Investing in real estate can be a great alternative to traditional investments and many owners choose to rent out their property. Here are some of the top benefits for getting into this line of business!

Increase over time. Money being put towards real estate investments has increased substantially over the past few years. This is due to an influx in demand of rental properties and an increase in rental rates. These continue to trend upwards, meaning your property’s value will continue to increase as well.

Security. Unlike investing in stocks, your investment growth is a lot steadier with a very minimal chance that you can lose it all overnight. Generally, experts can predict when the market will start to dip in advance, and you can adjust accordingly.

Create passive income. Investing in a rental property (or four!) can make you money while you sleep and the rent you collect can cover or exceed your mortgage payment and other expenses, allowing you to bring in extra cash flow.

Tax breaks. As a real estate investor, you can take advantage of several tax exemptions. Rental income is not subject to self-employment tax and government provides tax breaks on insurance, repairs, legal fees, and property taxes.

Inflation. Although normally a bad thing, people who own rental properties actually benefit from inflation because, as the cost of living increases, so does your income.

Flexibility to sell. Renting out a home allows the homeowner the opportunity to be selective about when and if they sell while the home is still appreciating. Once the market is in the right place and the lease is up, they can pull the trigger.

Logan Square: Video game fans will want to head over to Chicago Gamespace, located at 2418 West Bloomingdale Avenue in Logan Square, for the Cyberpunk 2077 exhibit. Every Sunday from 1 to 5 pm, visitors can check out the unique conceptual artwork created for the hit video game, Cyberpunk 2077, developed by Poland-based CD Projekt Red. Be sure to make a reservation ahead of time for this free event that runs now until Sunday, December 20th. Find more info here. 

Virtual: If your musical tastes lean towards the avant-garde, The Quarantine Concerts series, presented by Experimental Sound Studios, has you covered with live streams of acts ranging from experimental jazz to electronic soundscapes and anything else that is way left of center. Friday, November 13th, features Kioto Aoki & the Reduction Trio. On the 14th, you can listen to live performances by Sunik Kim, Wendy Eisenberg, and Still House Plants. The concerts all stream on Twitch, and a $10 donation is suggested. You can also check out archived performances on the Experimental Sounds Studio website. Find more info here.

Loop: With the weather getting colder, it’s that time of year once again to break out the skates and head to the Loop for ice skating at Maggie Daley Park. Located at 337 East Randolph Street, visitors can hit the ice amidst the backdrop of beautiful downtown Chicago while showing off their moves (or hanging on for dear life) atop the frozen landscape. This year will be different due to COVID-19, so make sure you make the required reservations to skate the rink. This ensures that social distancing is upheld. The best part? No lines and no crowds! As expected, masks are required. Admission is $5 if you bring your own skates and $16 if you need to rent. Find more info here.

Virtual: The 37th Annual Chicago International Children’s Film Festival kicks off on Friday, November 13th and runs until Sunday, the 22nd. This virtual presentation is only one of two Oscar-qualifying children’s film festivals. With 19 features films and 81 short films spanning the globe, there is something for every kid (and adult) to enjoy and learn new things. The movies are organized by age and grade range. Passes are $15 for a single ticket, $50 to watch any four films throughout the festival, and $250 to watch all the films until the festival ends. Find more info here.

River North: Beginning November 12th, Art on the Mart returns to Chicago, just in time for the holiday season. The world’s largest digital art projection brings unique and breathtaking displays that will adorn the 25-story face of the Merchandise Mart, located at 222 Merchandise Mart Plaza. Incredible moving images from The Joffrey Ballet’s The Nutcracker and the Art Institute’s “Monet and Chicago” and “Bisa Butler: Portraits” exhibits will be featured during the 30-minute shows, accompanied by classical music. A new feature entitled “City Circle Heart” will display incredible images created by five artists with physical and intellectual disabilities. The 34 digital projectors will present these moving projections every night at 7 and 7:30 pm from the 12th until December 30th. You can also catch the sights from home on Art on the MART’S Facebook page. Find more info here.

