Welcome To The Real Finds Blog: Commercial Real Estate Insights for Chicago and the Midwest
Welcome to The Real Finds Blog, your daily briefing on commercial real estate trends across Chicagoland and the Midwest. Published by Gordon Lamphere, a fourth-generation commercial real estate broker at Van Vlissingen & Co., this blog delivers sharp, actionable insights for CRE professionals navigating a changing market. Every article connects macro trends—interest rates, automation, supply chains, policy shifts—to local real estate strategy across high-demand submarkets, including:
- Downtown Chicago – office space, adaptive reuse, capital markets
- Elk Grove & O’Hare – industrial leasing, logistics infrastructure
- Kenosha & SE Wisconsin – warehouse development and distribution hubs
- Oak Brook & Schaumburg – suburban office leasing and reinvestment
- Naperville & the I-88 Corridor – flex space, R&D, life sciences
- Bolingbrook & the I-55 Corridor – fulfillment centers and industrial site selection
- Lake, DuPage, Will, Kane, and McHenry Counties – land use, entitlements, development opportunities, and tenant migration
From daily blog posts to in-depth strategy guides and transcribed podcast interviews, Real Finds turns global uncertainty into hyper-local market intelligence for investors, landlords, tenants, developers, and brokers New posts are published every weekday.
Chicago’s Office Future: Smaller Footprints, Smarter Space
After years of uncertainty, the Chicago office market is showing renewed signs of life. Leasing activity is rising, but the...
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T5 Data Centers’ Morse Avenue Purchase Sparks Elk Grove Industrial Space Demand
Elk Grove Village is once again proving itself as one of the most important commercial real estate markets in the...
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Bridge Industrial in Downers Grove Continues The Era Of Office To Industrial Redevelopment
A major shift is underway in suburban Chicago, and Downers Grove may be one of its most important test cases....
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Lincoln Yards Stalls: What Sterling Bay’s Setback Means for Chicago’s Neighborhoods and Development Future
Sterling Bay, one of Chicago’s most high-profile developers, has hit a major roadblock. After years of delays and difficulty securing long-term...
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900 Clark St Proposal Poised to Reshape the Evanston Skyline and Community Fabric
Evanston, long known for its architectural charm and university-town vibrance, may soon welcome its tallest new addition in years. Plans...
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Foreclosure at 1751 Lake Cook Road Signals More Trouble For Deerfield’s Office Market
The recent foreclosure of 1751 Lake Cook Road in Deerfield by Sound Point Capital is the latest tremor in an...
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Time for JB Pritzker to Go Nuclear in the Tech Arms Race
Illinois Nuclear Fueled Arms Race Illinois stands at a pivotal crossroads in the rapidly evolving landscapes of quantum computing and...
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Is Small Bay Industrial Overpriced?
Hidden Risks in a Small Bay Industrial The Boom in Small Bay Industrial Over the past several years, small bay...
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Do Walkable Neighborhoods Boost Property Values?
Walkable neighborhoods and thoughtful urban design significantly influence property valuations and resilience across various real estate asset classes, including hospitality,...
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Are Post-2020 Permitting Woes Finally Over? What It Means for Developers, Occupiers, and Landlords
The commercial real estate industry has been navigating a turbulent permitting environment since 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic caused widespread municipal...
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How to Communicate with and Effectively Ask Your Office Tenants Questions
Effective communication with office tenants is essential for maintaining strong relationships, improving tenant satisfaction, and making informed decisions about property...
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The Data Center Dilemma: REITs Vs Moore’s Law
Small investors looking to capitalize on the data center boom might feel locked out as sovereign wealth funds and private...
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The Hidden Risks Of Private Real Estate Markets With Hunter Hopcroft – RFP 56
In today’s increasingly complex investment environment, the differences between public and private real estate markets are more than just structural—they’re...
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1871’s Departure from the Merchandise Mart
A Shift in Chicago’s Tech and Office Landscape The announcement that 1871, Chicago’s premier tech incubator, is vacating its long-standing...
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Arlington Heights and the Changing Office Space Landscape
A Cautionary Tale: The Foreclosure Battle at 230 W Monroe St. A prime example of the challenges facing office landlords...
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How Ivanhoe Village Will Reshape Mundelein
Mundelein is set to experience a transformative shift with the introduction of Ivanhoe Village, a sprawling 740-acre mixed-use mega-development. This...
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Why Small Industrial Spaces Cost More Per Square Foot Than Large Ones?
I often hear tenants balk at the pricing of smaller industrial spaces. The most common argument goes something like this:...
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Federal Government’s Chicago Office Downsizing: What It Means for the City’s Office Market
The federal government’s decision to sell off two major Chicago office buildings is sending ripples through an already struggling market....
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