Report: Woodlawn could be one of the hottest housing markets in Chicago in 2017

When buying a home, there’s perhaps no bigger concern than making sure you’re investing in the right neighborhood. And for years, the real estate brokerage Redfin has been offering their guesses as to which neighborhoods across the country are going to witness significant popularity and growth in the coming year. For the last four years, Redfin has chosen at least one Chicago neighborhood as one of the “hottest” in the nation, but their recently unveiled list of hot neighborhoods for 2017 is presented without any communities in the Windy City. Instead, neighborhoods in West Coast cities like Oakland, Portland, and Bellevue dominate this year’s list.

Last year, Chicago’s Ukrainian Village took the number one spot on Redfin’s list of hot neighborhoods. The brokerage suggested that buyers are looking for that combination of affordability and unique character and the Ukrainian Village nailed both categories. However, for this year, the focus has shifted on areas that are dominated by tech—regions like the San Francisco Bay region, Seattle, and Portland.

Flickr Creative Commons/Damian Entwistle

However, for the Chicago metro area, Redfin ranks Woodlawn and Belmont Gardens as the top neighborhoods for Chicago proper. Interestingly enough, Redfin ranks the downtown of suburban Oak Lawn as the hottest neighborhood in Chicago. While homes in Woodlawn aren’t snapped up as quickly as ones in neighborhoods like the West Loop and East Village—neighborhoods that were highlighted in last year’s list—they are generally sold within a few months. And at $110,000, the median sale price for homes in Woodlawn remains incredibly low. Meanwhile, Belmont Gardens holds a median sale price of $243,000 and has a median sale period of 85 days.

So how does a neighborhood make it on the list of hottest neighborhoods? Redfin states: “Redfin’s Hottest Neighborhoods is a prediction based on the most recent growth we’ve seen in pageviews and favorites on Redfin.com.”

Regardless of Chicago failing to make an appearance in the national list, Woodlawn is certainly an area to keep an eye on in the coming years. The neighborhood is soon to receive the prestigious Obama Presidential Center, a major revamp of the Jackson Park golf course, and continued investment from the University of Chicago. It’s also a tight-knit community that has proven its ability to come together and work toward a common goal—like winning the Curbed Cup.

• Redfin Predicts the Hottest Neighborhoods of 2017 [Redfin]
• Report: Ukrainian Village to Have Nation's Hottest Housing Market in 2016 [Curbed Chicago]
• Andersonville: The Nation's 7th Hottest 'Hood for 2015 [Curbed Chicago]
• Humboldt Park: 10th "Hottest" Neighborhood in Nation? [Curbed Chicago]
• Redfin: Logan Square is Eighth 'Hottest' Nabe in the Nation [Curbed Chicago]