Founded on urban planning policies & ideals
I get this question occasionally from brokers who use Realist or connectMLS. Chicago Cityscape provides some of the same data about Chicago and Cook County properties as those two websites. But there’s a lot that sets Chicago Cityscape apart from those websites.
Chicago Cityscape isn’t just a “database of databases”. It’s a platform for learning about properties and neighborhoods, presented to take into account links to government policies, local housing plans, homeownership access programs, financial incentives, historical information, and the boundaries of new proposals being deliberated at public meetings.
There’s certainly some overlap: Users can see property ownership and taxes and basic property details on Chicago Cityscape and the MRED services.
Michael Anguiano, a multi-family broker with Monarch Realty Partners, said, “The MLS is one of the richest data sets available. You have transaction data for multiple asset types that spans decades. Cityscape is an excellent companion to the MLS to refine search. Cityscape is also great for diving into individual properties to find data (permits, neighborhood, etc.) that is not available on MLS.”
Here’s a short list of what makes Chicago Cityscape a more efficient and comprehensive system on which to learn about any given lot, address, or building in Chicago and Cook County:
- Current Chicago zoning district and what kinds of buildings and businesses are allowed in it
- How many residences the zoning district permits on a given property
- TOD ordinance eligibility for density bonus and/or parking reduction (works in both Chicago and Evanston)
- Nearby train stations, grocery stores, and other amenities
- Building violations, and building violations that went to administrative hearings
- All kinds of map layers: TIF districts and Special Service Areas, ARO Pilot Areas, and expanded mental health districts (which are also a taxing area)
- Property Finder: Find vacant land, city-owned land, and value-add apartment buildings
- Quickly see where new or nearby development is happening (it’s very visual)
- Get insights on development, which includes summarizing what kind of development a particular zoning change application is for
And of course there’s Incentives Checker, which lists up to 19 financial & development incentives for all property lookups in Chicago and Cook County.
Anyone can quickly gain insight on current and proposed developments near a prospective property with Address Snapshot.
Chicago Cityscape offers a lot of information (and the above list doesn’t explain everything), and it might be difficult to learn about all of our offerings and take advantage of it all. That’s why there’s no risk to try out Cityscape Pro for 30 days and email, phone, and in-person support.