Giving Back: 2022 Annual Food Drive

Every year we partner with our sister company, Pearson Realty Group for our annual holiday charity drive. Giving back to a city that provides so much is very important to us and something we look forward to every year.

This year we are collecting canned food donations through November 17th for the Greater Chicago Food Depository at our office located at 1000 N Milwaukee Ave. Between inflation, lingering pandemic effects, and beyond this time of year is even more difficult than normal for those financially struggling.

Help us give back to this wonderful city and its beautiful communities this holiday season and bring your canned food donations to us and we will take care of the rest. Every little bit goes a long way so are happy to accept any sized donation!

Currently, the most needed items at the food bank are peanut butter, canned beans, canned chili, canned soup, canned fruit, and canned vegetables. But most canned food items that are still within their “best-by” or “sell-by” date are more than welcome! To see more details about hunger in America and what items are accepted CLICK HERE!

Any questions, including what is and is not considered an acceptable donation can be directed to our marketing director Timothy Hellstern at marketing@pearsonrealtygroup.com and he will be happy to help!

Chicago's First Condo Association: 1011 N Lasalle Street

The first condo project in the history of Chicago

Chicago’s Lasalle Street is among some of the most history-packed stretches in the city that is home to the YMCA building, The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, The U.S. Bank building, The Field Building, and even City Hall. But quietly tucked away just north of the river over the Lasalle Street Bridge, is a historic Chicago building PRG Management has managed since 2015 at 1011 North Lasalle Street. This classic 8-unit building was Chicago’s very first homeowner’s association, with some great history behind it.

Historical photo of the Newberry Library at 60 W Walton St, located just across the street diagonally from 1011 N La Salle Street.

The 1011 Lasalle Condominium association was created on December 17th, 1964 according to their recording date found in some historical documents. Unfortunately, for those living in Chicago before this, ownership of common building elements and multiple tenants agreeing to incurred expenses was a stressful tiring experience. Back in the 60s the norms and landscape of the city were very different so for many reasons, owners did not see the need to have someone manage their building. Nowadays it’s commonplace for condo associations, homeowner’s associations (HOAs), and even smaller landlords to use the services of property management companies to take care of a wide variety of regular tasks.

Not only does 1011 N Lasalle have a rich history behind it but so does the beautiful River North/Magnificent Mile area surrounding it. It is located just across the street from the Newberry Library in a neighborhood that in the 60s, was considered a rough part of the city.

After the Chicago Fire of 1871, many parts of the city were rebuilt and rezoned. Following the fire, River North was quickly turned into an industrial district named Smokey Hollow with factories, forges, and rails turning the area around. Sadly, just as fast as it appeared, Smokey Hollow was gone following large closings of factories and employees moving to the suburbs. But today River North has grown into one of the most popular neighborhoods in Chicago with unmatched dining options and a bustling nightlife. And even with all this growth and modernities, 1011 N Lasalle is among the surrounding historical homes that give this part of Chicago its true character.

Since 2015, PRG Management has worked hard to help owners at 1011 N Lasalle preserve the classic historical appearance of both the interior and exterior elements. All while maintaining and upgrading the structures wherever possible. Maintenance/repairs, rent collection, financial management, regulation enforcement, and vendor coordination are just a glimpse of what PRG Management is able to manage for any sized building. This can be particularly challenging on older buildings at times when dealing with old systems, discontinued parts, and outdated information. But this is where PRG Management’s team shines in going the extra mile to ensure all owner’s issues are handled as quickly and as efficiently as possible.

PRG Property Management is a full-service property management company, home to a team of reliable and accomplished brokers, distinguished property managers, and incredible support staff. We offer a broad range of services to effectively manage commercial and residential real estate in Chicago and surrounding suburbs. If you are interested in requesting a free proposal of services for your building simply fill out the form below!

2022 Chicagoland Cooperator Expo Highlights

Looking back, last month the PRG Management team attended the 2022 Chicagoland Cooperator Expo at the Navy Pier Convention Center, to present our management services. It was a fantastic opportunity to grow our network and have our team attend seminars together. Now that we’re a few weeks post show we have had time to decompress, process the experience, and follow up on all of our new friends we met at the expo.

We had the honor of meeting dozens of high-level condo/homeowners association board members and investors from all over the Chicagoland area. We even saw a few familiar faces of clients we already provide service for. A service that got attendees to be very interested in working with us. During the event and the days following we were slammed with management proposal requests wanting more information about our wide range of services.

