afghanistan for the rich and luxurious world of American synthetic fibers where it was decided that he would turn his bungalow's basement into the personalized intimate rug emporium he felt Chicago needed. Several floods later, and harboring a carpet collection he deemed, "so very ugly that my people are not even to let their animals go bathroom on it", the salesman exclaimed, "I am finish carpet. I am finish basement. I am go wood floor for condo. Maybe have some granite and steel kitchen. This is the good American life."
Edgewater

Is Selling a Home like Fun or like a Chore?

Apparently neither. This might explain, why after seven unsuccessful months, this overpriced Lincoln Square two flat remains on the market.
Lincoln Square

Buyer Sees the Light

After ten grueling minutes slogging through a dilapidated Pilsen foreclosure wondering why his realtor brought him to such a place, the exasperated buyer finally saw the light. And the rat holes. And the dusty stack of unpaid bills. And, the exit.
Pilsen

Alcoholic Discovers the Perfect Stairs

After weeks of looking at homes with perilous descents, this proud and mighty drinker was overcome with joy to encounter a basement stairway that would allow him to successfully slumber back up to bed after a night of basement boozing. The sellers of this Rogers Park bungalow even offered to throw in their safety harness for those extra special occasions.
Rogers Park

Mother Intimidates Buyers Into Purchasing

A young couple looking at a worker's cottage in the Wicker Park neighborhood could not decide if they could accept the small yard, dated kitchen, and only one bathroom despite the competitive price. That was, until the matron of the home peered from behind the bedroom door, and sternly declared, "you don't buy this home, my kids don't eat."
Wicker Park

Gay Couple Excited to Paint House

The new buyers of this vintage North Park bungalow have been making plans to paint murals of Adam & Steve and The Three Kings starring Liberace on their cracking plaster walls after discovering a manual giving them step by step instructions.
North Park

Buyer Impressed by Stars Wars People

The buyer of this mid-century Rogers Park ranch had always assumed that people who were into Star Wars lived below their mothers in musty basement apartments surrounded by George Lucas propaganda. Then he came across the seller's sleek orange fireplace and rhapsodized about the 'oh so cool' stylings of a previously dismissed class. Due to time constraints the buyer was unable to see the charred remains of Ewoks inside the coveted fireplace.
Rogers Park

God Admits to Landlord Troubles

God told the potential buyers of her 3 flat greystone that modern ideas of tolerance are not practical. "Back in the old days, you don't pay ya rent, I stone ya. And that don't work, I take ya first born."
Garfield Park

Dutch Elm Disease Spreads to Kitchen

Refusing to be another pile of mulch in yet another Chicago community garden, this quadriplegic stump survivor decided he would reclaim his final years infecting the buttocks of Wicker Park renters who forgot to move to Logan Square ten years ago.
Wicker Park

Bedroom Flooded With Light Excites Buyer

A Chicago realtor advertising a Logan Square brick two flat as having a master bedroom flooded with light enticed one buyer to cancel his afternoon appointments in order to view this rare Chicago commodity. The current tenant expressed his satisfaction with the space exclaiming it was better than the run down garage he used to crash in.
Logan Square

Wife Insists Man's Cave Resemble Cave

A local Chicago woman, one half of the real estate duo attempting to sell their historic Portage Park bungalow, has told reporters that she refused to allow her husband to have his own bar, home theater system and pool table while she was relegated to the pantry. A mystified husband countered that the pantry had an extensive shelving system, a fold down ironing board and room for a stackable washer and dryer.
Portage Park

Stainless Hoarders Hoarding Stained Stainless

Years after stainless steel appliances captivated kitchen owners across the country, their legacy, stained stainless, has finally taken control, and new home buyers can not wait to finally own these highly impractical overpriced machines. But one Lincoln Square curmudgeon has refused to let any home buyer get their greasy fingers on his perfectly fingered stained stainless refrigerator. And buyers are protesting by refusing to write offers.
Lincoln Square

Flippers Touting Luxury Uitility Sinks

With the ubiquity of cherry cabinets, granite counters and Brazilian hardwood, investors rehabbing houses, commonly referred to by their maritime mammalian codename, "flipper", have sought out new ways to attract cutting edge home buyers. In this Mayfair bungalow, a flipper has marketed his 'reclaimed vintage' utility sink with high end Grohe shower faucet as a "must have item for those wanting the latest in utility sink fashion."
Mayfair

A Cock and A Cookie Seduce Potential Buyer

For the last few years, more and more realtors are delegating sales responsibilities to the very dependable, and always hardworking, lockbox community. But sometimes a truly motivated realtor will engage in clever sales tactics like the listing agent for this fading Edgewater Victorian who deputized a local rooster to bake some cookies for the evening showings.
Edgewater