ERIC KAPLAN AND DEAN’ TEAM CHICAGO

The winds are starting to howl as the fall heads into winter. There will be a few warm days here and there, but cold weather is coming. The old-fashioned crockpot is an easy way to make a warm tummy-filling meal with minimum fuss and usually only a few ingredients. Even the most novice cooks can put together a great meal. For those of us back to work or if you have worked all this year outside the home, it is a great way to come home to a hot cooked meal. The following are three easy recipes with beef, pork, and chicken.

This beef stew is super easy. Brown two pounds of stew meat in vegetable oil over medium-high heat till well browned. Add this to the crockpot along with two bay leaves, small red potatoes, about a pound, and three carrots cut in one-inch pieces. Mix together 14oz low sodium beef broth, ¼ cup BBQ sauce, one tablespoon soy sauce, and ¼ teaspoon of red pepper flakes. Pour over all and cook on low for six-eight hours. Remove meat and veggies, keep warm—strain juices and discard solids along with the bay leaves. Bring juices to a boil; add one and a half teaspoon cornstarch mixed with another tablespoon soy sauce. Simmer till thickened. Return meat, veggies, and gravy to crockpot and cook till warmed through. Serve with crusty bread.

Country-style ribs are made for the crockpot. Place four-five pounds in the bottom of the crockpot. Add two 14-ounce bottles of your favorite BBQ sauce. You can mix flavors for variety. Rinse out each bottle with one-tablespoon vinegar and add to the pot. Add one chopped onion, two cloves minced garlic, one-teaspoon black pepper, and red pepper flakes. Cook on low six-eight hours. Serve with buttered noodles.

Chicken is another crockpot staple. Coat chicken strips with combined taco seasoning and flour. Add to vegetable sprayed crockpot. Cover with sliced red and green bell peppers along with one cup of frozen corn. Cover with one and a half cups of your favorite chunky salsa. Choose your heat preference. Like more heat? Add a chopped jalapeno. Cook on low for six hours. Serve over rice—top with grated Mexican blend cheese, sliced green onions, and chopped cilantro.

Do you have any crockpot recipes you would like to share?

KATHLEEN WEAVER-ZECH AND DEAN’S TEAM CHICAGO

Now that our “special” Halloween is behind us, it’s time to begin planning for our “special” Thanksgiving. But before we do that, let’s welcome in November with its autumn local events and enjoy the mild weather it’s bringing with it this weekend!

Don’t let your Halloween pumpkins rot in a landfill. Bring your jack-o-lanterns to the annual Pumpkin Smash this Saturday (9 a.m.-12 p.m.) to be composted (nature’s method of recycling). There are 20 SCARCE locations statewide to either smash your pumpkins yourself or just drop them off to be smashed by them. To find your nearest location, just click here. Also, any pumpkin decorations such as candles, stickers, yarn, or other decorations need to be removed prior to drop-off. However, those painted with acrylic paint are acceptable. I heard it’s going to be a smashing good time!!

Help support local businesses through these difficult times by attending Share Your Harvest: An Outdoor Fall Marketplace held Thursdays through Sundays from November 5 to November 22 at Recess (838 W. Kinzie St.) in the West Loop neighborhood. This is an open-air, walk-through market featuring local Chicago vendors, such as Uncooked, Sisterly Cakes, Sky Lyte Candles, and others, as well as fun fall activities, such as a s’mores station, turkey bowling, bobbing for apples using claws, and more! Attendees are required to purchase tickets in advance. Each ticket allows entrance to the market and activities for a 1-hour block of time. All guests are required to wear a face mask for the duration of their visit unless seated at a table, which also needs to be reserved and cannot have more than six people.

