Chicago is a popular destination for LGBTQ+ home shoppers
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People need to earn $150,000 to afford the typical home in queer-friendly areas — nearly 50% higher than in areas without LGBTQ+ protections, according to a new Redfin study.
Why it matters: Chicago ranks among the more affordable U.S. metros where state laws protect LGBTQ+ people from housing discrimination, per Redfin.
The big picture: As other states have moved to restrict LGBTQ+ rights, Illinois lawmakers last year strengthened protections.
- Chicago's welcoming nature represents a draw for some LGBTQ+ people who are moving because of politics in their home states, local real estate broker Todd Szwajkowski says.
While neighborhoods including Andersonville and Northalsted are especially popular among LBGTQ+ clients, "I'm finding people homes and selling people's homes all over" the North Side, Szwajkowski tells Axios.
- He helped his company launch a division for LGBTQ+ clients in 2014, the year Illinois' same-sex marriage law took effect.
Reality check: The LGBTQ+ homeownership rate is 20 percentage points lower than the rate for straight and cisgender people, according to the Urban Institute.
- That's largely because LGBTQ+ people are younger and therefore have less wealth, the researchers say.
- It's also partly due to income inequality, especially among trans people of color.
- Meanwhile, larger cities (often with higher costs of living) tend to offer more LGBTQ+ protections.
What they're saying: Homeownership was "not something we could fathom, both growing up as low-income gay boys in rural America," says Justin McCraw, who purchased a place in Northwest near suburb Park Ridge this year with his husband.
- While McCraw was initially apprehensive about finding an LGBTQ+-friendly agent and loan officer, they didn't get "any kind of visible blowback" when home shopping.
The bottom line: "Safety is the state you live in, down to your neighbors," says David Siroty, a spokesperson for the LGBTQ+ Real Estate Alliance.
- "If your neighbors accept you, would they accept you having kids? There are considerations outside of the financial."