This was also a great chance for PRG Management to expand our scope of services and catalog of vendors we work with. As we grow every year we build our network of people we work with that allows us to provide the best quality of service possible, in any part of the city. These vendors included maintenance, HVAC, cleaning services, financial tools, and tons of other services for property management.

Other than browsing general services at the show, we also got to see niche technology products for residential buildings. Smart doorbells with video calls, touchscreen elevator controls, and even know lock & key systems were among the many impressive tech products we had the chance of trying out.

These opportunities to browse new services & products help us immensely with working with current and future clients and understanding their needs. We are hired to not only maintain buildings but to make them more profitable and better places to live for the residents. While we can’t renovate every property we manage, we can help modernize the building’s amenities & utilities. Upgrading and replacing outdated fixtures go a long way in making our clients [residents] happy.

PRG Property Management is a full-service property management company, home to a team of reliable and accomplished brokers, distinguished property managers, and incredible support staff. We offer a broad range of services to effectively manage commercial and residential real estate in Chicago and surrounding suburbs. If you are interested in requesting a free proposal of services for your building simply fill out the form below!

PRG Management Announces New Property Management in Edgewater (120 Units)

PRG Management is please to announce their new assignment as property manager in the Edgewater neighborhood of Chicago. Split between 4 different buildings in the complex, PRG Management is taking over to help financially stabalize the property and impliment better oversight of maintenance and capital improvements.

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For a free property management proposal, please reach out to our office at 312.600.8896 or email info@prg-management.com.

Top Chicago Property Manager Frequently Asked Questions

In giant metropolitan areas like Chicago, property management is an enormous industry. From completely managing entire 100+ unit buildings to working with more niche luxury multi-unit properties - there’s no shortage of owners looking for help with their properties. The ultimate goal of PRG Management is to ease the stress of owners, increase the profitability of the building, and maintain (or upgrade) the existing structures, and that’s just the beginning.

Lately, we’ve been taking on some new clients at some buildings that have never had a property manager before. This exciting change for the residents/owners comes with its own unique set of questions. Most of the time these are pretty standard but unless you deal with a management company, it’s not something you typically think a lot about. So we sat down with a PRG Management Property Manager, Payton Dalessandro to discuss some of the basics of the duties and responsibilities that come with being a top Chicago property manager.

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Question: What do property managers do? And why do I need one?

Answer: We manage a property's daily processes and operations on behalf of the owner. A quality property manager will make the operations more successful and have an extensive repertoire of highly effective vendors for your disposal.

 Question: What type of managerial services do you offer?

Answer: Rent collection, building maintenance, property turnover, preventing future issues, and coordinating proper vendors for property improvement are just a couple of the services we offer.

 Question: What type of properties do you manage?

Answer: Everything basically, from single-family houses to residential multi-units (1-4 units) to commercial buildings upwards of 150 units, commercial office spaces, and commercial shopping centers. Any property that could benefit from management we manage, and that is most properties. We don't work in any land or trailer parks, although I am not opposed to it.

 Question: How soon can you start managing a property?

Answer: We prefer at least 30 days' notice to properly coordinate with the previous management company/owner/tenants, but we have managed buildings with much less noticeable in some specific cases.

Question: There’s an after-hours emergency, what do I do?

Answer: Let's answer this question in a couple of ways.

The tenant would call our specially designated emergency hotline.

The property manager would assess the situation based on the information given and coordinate with an emergency service to head to the property if needed. 

If deemed applicable, the owner will go to the property to address the immediate emergency.

Question: How do you handle rent collection?

Answer: If rent is not received within five days of when it is due, I will reach out to the tenants and figure out why the rent is not being paid. If it is an income issue, we will work with them to provide a payment plan to help them get caught up by the end of the month. If it is a noncompliance issue, we will immediately serve a five-day notice; if not, we will evict the tenant.

Question: Typically, what are the minimum requirements for tenants?

Answer: Income, credit history, credit score, previous landlord references, and household income are a few things we consider. It is all neighborhood and property dependent; we take each applicant on a case-by-case basis. We choose the best applicant based on what would be best for the property and who would have the highest chance of being quality tenants and paying rent.

Question: What makes PRG Management different than other Chicagoland property management companies?