The Andersonville Farmers Market has been extended for four additional Sundays, November 1, 8, 15, and 22, from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Catalpa Avenue between Clark Street and Ashland Avenue. This extension will have no onsite sales but rather be pre-orders only beginning Mondays at 12 p.m. and ending Fridays at 11 p.m. for Sunday pickup. There will be no curbside pickup, either. To place an order, shoppers just need to go to the WhatsGood app or online. And, in order to offer customers fresh, local food, everything sold is grown or produced within a 200-mile radius. Be sure to check out the website link above for participating November vendors!

Actors play dozens of characters in a 90-minute live virtual audio experience of a new adaptation of H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds on Tuesdays through Saturdays (8 p.m.) and Sundays (7 p.m.) through November 21. While this adaptation follows Wells’ story of a Martian invasion, it moves the action to present-day Chicago and has been critically acclaimed for its elaborate, innovative, and viscerally compelling storytelling! And, all tickets are pay what you can!! Will you be finding out if life on Earth is doomed?

If you’re looking for something new to watch on TV, here are some great New Shows and Movies streaming this month for families: The Mighty Ones (Hulu, November 9), Trash Truck (Netflix, November 10), Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey (Netflix, November 13), I Am Greta (Hulu, November 13), Lego Star Wars Holiday Special (Disney+, November 17), The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse (Disney+, November 18), Animaniacs (2020) (Hulu, November 20) and The Christmas Chronicles: Part 2 (Netflix, November 25).

Our Chicago Bears (5-3-0) will be heading to Tennessee to take on the Titans (5-2-0) at Nissan Stadium this Sunday at 12:00 p.m. Watch it on FOX. COME ON BEARS – LET’S GET A WIN!!

Sue Moss and Dean’s Team Chicago

Chicago is home to some of the best food in the world. That isn’t news. However, the cost of a memorable meal is often a deal breaker when it comes to some of the city’s upscale dining experiences. Starting today, you can order takeout from one of the critically acclaimed and expensive restaurants in the West Loop at prices that will make your jaw drop.

Ever, located at 1340 West Fulton Street, offers a to-go menu priced at $55 per person. While not as inexpensive as your local pizza delivery, this is a chance to taste the cuisine of award-winning chef Curtis Duffy. Given that a regular meal at Ever runs about $285 per person, this takeout deal is a steal, letting you enjoy a world-class menu that provides a much-needed break from the standard delivery options many of us Chicagoans have been living off of for months due to the pandemic. 

So what is on the to-go menu at Ever? Chef Duffy created a splendid plate highlighted by his delicious braised beef short ribs. Accompaniment comes in the form of chilled barley salad with dried cherries and fennel, caramelized maitake mushrooms, roasted baby potatoes with smoked paprika, pretzel baguette with house-made butter, and triple chocolate trifle. This excellently curated meal will give your taste buds a much-needed wake-up call thanks to the fantastic blend of flavors from one of the city’s top chefs. 

According to the description, the meal also comes with a surprise or two, which will undoubtedly be an irresistible addition to an already stellar spread. At a price tag of $55, you would be hard pressed to find a more decadent plate to enjoy in the comfort of your home. Each order does require reheating at home, so you can always say that you just whipped it up if you’re looking to impress (be careful, though, as your dinner guests will line up at your door for weeks demanding more.)

You can further enhance this to-go meal with a bottle of red or white wine personally selected by Wine Director and Ever owner Michael Muser. A bottle of red runs $65, and white will cost $45. And if you feel so inclined, there is Ever merchandise you can add to your order in the form of t-shirts, hoodies, and baseball caps. 

With indoor dining temporarily closed across the state due to COVID-19, finding great food gets a bit tricky. Even before the shutdown, price point was often an issue for many to experience some of Chicago’s finest dining. With Ever To Go, this is an ideal time to partake in top-notch cuisine at an affordable cost compared to what one would usually spend for such a feast.

Ever hopes to continue their to-go service for the next few months as we all try to navigate this new normal we currently are experiencing. In the meantime, head over to Tock to reserve your to-go order. You can pick up your order daily from 4 pm to 8 pm. 

ERIC KAPLAN AND DEAN’S TEAM CHICAGO