The Institute for Housing Studies (IHS) is a research center based at DePaul University that provides analysis and data to inform affordable housing policy and practice. Read more »

Featured research

May 20, 2024

IHS Research Featured in HUD's Cityscape Journal

IHS is excited to announce that our research on the disappearance of 2 to 4 unit buildings in Chicago was published in the Spring 2024 issue of Cityscape!

House Price Index   May 1, 2024

Cook County House Price Index: Fourth Quarter 2023

This update of the Institute for Housing Studies (IHS) Cook County House Price Index reflects new 2020 submarket geographies, and highlights changing prices for single-family homes through the fourth quarter of 2023. Data are included for 17 City of Chicago submarkets and 18 submarkets primarily in suburban Cook County.

March 18, 2024

An Update to IHS’s Housing Market Indicators Data Portal

IHS recently updated its Housing Market Indicators data portal to include new data on neighborhood demographic and economic characteristics. These data will provide portal users with additional context to understand factors that may affect housing market activity in their communities.

Reports   March 5, 2024

Data Highlighting the ETOD Implications of Vacant Land Near Transit

As part of a recent collaborative project to understand the implications of vacant land near transit, IHS developed an in-depth analysis of City- and privately-owned vacant land near CTA train stations across Chicago. This report highlights data and analysis developed as part of this work.

March 4, 2024

A New Update to the Mapping Stories of Neighborhood Change Tool

IHS recently updated our Mapping Stories of Neighborhood Change mapping tool to include neighborhood news stories published in 2023 through 2024 mapped alongside our Mapping Displacement Pressure data. The mapping tool provides users with spatial, housing market, and demographic context to assess the potential implications of the activities described in each article.

Reports   November 28, 2023

Transfer on Death Instruments and Their Role in Estate Planning in Cook County

This data brief examines the role that transfer on death Instruments play in facilitating the transfer of real estate to heirs and provides data on the patterns of TODIs filed on homes with an active senior exemption in neighborhoods across Cook County.

House Price Index   October 25, 2023

Cook County House Price Index: Second Quarter 2023

This update of the Institute for Housing Studies (IHS) Cook County House Price Index highlights changing prices for single-family homes through the second quarter of 2023 in 16 City of Chicago submarkets and 17 submarkets primarily in suburban Cook County.

State of Rental   June 28, 2023

2023 State of Rental Housing in the City of Chicago

This release of the State of Rental Housing in the City of Chicago updates key data on changing rental demand, the supply of rental housing, and how these dynamics affect access to affordable rental housing for Chicago's lowest income households.

June 21, 2023

Key Housing Challenges in the City of Chicago

IHS research has indicated that the city's housing affordability crisis has some unique characteristics which shed light on why residents are struggling to find affordable rental housing, buy homes, and maintain their current residences.

Reports   May 26, 2023

Assessing Obstacles to Aging in Place for Chicago's Older Homeowners

This research brief discusses some of the key issues that emerged from these discussions and includes new data analysis highlighting the characteristics and spatial patterns of properties owned by older adults in Chicago.

May 1, 2023

Chicago Programs Helping to Expand the Supply of 2 to 4 Unit Properties in Black and Latino Neighborhoods

This blog reviews several programs in Chicago that showcase growing efforts to create a supply of affordable, for-sale housing in neighborhoods that have struggled for decades with disinvestment-related challenges.

House Price Index   April 10, 2023

Cook County House Price Index: Fourth Quarter 2022

This update of the Institute for Housing Studies (IHS) Cook County House Price Index highlights changing prices for single-family homes through the fourth quarter of 2022 in 16 City of Chicago submarkets and 17 submarkets primarily in suburban Cook County.

Reports   March 2, 2023

Recent Homebuying Patterns for 2 to 4 Unit Properties

This analysis documents the importance that 2 to 4 unit buildings play in homebuying for Chicago’s borrowers and neighborhoods of color and helps connect policy priorities around preserving 2 to 4s with those that advance homeownership and wealth-building for moderate- and middle-income Black and Latino households.

January 27, 2023

Exploring the Impacts of Rising Property Taxes in Changing Neighborhoods

This blog contextualizes recent research and reporting on property tax disparities in Chicago with IHS research on neighborhood house price changes and discusses how policy interventions designed to mitigate increased tax burdens have challenges of their own.

November 17, 2022

Understanding the Implications of Pandemic House Price Gains in Chicago’s Communities of Color

This blog updates data on house price trends in City of Chicago neighborhoods based on the neighborhood’s race and ethnic composition and focuses on how COVID-19 pandemic period price gains have impacted house prices in Chicago's communities of color.

House Price Index   November 10, 2022

Cook County House Price Index: Second Quarter 2022

This update of the Institute for Housing Studies (IHS) Cook County House Price Index highlights changing prices for single-family homes through the second quarter of 2022 in 16 City of Chicago submarkets and 17 submarkets primarily in suburban Cook County.

August 15, 2022

IHS Convenes Stakeholders to Discuss Older Adult Housing Needs

This blog discusses highlights from IHS's May 2022 convening of a diverse group of participants including affordable-housing advocates, the aging-in-place community, housing developers, community groups, government agencies and others to discuss the implications of IHS's recent report Housing Needs and Economic Conditions of Cook County’s Older Adults.

March 2, 2022

An Update to the Mapping Stories of Neighborhood Change Tool

IHS recently updated our Mapping Stories of Neighborhood Change mapping tool to include neighborhood news stories published in 2021 and 2022 mapped alongside our updated Mapping Displacement Pressure data. The mapping tool provides users with spatial, housing market, and demographic context to assess the potential implications of the activities described in each article.

