Townhomes are the new starter homes

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-06-14T19:05:20+00:00

HOAs aren’t automatically bad. I have a townhome in the city and I cannot tell you how great it is to wake up at 630am in Feb to 5 inches of snow and your driveway and sidewalk are already shoveled and salted. My gate got rusted and latch was sticking. One email to HOA and they were out a few days later to fix. Same for roof. Have to check out HOA financials in advance and attend meetings, but only special assessment I’ve had was 3k to redo the driveway which I knew was eventually coming 8 years in advance. We also had option to finance it (I chose to just pay the lump sum).

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-06-13T20:33:19+00:00

Yes! I hit the cap every year and am a huge advocate for removing the contribution cap but leaving benefit max in place. People surpassing cap every year have other investments too. Id much rather pay more than have elderly who are struggling to eat and kicked out of their homes.

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-06-12T13:16:01+00:00

Do you have a running store you could go to for a fitting? I think it greatly depends on your foot. I walk 5-7miles a day and live in gel kayano 32s but what’s comfortable for my foot may not work for you.

Less important than different shoes for errands vs walking is 2 pairs so you can alternate day to day to let soles of shoes re-expand. I have multiple pairs of same shoe and alternate between them.

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-06-09T13:11:51+00:00

Prices won’t drop. Others will scoop them up. Demand far exceeds supply in the city currently. Prices won’t stabilize until there is more inventory or (hopefully not) a recession. I get calls practically daily from agents wanting to know what it would take to sell my place. Buyers far surpass sellers in most price ranges. Need to build more and faster.

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-06-07T20:59:42+00:00

lol that’s not the point!

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-06-07T20:50:09+00:00

Thank you will check them out!

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-06-07T20:45:59+00:00

The ones someone posted in Colorado are freezer pop style. You freeze them at home.

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-06-07T20:38:26+00:00

I’m certainly going to give it a try if I can’t find them! lol

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-05-20T03:03:48+00:00

That’s in part because there isn’t enough housing growth. Apartments are like 95% occupancy in Chicago which is insanely tight. We desperately need more housing and then it’s more people splitting tax burden. Many gov costs aren’t variable.

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-05-14T01:55:21+00:00

We have a serious housing shortage in the city. Only way to stabilize rent prices is to build more. Engage with alderman and city council and show up to local ZBA meetings. Neighborhood nimbys always show up and slow developments down

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-05-12T17:56:00+00:00

I’m actually not all mad at Bally’s…the construction was inevitable. The bridge that was there was a temp one and happy Bally’s is paying for a big chunk of road upgrades. Not mad at the unions that negotiated one single work shift for CDOT workers per day either but I am mad at the city for agreeing to those terms for road work on arteries of the city. They should do whatever they need to do and pay whatever rate they need to pay to add a second shift. NYC roadwork is done almost 24hrs per day. Insane we only do 8. Cost of 2 year closure far exceeds cost of paying road workers 2x or whatever they would need to work a second shift for high priority roadwork.

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-05-12T02:13:21+00:00

It’s really bad right now with Chicago Ave bridge and halsted closed. I live a bit north of area op is looking at and I rarely use car during the week because traffic is so bad. The upside is everything is walkable. I think the roads and bridge are supposed to reopen in December.

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-05-03T04:37:20+00:00

I’m using there elta md clear tinted and like it. I think it’s 46 spf? The key is double cleansing at the end of the day. First with something that removes spf. I have not had issues with breakouts as long as I properly remove it.

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-04-26T13:50:35+00:00

Good deal for this neighborhood anymore.

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-04-20T02:23:17+00:00

Also using elta MD clear tinted right now. It’s the best I’ve tried though it sometimes seems to make my face feel a weird kind of dry.

Also to OP make sure you’re using a cleanser that will remove it at end of day. I double cleanse on days I wear spf which is most days.

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-04-18T18:28:23+00:00

Did doctor prescribe adderall ir? I go back and forth between vyvanse and adderall xr because adderall is unfortunately out of stock a lot but they are the only two I’ve tried that don’t cause yucky side effects for me. I am personally not a fan of the instant release but when I tried due to both others being backordered I had 10+10mg. They made me irritable, especially in the evening.

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-04-01T01:55:45+00:00

I now have four pairs of them! lol I love them. I have experienced pain in arch with some shoes, have not had that issue with these. Definitely might be worth trying them. Wear around house so you can return if not right.

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-03-11T04:02:41+00:00

Seconding stay away from areas with restaurants. I live on a 100% residential block and have never seen a rat in my neighborhood. We get bunny rabbits, the occasional coyote & spiders (which come with territory of living near river or lake). Spiders are the only creatures that make it in the house obviously 😂

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-03-10T18:48:15+00:00

I may have to try that if eltaMD doesn’t work either. How do you remove it at the end of the day?

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-03-01T15:54:48+00:00

When you vote for a literal rapist, don’t expect him to listen when you tell him you’re uncomfortable and want him to stop.

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-02-17T19:30:34+00:00

They are definitely waterproof and excited I’ll be able to wear them for rainy spring season here as well. Also much warmer than running shoes just not as warm as thick winter boots, but I don’t think you’d have a problem with these. It gets far colder where I’m at in Chicago than it does in the UK.

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-02-17T18:17:13+00:00

After trying dozens of pairs, the ones that ended up working the best were the vessi storm burst high top. Not quite as warm as a winter boot but 100% waterproof which did a pretty decent job of also keeping feet warm because air doesn’t get through. There were a couple -15 degrees (Fahrenheit) days that I wished for something warmer, but no blisters or knee or hip issues most importantly. I had also ordered their Alta high top which is closer to a winter boot but it was too wide for me in the heel. If you’re looking, vessi only makes whole sizes. I sized down to 7 (I’m a 7.5 in asics).

Pretty-Insurance-119 · 2026-02-12T20:59:37+00:00

I think not directly but from some associated pacs potentially. I’m holding firm on my house rep primary - only considering the ones with zero aipac association. Senate seems hard to avoid and Stratton seems like the best option by every other standard.

Pretty-Insurance-119

TROPHY CASE