* Crain’s…

Housing affordability tops crime on Chicago voters’ lists of concerns, results of a poll conducted for Illinois Realtors show.

When asked which on a list of issues is most important for the mayor and City Council to work on, the No. 1 and 3 responses were property taxes (from 23% of the people polled) and the cost of housing (18%).

That is, a combined 41% of people registered and planning to vote put housing affordability at the top of their list of worries, according to the poll results, which the Realtors group is releasing today.

Crime and gun violence was the No. 2 answer, with 23% saying it should be city leaders’ top concern.

* From the 2026 poll…

Now, I am going to read you a list of concerns that many people have. Please tell me which ONE of these concerns you think is most important for the Chicago Mayor and City Council to focus on.

Property taxes 23
Crime and gun violence 22
Cost of housing 18
Education and schools 12
Immigration enforcement 6
Jobs and wages 5
Homelessness 4
Energy costs like gas and home heating 4
Parking, potholes, and snow removal 1
(Don’t know/refused) 3

* “We conducted a similar poll back in 2022 and the results were almost the exact opposite,” said a spokesperson for the Illinois Realtors, adding, “But that was before the housing inventory slump and rising interest rates.” From the older, 2022 poll…

Crime and gun violence 49
Education and schools 11
Good government and ethics 10
Property taxes 7
Homelessness 7
Cost of housing 6
Jobs and wages 3
Climate change 3
Parking, potholes, and snow removal 3
(Other) 1
(Don’t know/refused) 1

* Let’s look at reactions to possible solutions from the more recent poll…

Allowing more accessory dwelling units. Accessory dwelling units are things like basement apartments, garage apartments, in-law suites or backyard tiny houses.

Favor 71
Oppose 24
Don’t know 5

Charging very high fees to families or developers who want to convert a small apartment building with two to four units into a single-family home.

Favor 37
Oppose 55
Don’t know 8

Streamlining the regulatory process to make it easier to convert empty schools, churches, and office buildings into housing.

Favor 82
Oppose 15
Don’t know 4

Reduce housing costs by allowing for more modern building materials, instead of outdated, more expensive materials generally preferred by labor unions.

Favor 61
Oppose 27
Don’t know 11

Reducing housing costs by allowing homes that are mostly constructed off-site and then assembled on the lot. These are called “factory-built homes” and are NOT the same thing as “mobile homes.”

Favor 69
Oppose 23
Don’t know 8

Creating a database of pre-approved housing plans to bypass the local permitting process and make it easier and faster to build housing that is affordable for working families.

Favor 76
Oppose 19
Don’t know 5

* More…

As you may know, Alderpersons in Chicago can stop any new housing development in their ward. This is often referred to as aldermanic prerogative and can be invoked for any reason the alderman desires. Do you favor or oppose this rule?

Favor 30
Oppose 62
Don’t know 8

Mayor Brandon Johnson is considering a proposal to increase the real estate transfer tax on homes and buildings that sell for more than one million dollars, even though voters rejected this property transfer tax increase in 2024. The real estate transfer tax is paid when a property changes owners. This proposed tax increase would nearly triple the current tax. For example, if a property sells for one million dollars, under this proposal, the transfer tax would increase from twelve thousand dollars to thirty-one thousand dollars. Do you favor or oppose this proposal to increase the city’s real estate transfer tax?

Favor 34
Oppose 63
Don’t know 4

* From an accompanying document…

* The methodology is a bit different…

January 8-13, 2026
648 Respondents
103 Non-Wireless Respondents (107 Weighted), 347 Wireless Respondents (347 Weighted)
198 Online Respondents (194 Weighted)
Margin of error: ± 3.8 percentage points

The reason I mention this is because some questions and follow-up questions were apparently only asked by phone. It’s why I only included Favor and Oppose but not “strongly” either way. But go read the whole thing for yourself.