Russell Lissau
Russell Lissau is a veteran reporter and senior writer for the Daily Herald, a daily newspaper, who treats real estate coverage as a story about public decisions, policy and how projects reshape local communities. He is formally assigned to politics, education and other areas of interest, and brings that experience to a real estate beat that focuses on redevelopment, zoning fights, tax incentives and housing legislation rather than only market trends.
Redevelopment, demolition and downtown change
Lissau’s real estate work often follows the long arc of downtown redevelopment, showing how individual projects fit into larger efforts to revive commercial cores. In his reporting on a Depression-era building being demolished in downtown Des Plaines to make way for apartments, he details the age and history of the structure, the plan for new residential units and the way officials frame the change as part of a broader effort to modernize the area. A separate story on Des Plaines officials weighing condemnation and purchase of stalled downtown properties tracks how city leaders use legal tools to break redevelopment deadlocks, laying out the negotiations, risks and potential benefits for businesses and residents.
He continues this focus with coverage of a vacant bank building in Des Plaines that could be transformed into an upscale eatery with help from a $3.5 million tax break. In that piece, he connects the incentive package, the reuse of a long-empty property and the promised economic impact on the surrounding streets, making the tax decision as central to the narrative as the restaurant concept. Across these downtown stories, his reporting style is consistent: he explains the physical change on the block, the financial structure behind it and the public debates at city hall that determine whether a project moves forward.
Townhouse projects that ‘change the landscape’
Lissau frequently covers townhouse developments, treating them as turning points for how neighborhoods look and function. In an article headlined “‘We are very excited’: New townhouse development will change the landscape of southern Mundelein,” he follows a specific project from proposal to approval, quoting local officials who describe the development in transformational terms and detailing how the new homes will alter existing land use. He balances promotional language from developers with concrete information on unit counts, site layout and expected timelines, giving readers a clear picture of what is coming and why it matters.
A similar approach appears in coverage of townhouses planned for previously undeveloped land in Deer, which he frames as “a quality investment in the community.” There, he reports on how a private real estate developer positions the project, but also on how public bodies respond, including zoning decisions and infrastructure considerations. These townhouse pieces show his habit of using enthusiastic quotes in the headline while the body of the story walks through the planning process, approvals, and local reactions in a measured, factual way.
Housing legislation, zoning battles and tax revenue
Lissau’s background on the politics beat shows up clearly when he covers housing policy and zoning issues that affect real estate development. In a story asking “Will lawmakers pass bill that could lead to more multifamily housing?”, he treats the legislation as both a land-use question and a political fight, explaining how the bill would change what can be built, who supports and opposes it, and how the debate plays out among lawmakers. The piece links state-level decisions to local development patterns, making clear that policy in legislative chambers has direct consequences for builders and residents.
His reporting on a proposed rezoning of the 186-acre Plum Farms property in Hoffman Estates similarly follows the clash between landowners, local officials and community voices over how a large tract should be used. He outlines plan details, the scale of the property, and the arguments for and against the rezoning, situating the case within broader concerns about growth and infrastructure. In coverage of how a special census could net Wheeling more tax dollars, he again connects population counts, municipal finance and the ability to fund services and projects, showing how governmental tools outside traditional real estate channels can influence development capacity.
Real estate rooted in a broad public affairs beat
Lissau’s real estate reporting sits on top of a long record covering politics, education, business and public safety, which shapes how he approaches property stories. His staff biography describes him as a veteran reporter who covers politics and education, and his archive includes pieces on election-related disinformation, local campaigns and criminal justice cases. For example, he has written about the need to watch out for fake news as elections approach, about candidates criticizing incumbents in county races, and about sentencing outcomes in local courts.
More recent work shows him moving between breaking news, such as coverage of a fatal police shooting in Carpentersville, and business-focused stories like the Mundelein townhouse development or other Lake County business features. He also contributes to material filed under real estate property transfers, indicating involvement with coverage of how assets move between institutions and owners. Across these varied assignments, his reporting keeps a consistent emphasis on how official actions, public policy and institutional choices play out on the ground, a perspective that carries directly into his real estate beat.
4 more real estate journalists.
Aaron Moselle
Aaron Moselle covers housing and community development for WHYY’s PlanPhilly, filing for radio and the web. He stands out for connecting market data and government action to displacement, affordable homes, and the daily questions facing renters and homeowners. His core beat is housing affordability and market strain, including high mortgage rates, rising prices, tax assessments, and what they mean for buyers, sellers, and renters. He also reports on preserving and creating affordable housing, neighborhood rehab efforts, major real estate deals, and the effect of property sales on residents. His work often uses direct sourcing, plain language, and service journalism to make policy and finance clear.
Abbey Ferguson
Abbey Ferguson stands out for reporting how major commercial moves and redevelopment plans reshape the built environment, especially the real estate deals that reveal what land and retail space are worth. She covers Central Texas commercial real estate and development for KWTX, with recent stories on land valuation, major transactions, retail redevelopment, and infrastructure planning. Her work has tracked an $80 million data center site offer in Hill County, a prospective Trader Joe’s location in Waco, and a planning project using artificial intelligence to predict traffic patterns. She writes as a news reporter, staying close to the numbers, public records, brokers, officials, and landowners. Her stories turn contract prices, appraisal data, and listing history into plain explanations of what buyers are betting on and how those deals affect surrounding property owners and nearby businesses.
Alcynna Lloyd
Alcynna Lloyd reports on how housing markets shape people’s lives, focusing on the real decisions and trade-offs behind buying, renting, and moving home. She is a real estate reporter at Business Insider, where she writes about homebuying behavior, tiny homes, and multi-generational housing as part of the economy team’s coverage of real estate and the rental market. Her core beat is the consumer side of housing, with an emphasis on affordability and how market conditions affect ordinary buyers and renters. She writes analytical service pieces that compare different markets and track moves, migrations, and life changes tied to housing. Her stories combine economic context, market data, and detailed personal narratives, and she also covers startups and rising real estate talent to show how industry decisions affect everyday housing choices.
Aldo Svaldi
Aldo Svaldi treats residential real estate as a window into the Colorado economy, explaining how housing trends reflect jobs, income, business activity and public policy. He is a long-tenured business reporter who covers the Colorado economy, economic development and residential real estate. His beat centers on mortgage costs, construction pipelines, buyer behavior and banking, with a focus on housing pressures and affordability. He reports on segments such as entry-level, move-up and higher-end homes, showing how financing costs, supply constraints and demand shifts affect each. His work is data-forward, using economic indicators, reports and forecasts to track cycles, turning points and structural issues. He scrutinizes research findings and pairs expert analysis with interviews and on-the-ground observations to show how policy, corporate moves and financial decisions shape housing demand, prices and development patterns.