Answer: What separates PRG from other management companies is the amount of care we put into every one of our properties. Each property manager understands what is best for the property owner and tenants. Through this, we make suggestions best on how we believe we should handle the property, what improvements can be made to increase cash flow for owners, and quality of life and service for tenants. Through our communication skills, we effectively address issues keeping tenants happy and use qualified, reasonably priced contractors to fix any problems that come up in the property with excellent quality for a reasonable price.

Question: How and when do you file for a tenant's eviction?

Answer: The answer to this is very situation-specific and generally judged on a case-by-case basis. If a tenant has unexpected costs, we will work with them to set up payment plans and rental assistance. If a tenant loses their job or something like that, the first plan of attack is always rental assistance for the tenant. If a tenant is just refusing to pay, we file for eviction immediately. Ultimately if they are trying to pay rent, we will do our best to help them afford the property. If they absolutely cannot afford the property or refuse to pay, we try to convince the tenant to leave, and if they don’t, we file for eviction as fast as possible.

Question: Will I ever get the money after a tenant is evicted?

Answer: Yes, in many cases, property owners have been awarded settlements through rental assistance programs after evictions, as well as some tenants paying past due balances or setting up payments and plans to pay past due balances.

Question: How do you find tenants for my property?

Answer: We list properties through a multitude of different platforms. Zillow and apartments.com are truly rental hotspots, as well as many other smaller websites that we utilize. Many agents promote reminders to their extensive client base and use numerous posts on personal/business social media accounts and neighborhood groups.

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As you can see, having a property management company assist in running your building or property can be extremely beneficial to the owners, tenants, board, and generally everyone involved in the building. This means more accountability, more check & balances, and more longterm property financial security for everyone involved in the building property.

While the city certainly has a larger population of owners that require our services we also manage dozens of properties all around the surrounding Chicago suburbs. So feel free to browse Our Services sections to view the full scope of work that PRG Management is capable of taking on for your Chicagoland building. If you have any other specific questions about Chicago property management, rentals, or homeowner’s associations feel free to call or email us anytime!

The True Price of Chicago Real Estate Licenses

The estimated cost to get your real estate license in Chicago, depending on your school, test prep, & actual testing will run you anywhere from ~$2,000-2,300.

Real Estate School ($350-600)
+ Illinois State Exam ($55)
+ License Application ($125)
+ Association Membership ($1500)
= Cost To Be An Illinois Realtor ($2030-2280)

Now that you have your license and found your brokerage it’s time to get to the nitty-gritty. You need the tools and resources to list & search for properties, send & sign documents, and more depending on your needs. These come in many varied forms, some reoccurring monthly/annually and some one-time fees, again depending on your needs. Many memberships and fees may be written off at the end of the year, talk to your managing broker for more details.

Examples of additional fees & costs to think about:

• MLS Membership – $1,138/year

  • Realtor Association Membership – $1500/year (MLS fees included)

• Office Transfer Fee – $50 OTF (for switching brokerages)

• State Transfer Fee – $25 OTF (for switching brokerages)

• E-Signature Platform Fee – $20/month

Read the full breakdown of costs and even more at PearsonRealtyGroup.com!

How Your Rental Property Is Affected By Pets

Anyone that has a furry friend at home knows how big of a part they play in our daily lives by providing love, entertainment, companionship, and countless memories. According to a nationwide study from the American Veterinary Medical Association, a fair amount of people in the United States are pet owners. Nationally, 56% of people in the United States have at least one cat or dog in their homes, with Illinois coming in 48% of households with cats or dogs.

The owners of these furry friends know all too well the hurdles that come with apartment renting and cat/dog ownership. Pet owners that rent generally prioritize buildings and associations that accept their pets. This is the biggest factor in choosing a new place to live. When you do the simple math, it becomes very clear why as a property owner, it is more beneficial in the long run to accept pets in your building. However, what exactly should you weigh on when making the decision to accept or decline pets?

The benefits of allowing pets in rentals include:

• Larger Applicant Pool: this diversifies your potential renters with more applications to choose from

• Lower Vacancy Rates: stop revenue loss and achieve a higher profit margin with less vacancies

• Attracts Long-Term Tenants: secure quality residents that will occupy units for longer periods of time on average. Happy residents stay longer!