February 25, 2022

Looking Forward: An Update on COVID-19 Housing Policy Interventions

This blog is a part of our series examining the impact of the COVID-19 economy on Chicago households and communities. This third installment discusses data, research, and programs to guide equitable recovery efforts as COVID-19 protections and assistance enacted during the first two years of the pandemic end.

Displacement Pressure   February 23, 2022

Mapping Displacement Pressure in Chicago, 2021

IHS’s Mapping Displacement Pressure in Chicago project supports ongoing and future public investment decisions by creating a leading indicator to identify neighborhoods where vulnerable populations may be experiencing affordability pressures and displacement risk from increased housing costs.

Reports   December 14, 2021

Housing Needs and Economic Conditions of Cook County’s Older Adults, 2021

The development of impactful policy to address the unique housing needs of Cook County’s older adults requires local and timely data on changing conditions, informed by the data needs of issue-area stakeholders. This analysis leverages the local knowledge of roughly 20 Chicago-area organizations working on older adult housing issues to create a practitioner-focused resource on key demographic and socioeconomic conditions related to older-adult housing demand and economic and housing insecurity in Cook County.

December 14, 2021

Planning for the Housing Needs of an Aging Population

To inform our work on Cook County’s older adult housing needs and economic challenges, IHS tapped into the local knowledge of roughly 20 Chicago-area organizations to create a resource on key older adult demographic and socioeconomic trends. Read more here about the distinct challenges facing older adult renter and owner households in Cook County, as well as key policy challenges and information needs that emerged during our stakeholder engagement process.

State of Rental   September 30, 2021

2021 State of Rental Housing in Cook County

The newest release of the State of Rental Housing in Cook County updates key data on changing rental demand, the supply of rental housing, and how these dynamics affect access to affordable rental housing for Cook County's lowest income households.

Reports   September 22, 2021

The Preservation Lab Releases New Resources to Support NOAH Preservation Strategies

Chicago’s diverse stock of naturally occurring affordable housing (NOAH) faces a variety of challenges. A new report and resource clearinghouse from The Preservation Lab, an initiative co-led by the Institute for Housing Studies and The Preservation Compact, documents the risks and pressures facing NOAH buildings, owners, and tenants in different market contexts and provides resources and guiding principles to assist community stakeholders in developing tailored NOAH preservation strategies.

Reports   September 20, 2021

Data and Research to Facilitate Equitable Homeownership in Chicago

Facilitated by the Chicago Community Trust’s Protecting and Advancing Equitable Homeownership initiative, the Institute for Housing Studies at DePaul University (IHS) partnered with the Urban Institute to develop a data resource for Chicago practitioners, policymakers, and advocates working to reduce the racial homeownership gap. Read more about Chicago Housing Overview: Preserving Affordability and Expanding Accessibility here.

August 19, 2021

Building Community Data Capacity: The Southwest Organizing Project

For a decade, IHS has provided data and technical assistance to the Southwest Organizing Project (SWOP) to inform the organization’s programs, initiatives, and outreach in southwest Chicago. Read more here about how IHS data has helped SWOP target and rehabilitate vacant buildings after the Great Recession, distribute aid during the COVID-19 pandemic, and conduct targeted outreach to Southwest Chicago residents.

June 21, 2021

IHS Technical Assistance to Support Preservation of 2 to 4 Unit Properties in Chicago

This blog provides an overview of the current state of 2 to 4 unit housing in Chicago, new pilot programs directed at preserving multi-unit housing in Chicago, and IHS’s work in community partnerships over the years that have provided insight on the 2 to 4 unit housing market.

June 11, 2021

Using Data and Community Engagement Collaborations to Guide an Equitable COVID-19 Recovery

With support from Urban Institute's National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership, the Institute for Housing Studies partnered with Communities United and Elevated Chicago to engage community members experiencing disproportionate impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more here about how data and community-driven narratives can guide equitable COVID-19 response and recovery efforts in Chicago.

Reports   May 13, 2021

Patterns of Lost 2 to 4 Unit Buildings in Chicago

This analysis uses a unique data set to document the loss of the 2 to 4 stock in Chicago neighborhoods in an effort to understand the different ways that market forces put pressure on this key segment of the city’s housing market.

Reports   May 13, 2021

Characteristics of the 2 to 4 Stock in Chicago Neighborhoods

To inform ongoing policy conversations related to the preservation of 2 to 4 buildings in Chicago neighborhoods, this report updates key contextual data on the stock of 2 to 4s in Chicago, and includes new data on the characteristics of the stock, foreclosure impacts, and the importance of 2 to 4s in communities of color and for households of color.

May 13, 2021

Guest Blog: The Need for a Collective Approach to Preserving 2 to 4 Unit Housing in Chicago

This guest blog, co-authored by a group of Chicago housing organizations, responds to IHS's recent analysis on the importance of and threats to 2 to 4 unit buildings in Chicago. It emphasizes the disproportionate health and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic across Chicago’s communities of color; the potential implications for the stability of Chicago’s 2 to 4 unit housing stock; and the urgent need for coordinated actions to address existing needs of families that rely on the affordability that 2 to 4 flats provide.

January 11, 2021

New Stories Added to Mapping Stories of Neighborhood Change Tool

IHS recently updated our Mapping Stories of Neighborhood Change mapping tool to include neighborhood news stories published in 2020 mapped alongside our updated Mapping Displacement Pressure data. The mapping tool provides users with spatial, housing market, and demographic context and to assess the potential implications of the activities described in each article.


Housing market indicators data portal

Search for, view, and download indicators of housing market health in the Chicago region, including foreclosure auctions & filing activity, mortgage activity, and property sales activity.

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