Got some real talk from a landlord in Hyde Park that changed how I look at rentals

Last month I was looking at a 2-bedroom in Hyde Park (beautiful unit, exposed brick, the works) and the landlord just came out and said 'you know, 90% of people who move to Chicago don't realize the heat bill in winter can run you $200 a month easy.' He wasn't trying to sell me, he was just being honest. That stuck with me because every other landlord I talked to was all sunshine and rooftop decks. It made me wonder if I should start asking every potential landlord for their average utility bills for the past year. Has anyone else had a landlord just throw out the real numbers like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

jamesfox13d ago

Did he happen to mention if that $200 figure was for a newer building with double-pane windows or an older place with drafty frames? That kind of detail matters a ton because older units in Hyde Park can have way higher heating bills than modern ones. Would be curious if he offered up any specific winter months where costs really spiked.

seanlee12d ago

Honestly I used to just assume utilities were cheap, this changed my mind completely.