• Higher Profit: you can charge a higher monthly rent and/or charge a premium pet fee yielding higher profits with minimal effort

In contrast, some of the downsides of allowing pets in rentals include:

• Common Tenant Complaints: those without pets may be less sympathetic to excessive noise leading to more complaints

• Common Area Complaints: messes in hallways or elevators or barking at passerby residents can lead to a general degradation of the building's quality of life

• Potential Damage To Apartment: not just dogs, but most animals have the potential of causing damage to different aspects of the unit.

Our advice at the end of the day is to be flexible and be open to accepting tenants with pets. Don’t single out the possibility of pet rentals at your units when the benefits can greatly outweigh the costs. By accepting pets, you attract residents that are more likely to stay for longer periods of time which allows for more profit security in the long term. The downside to accepting pets is when you allow the wrong pets (or owners) in the unit by not properly screening them the potential for complaints and damages can increase. Every situation is different, and no dog, cat, or furry friend is the same - so take this advice on a case-by-case basis and do what’s most comfortable for you as a property owner.

If you feel as if you don’t have the manpower or resources to accept pets or manage your current units with pets then think about hiring a property management company to help. Take a look at our full list of property management services to see if we can help you today! Contact PRG Management today to get a FREE quote and learn more about the services we offer for owners like you!

Mistakes To Avoid When Selling Your Home That Could Cost You Thousands

6 Costly Mistakes To Avoid When Selling Your Home

Empty Nesters are the parents of kids who have just recently moved out of the home for the first time. Usually college; so often this happens when the kids graduate high school or college. Reports of loneliness and grief follow these instances which lead to homeowners rethinking their immediate and distant future plans.

When it comes time to sell there are a few things that you want to avoid so you don’t fall into a financial or stress-filled pitfall.

Read the full blog at Pearson Realty Group’s site!

Chicago's 2022 March Market Update

2022 Market update ┃ Chicago Real Estate News

As we start to enter the busy spring season market we decided to take a look at some of the most recent Chicago-based real estate and rental trends & statistics to help better understand the path ahead for the city. We analyzed local group studies, nationwide MLS stats, and some independent studies to get a better grasp on how inflation, fed rates, and other global/nationwide factors are affecting the housing market - and what to expect moving forward.

Stay informed and read the full blog analyzing these stats at Pearson Realty Group.

New East Side Chicago Developments │ New Lakeshore East Condos

New East Side Developments In Chicago’s Lakeshore East Neighborhood

To a surprising number of Chicago residents, it’s a shock to find out that the city technically has an East Side. New East Side Chicago developments have been popping up all over the Lakeshore East neighborhood, located just north of Grant Park in Chicago’s Loop and just south of River North.

The past decade has seen an abundance of new construction projects that have continued success even through the Covid-19 pandemic. Easily accessible public transportation, shopping & food, and plenty of amenities make the Lakeshore East area one of the superior neighborhoods in the city.

New East Side Chicago buildings such as the Cirrus, Aqua, Shoreham & Tides, and The Parkshore are prime examples of the type of luxury condos you can find in this part of the city. Not only do you have the wonderful amenities in and around the building, but the welcoming community these buildings tend to attract as well. Just check out this video from the 47-story tall Cirrus Condos building showcasing their beautifully constructed skyline architecture and the surrounding area packed with life:

Cirrus Condominiums in Chicago from Cirrus Condominiums Chicago on Vimeo.

As you can tell from the promotional video, the courtyard-style park in the middle of all these highrise condos, appropriately named Lakeshore East Park, is a giant draw for these condo buildings. With the New East Side in such a densely populated area coupled with it being a high traffic area for tourists as well means privacy or a simple quiet walk are more highly sought after. Perfect for these residents this courtyard is surrounded on all sides by the condo buildings that have walkways and sidewalks directly from your building to the park. While many buildings will have a garden roof deck, for many a real quasi “private” park on the ground cannot be beaten.

One of the biggest challenges with these buildings is an obvious one, managing them. From regular & emergency maintenance, to negotiating with vendors, to simply collecting payments and much more in between; a lot of logistics and work go into managing just one of these amazing condo buildings. PRG Management specializes in working with Homeowner Associations at these types of buildings and has built up a reputation of one of the most trusted Property Management companies in Chicago, a rare feat. From the NEw East Side to the South Side and even the surrounding suburbs, we have an extensive track record of successfully managing buildings and helping them stay profitable.

Take a look at what services our property management contacts offer on the PRG Management Services page and contact us today to request your free management proposal today!