Author Image: Mary Umberger

Mary Umberger

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Sod is set for rollout two weeks before this summer's Cavalcade of Homes in Naperville. In the Chicago area, homebuilding has fostered new hope.

Chicago area’s homebuilding recovers at slower pace

Chris Huecksteadt hates the phrase "cautious optimism," but in today's real estate market, that's what he's able to muster. As the regional director for Midwest markets for Metrostudy, a consulting...
Landlord Leigh Robinson says one of the first things he does is is give tenants detailed instructions about filling out rental applications.

A survival guide for fledgling landlords

Sometimes, when landlord Leigh Robinson has tenants who are late with the rent, he might send them a cartoon — a gentle jab to remind them to pay up. If...
Selling your home while in the midst of a divorce can be a major challenge.

Challenges that divorcing home sellers face

Shaaron Delsohn wears two hats. On some days, she's a divorce mediator, a third party who helps soon-to-be divorced couples work out agreements over children, finances and the nearly inevitable...
A worker cuts down a tree infested by the emerald ash borer in Lincoln Park.

Protecting a home sale from ash borer threat

What if you were buying a home and were advised the furnace was operating on borrowed time? Or perhaps the kitchen appliances look as if they were manufactured during the...
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The bottom line on an upbeat market

HOUSTON — Ever heard the phrase "damned with faint praise"? That's what continually came to mind about the state of the housing recovery as journalists and industry representatives came together...
chicagotribune default image

The bottom line on an upbeat market

HOUSTON — Ever heard the phrase "damned with faint praise"? That's what continually came to mind about the state of the housing recovery as journalists and industry representatives came together...
chicagotribune default image

The strange world of real estate markets

The real estate industry is fond of saying that "all real estate is local," but I don't buy it. To wit, recent dispatches from around the world that clog my...
chicagotribune default image

The strange world of real estate markets

The real estate industry is fond of saying that "all real estate is local," but I don't buy it. To wit, recent dispatches from around the world that clog my...