I have shown that the Case-Shiller Index is built on questionable assumptions and gives much greater weight to certain kinds of home sales, which distorts the raw data beyond recognition. I have also explained why median sale prices are...
As we outlined in our recent joint report, we’ve seen these games before in Illinois. Payday regulators must avoid creating such loopholes. In 2001, the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulations issued consumer protections on payday loans with...
The Woodstock Institute, a Chicago-based advocacy group, writes in the report that local governments are now gathering a wide range of data about empty buildings through vacant-property registries. But the registries often don't capture key data points. (Read the...
Before you can bring great redevelopment ideas to fruition, you need to know where vacant buildings are, who owns them, and what condition they’re in. We set out to understand gaps in vacant buildings data collection in a new...
The report, Deciphering Blight: Vacant Buildings Data Collection in the Chicago Six County Region, recommends several steps municipalities can take to improve and standardize data collection. Download the report The number of vacant homes has grown as a result...
decipheringblight_buitrago_june2013.pdf The report also makes several recommendations on data collection practices that would allow municipalities to better understand the scope of the vacant buildings problem in their communities, inform strategies for property redevelopment and reuse, and keep track of...
According to our partners at the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, the cuts represent a 35 percent cut from this year’s funding level: Housing Counseling Assistance to $35 million, a 22% cut from FY 2013 HOME Investment Partnership Program to...
If a family had more than $3,000 in assets such as bank account savings or a car, the TANF asset test would have determined that they were ineligible to receive the $432 in monthly financial assistance, according to the...
CGI is an initiative of the Clinton Foundation founded by former President Bill Clinton to “turn ideas into action.” The Commitment to Action represents the key feature of the Initiative, lending the Foundation’s name to build awareness, identify partners,...
The Chicago region experienced more than 66,000 new foreclosures in 2012 and more than a quarter of Illinois homeowners are underwater on their mortgages—particularly those in communities of color. We know that the best way to prevent more foreclosures is...