Durin g the housing boom of 2001 through 2006, the prices of single-family homes and condominiums shot up to amazing levels. I remember wondering, once the median sales prices of existing homes raced past the $200,000 mark, how were most people in the United States going to afford a home?

According to a report from the Corporation for National and Community Service, Chicago ranked only 37th among 50 large cities in the percentage of adult residents who volunteer their time to serve worthwhile causes.

Trump International Hotel & Tower, Trump’s Chicago hotel/condominium project, closed its 125th hotel/condominium unit late last month. That pace is surely slower than what Trump Tower’s sales would have been in a stronger residential market. But it’s not bad: Trump Tower sales agents sold the 125 hotel/condominium units in six weeks.

These future slums are all new-construction, suburban hamlets surrounded by grassy fields and filled with large, fairly expensive starter homes.

CNNMoney.com has a tool that lets you take your current salary and location and compare it with another. It’s a fascinating tool to explore.

Even previously strong real estate markets are now suffering from the housing slump.

Last week, the magazine published a report on what it calls the country’s 15 “blue chip” neighborhoods. Housing values in these most desirable of neighborhoods not only held held steady during the housing downturn, they actually increased.

The sluggish housing market has claimed another high-profile victim. This time, it’s Neumann Homes in suburban Chicago, a residential developer that builds homes in Illinois, Wisconsin and Colorado.