Small cars, SUVs top the choices
More than 40 percent of first-time buyers purchase a small car, according to Carol Elder, a research analyst with AutoPacific, an automotive product and consulting firm. Another 20 percent or...
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Demolishing the myths of home remodeling
After buying the 50-year-old west suburban home, the couple decided it needed some updating. They called in a contractor and began pointing out what type of changes they felt could...
Staying power
Last summer, during one of several blackouts that hit a Naperville subdivision, neighbors pointed to Dan Kittilsen's house in amazement. "As the street went black, everyone was wondering why I...
Test the waters
One of the highlights of the two-story Dutch Colonial the couple found in the south suburbs was its large basement. With three kids, the couple had plans to convert the...
A ray of hope
Despite having a fondness for long, hot showers, Naperville resident Ken Woods often chuckles when his utility company bill arrives in his mailbox. Somewhere between half and as much as...
Playing catch-up
There's good news for renters: Some of the construction technology that has long been applied to single-family homes is now being incorporated into apartment buildings. The result is more energy-efficient,...
Inspecting the inspector
After several weeks of house hunting, the young couple came across a quaint Dutch Colonial on a shady street in East Dundee. Because the house was built in the 1940s,...
Ill winds
As a building official in southwest suburban Plainfield, Ray Sarnowski has witnessed two ways weather can devastate a home: The first is rare but deadly, such as the mid-summer tornado...
On the edge
After residing in their home for several decades, the far southwest suburban couple decided to sell off two of the four acres of their property. Their real estate agent said...
View from the top
The couple fell in love with the 87-year-old southwest suburban house the moment they saw it. But before they purchased the wood-frame single-family home, they carefully scrutinized every corner of...