Housing
More than 38,000 eviction and foreclosure cases were filed in Cook County in 2022. We report on the intersection of housing and the courts and how the system impacts renters, homeowners, and the unhoused.
Featured Story
The U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled unconstitutional a decades-old practice of taking every cent of people’s home equity over unpaid property taxes. Experts say Illinois lags behind the nation by continuing the racist policy mostly impacting Black communities.
FeatureD Project
A year-long Injustice Watch investigation found tenants are regularly facing eviction and informal displacement at buildings with histories of serious safety violations, while the court system puts property rights above the rights of the people who live there.
Latest
More Housing
Pilsen tenants followed the law in withholding rent. They were forced to move out anyway.
The retaliation lawsuit the three renters filed against their former landlord, Pilsen Rentals LLC, shows the limits of tenant protections in Chicago.
Property-tax foreclosure reform gets put off by Illinois legislators
Lawmakers said they again will consider the issue later this year. Meanwhile, Cook County will postpone its 2025 tax sale because of concerns over homeowners who fall behind on property taxes losing their homes and equity.
Answers to Chicago renters’ common questions
A Chicago housing expert shares insights about what to do when your landlord enters your apartment without permission, how to handle retaliation, and more.
Advocates push for at least $20M in city’s 2025 budget for housing measures
The funding would help programs for tenants facing eviction and those being displaced near the Obama Presidential Center and address tenant inequities documented in the Injustice Watch investigation The Tenant Trap.
Chief judge issues new order aimed at helping tenants facing eviction in troubled buildings
The order entitles tenants to quickly receive information about whether their landlords are being sued for building code violations, but questions remain whether it would help them fight eviction cases.