NBC 5 Chicago: Housing advocates push for City Council to enact a real estate transfer tax

By Charlie Wojciechowski, July 27, 2023

Just over two months after taking office, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is facing pressure to follow through on a major campaign promise.

Chanting “65K need a place to stay,” housing advocates gathered in the City Hall lobby Thursday afternoon, calling on Johnson to follow through on instituting a real estate transfer tax to improve city services by creating new streams of revenue.

The measure, called “Bring Chicago Home,” plans to pay for new, permanent housing for the the city’s homeless population by almost tripling the city’s real estate transfer tax on homes valued at $1 million or more.

The so-called “mansion tax” is expected to generate $163 million a year.