Open House Turnout Larger than Expected

Open Houses are generally known as a place where realtors can pick up new clients while pretending to be aggressively getting buyers through the home. Over the years, home baked cookies and assorted treats have been popular items to bring in nosy neighbors and other undesirables. But one Chicago agent discovered that a misplaced laundry line can really make your clients think you are working hard.
Andersonville

Mysterious Banking Cabal Unveiled

Since the 2007-2008 housing and banking crash, investigators have been entrenched in a worldwide hunt to uncover the notorious yet unknown cabal responsible for the gross misconduct dealt to the American financial system. At approximately 17:00 hours this past Friday, the cartel was discovered lounging in the basement of a Jefferson Park estate sale. When pressed for answers to their egregious behavior, the bearded one radiating light laughed, then serenely pronounced, "y'all loved it while it lasted. 'nother brewski please."
Jefferson Park

Duck Duck Buy

A new game has emerged with home buyers in the low inventory Chicago market, where a buyer so desperate for a property will begin to blindly place bids on every third property in hopes that somebody, somewhere, please, yes, you, will take our offer even if we are unable to stand up in a single room.
Logan Square

Couple Turns to Stone Waiting for Short Sale

Rescuers discovered the missing bodies of a pair of buyers who had stowed away in the basement of the Portage Park bungalow they had hoped to buy. The Cook County Coroner has estimated the approximate date of their stoning to be approximately 139 weeks after placing their short sale offer. Upstairs, the owners of the home were found enjoying the latest in modern conveniences without the hassles of paying a mortgage.
Portage Park

Swingers Abandon Property

Apparently too much swinging can eventually lead to the same financial calamities that have affected other foreclosed homes. Potential buyers and even their realtors are now asked to sign a swinging waiver before entering a property that clarifies that any swinging they may do is at their own risk.
Sauganash

Juliet Upset Over New Home

Former Verona resident Juliet Montague was upset over her husband's purchase of this aging Avondale single family home stating that the suspended outdoor space was woefully unsuited to lure neighborhood men who might choose to serenade her on a warm evening.
Avondale

Daughter's Pitiful Look Shows Well

In an effort to add some emotional value to their overpriced Albany Park two flat, the sellers asked their eight year old daughter to scribble sentimental notes on the wall and remain in mourning when potential buyers wanted to look in her room. The sellers did offer to leave their daughter if the buyers paid more for their furnishings.
Albany Park

Dog Waiting to Attack Unsuspecting Buyers

Hoping to disguise ongoing water damage in their guest bedroom, the sellers of this Albany Park turn of the century cottage quarantined their dog to provide a seemingly valid excuse for why nobody could enter the room. One potential buyer overheard the ruffian muttering to himself, "my mother is a lying $#@&. save me. please. these glade plug-ins are killing me!"
Albany Park

Little Girl Scared of HGTV

After hours of being forced to watch HGTV by her parents, who were desperately trying to sell their overpriced Ukrainian Village home, this adventurous young girl decided to hide above her ill-fitting clothes. She was overheard by a realtor whispering, "Have you seen my backpack or my monkey?"
Ukrainian Village

Multiiple Offers Intoxicate Seller

Surprised that five different buyers wanted to pay more than she paid at the height of the Chicago real estate boom, an overjoyed seller spent the evening, and most of the next three days, sequestered in her non-functioning jacuzzi tub wondering where exactly she would move to.
River North

Questionable Wallpaper Choice Explained

The seller's realtor was unable to provide a satisfactory answer as to why a 21st century homeowner would wallpaper the ceiling of an otherwise beautiful Logan Square Victorian. Then the buyer wandered into the basement office. As of press time, the buyer is still missing.
Logan Square

Anti-Smoking VHS Bootlegger Foreclosed On

A notorious northside VHS video pirate who would place subliminal anti-smoking messages in his bootlegs was unable to compete with the booming LaserDisc market and has become another victim of the Chicago real estate crisis, losing his Edgewater Victorian mansion to foreclosure.
EDGEWATER

Child Confused...About Everything

The six year old child of potential buyers who were looking at this turn of the century Logan Square two flat bombarded her parents with questions after the family shared an extended and very awkward moment of silence.

"Mommy, why are the sheets on the ceiling? Daddy, why is there a cat on the wall? Why is is one octopus happy and one mad? Why do the legs of the happy octopus look like something my friend Connor has? Mommy, do people really live here?"
Logan Square

Federal Reserve Sells Penny to GE

Buyers of this still under renovation Lincoln Park two flat were surprised to find GE's newly released penny-light, which has promised users that the recent surge in Chinese toggle sales with not affect Americans' ability to use their lights because it's new switches have been specifically designed to turn on with your "now worthless pennies." Critics have complained of GE trying to capitalize on the popularity of Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln".
Lincoln Park

Family Goes Invisible During Showing

Unable to determine why nobody would purchase their modernist condo, a Boystown family decided to go invisible for their most recent showings in an effort to hear what buyers really thought of their home. "I didn't know androgynous albinos were mutes as well." seemed to be the most common observation.
Boystown - East Lakeview

Sequester Affects North Center Post Office

As the median home prices in the North Center neighborhood of Chicago skyrocket, and the U.S. government sequester forces federal agencies to cut services or find other sources of revenue, the local North Center post office has announced that it will sell it's lucrative branch office to a developer who is turning the 9,300 square foot facility into a LEED certified luxury single family home for a middle aged couple and their small child.

