The Yo

Bias and racism are still very much alive in the Chicago real estate market.

I know it makes people uncomfortable to acknowledge the 800 pound gorilla but ignoring it won’t make it go away.

That’s why the kids at YoChicago are so refreshing.

Now in the interest of disclosure, they did a little blurb about this blog a while back.

That still doesn’t negate the consistently superior work that the Yo does covering all of Chicago neighborhoods.

And when I say all of Chicago’s neighborhoods---I mean ALL of Chicago’s neighborhoods.

Not just the north side.

You see my funky friends if you look at corporate relocation periodicals and moving guides you’ll notice the Maginot Line drawn about at the South Loop with Hyde Park as the lone beacon of civilization on the south side.

But that’s only if you’re an egghead academic and have to be there.

Apparently there is only a small sliver of the city that’s acceptable to live and play in. Therefore those neighborhoods are the only one’s that garner the lion’s share of positive media attention.

Those kids at the Yo seem to think differently about that.

While time---and let’s face it, laziness, prevent me from schlepping around most of this beautiful city; those saucy kids at the Yo do all of the work for me so I don’t have to get up off of my Chipotle soft taco eating ass.

More to the point, I love the fact that the south side and west side gets as much play as any of the premiere neighborhoods to the north and east.

In fact, my perceptions about Austin were changed by the lovely homes I saw in a video entry.

And that interview with Dempsey Travis was priceless.

Now that doesn’t mean I’m gonna rush right out and move, but I’d love to hop in my gay boyfriend’s SUV and house shop affordable Victorians.

We need to plan for our dysfunctional marriage and co-parenting our turkey baster baby with his husband of 16 years.

Such is the knowledge that the Yo imparts.

It seems that the Yo is taking those oft held beliefs about the south side and those of us who choose to make our home here and are smashing them to pieces.

It’s about time.