April Showers Bring May Home Sales 

May was a robust month for home sales and prices. In Illinois, home sales were up 6 percent from May 2015, and up 7.5 percent in the Chicagoland area during the same time period. Prices also rose from May 2015, with median prices up 7.2 percent in Illinois and 6.1 percent in Chicagoland. Forecasts continue to remain positive for real estate. According to Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, the Chicagoland area had the second-strongest home price growth in the U.S. from March to April in 2016. 

U.S. Manufacturing Growth Accelerates

Factory activity in June 2016 grew at the fastest expansion rate in more than a year, according to the Institute for Supply Management’s index, exceeding the most optimistic projection in a Bloomberg survey. Improving consumer spending has helped to boost manufacturing, with a report from the Commerce Department that showed personal spending in the U.S. increased 0.4 percent in May. 

KoenigRubloff Cares Foundation – Summer 2016 Newsletter Features Week of Kindness

In addition to supporting Habitat for Humanity and the Sunshine Kids, for one week in June every year, agents and staff of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices KoenigRubloff Realty Group reach out into their communities to give their time to organizations and agencies that make a difference. This year, the company had close to 500 agents and employees volunteer over the course of the week. Please click here to read the latest issue of our KoenigRubloff Cares Foundation, which features the Week of Kindness. 

Grilling Recipes for the Summer 

HGTV.com has four grilling recipes that will provide the perfect fun summer activity! The list includes something delicious for all types of appetites, including sweet potato wedges, steak fajitas, and shrimp skewers. To read the recipes, please click here.

Beat the Heat

As we head into the hottest months of the year in Chicago, Real Simple offers 23 ways to beat the heat! The list offers the little things you can do to cool down (and save some energy too!), that includes skipping the drying cycle on your dishwasher, and blocking the sun out with shades during the especially hot time of day. To read the entire list, click here.