Energetic and civic minded residents have recently unveiled their replacement post office, something they assure fellow residents will never be sold, unless, of course, Whole Foods is interested in opening an urban drive-thru.
North Center

Roman Hero Struggling in Chicago Basement

After slaying hydras, lions and other assorted monsters, Italian immigrant Hercules has found life in America quite difficult as he struggles to provide heat for a presumably cold trio of families in this rapidly aging Lincoln Square brick three flat.
Lincoln Square

Family Lion Prevents Bidding War

Lured by the rarely seen affordable price tag on this Bucktown single family home, several anxious couples packed the home's slightly dated quarters whispering in hushed tones about their plans to tear down, expand, blow-up, re-build and granite out this century old dwelling. Upon exiting the property, each of the buyers told their realtor how much to bid until they were rudely interrupted by the lion guarding the front door, who brusquely told them, "keep walking. you don't want this place." The lion is currently in negotiations to acquire the property.
Bucktown

SpongeBob Shows His Dirty Side

Tired of concealing the fact that his sponge is dirtier than children realize, Ukrainian Village resident Bob Yushenko, better known to those outside Chicago as SpongeBob, has made it clear to the potential buyers of his historic brick four flat that there are two ways to handle things. When the excited buyer asked SpongeBob if his kid could use the urinal, the porous pauper grunted, "not have money to do everything the two way, but I open window for your boy, go ahead."
Ukrainian Village

Abstract Cabinetry Winning Over Hipsters

In their continued efforts to fight against mainstream orthodoxy, a certain class of buyer, sometimes referred to as 'hipster', is eschewing the 42" solid cherry cabinets that have been corrupting home buyers for the last decade, and are now opting for a cleaner minimalist look. As one enraptured young Chicago homebuyer explained, "this is what all these trendy houses don't get. We don't need to be wasting resources building cabinets to house a bunch of junk we shouldn't be storing to begin with. This new generation of cabinetry gets to the soul of who we are. See for yourself."
Ukrainian Village

Pescatarians File Fair Housing Violation

Proclaiming they were no longer willing to sit back and accept the blatant discrimination they have faced in the Chicago housing market, a young Northside couple has decided to file a Fair Housing complaint against the seller of this Edgewater three flat for refusing to acknowledge fish eaters as people who also deserve a place to cut in the kitchen.
Edgewater

Mayor Proposes Foreclosure Target Shooting

As the city of Chicago continues to search for creative ways to bring more revenue into city coffers, one new suggestion has been allowed a trial period: Foreclosure target shooting. The program is already receiving backing from the NRA who applauded the decision stating, "'bout time those liberals understood the value of a gun." And one outspoken alderman remarked, "you know we got so many guns in this city here, and da feds won't let us ban 'em, and we got all these empty buildings, so why don't we just put 'em all together and make a few bucks."
Ukrainian Village

Physical Therapist Redesigns Bathroom

After her client refused to do exercises to rehabilitate his torn rotator cuff, a local Chicago physical therapist decided her client could practice his arm stretches somewhere more comfortable. After seeing positive results, she is currently raising the height of all the light switches and has suspended his living room couch from the ceiling.
Logan Square

The Red Phone is Not a Toy

The buyer of this gorgeous Art Deco condo near the lake in Chicago's Gold Coast neighborhood assumed the red phone was merely decoration in the wood paneled study. Now authorities at the Pentagon are placing frenzied calls to leaders around the world that "they are terribly sorry, but budget cuts affected the Cold War dismantle program, and now, well, uh, you still have a few hours to evacuate."
Gold Coast

Leaking Wall Provides Green Water Source

Placing her three year old pug's bowl in front of a constant leak allowed the seller of this Lincoln Square single family to get LEED certified for a her green watering practices. She is now in negotiations with a local green building consultant to install a direct vent toilet gutter that will permit her home's commodes to fertilize her native gardens below.

Lincoln Square

Owner Demonstrates Structural Integrity

The potential buyers of this Logan Square three flat were without words, but clearly satisfied, after the extremely confident owner demonstrated that the home's smaller than usual support posts were nothing to be concerned about. She also informed the buyers that she would be willing to perform the same tests during their home inspection, and if they were really interested, she could attempt a similar test at other properties for a nominal fee.
Logan Square