A surge in Illinois home insurance premiums: The Rundown
Good afternoon! It’s Friday, and here’s what to expect during tomorrow’s “No Kings” protests. And here’s what else you need to know today.
1. Climate change is fueling a surge in Illinois home insurance premiums
Average U.S. home insurance rates climbed 12% last year and are projected to surge another 4% in 2026, according to new nationwide data from insurance price tracker Insurify. Illinois is expected to top the national average with a 5% increase, leaving policyholders statewide paying an average $3,559 premium per year, WBEZ and Grist report.
Companies consider the value of a home, the cost of the materials needed to rebuild it and the homeowner’s credit scores. But, Insurify’s Matt Brannon said, extreme weather is one of the main culprits behind insurance prices. Developers are also building homes in flood-prone areas, adding to rising premiums.
State Farm, the largest home insurer in the country, announced plans to raise homeowners insurance rates by more than 27% across the state last summer. Not far behind, Allstate, the nation’s second largest home insurer, filed for increases totaling almost 9% on average for more than 200,000 Illinois policyholders.
Both Illinois-based insurance giants pointed to extreme weather driving up costs. In 2024, only Texas reported more hail damage than Illinois, according to State Farm.
Illinois legislators failed to pass limits on price hikes last fall, but Gov. JB Pritzker is still urging state lawmakers to revive the bill. Last week, the Illinois House of Representatives gave the legislation a second shot and advanced it to the Senate. [WBEZ/Grist]
2. Mayor Johnson’s veto over freezing the tipped minimum wage is dividing the restaurant industry
Labor activists want better workers’ pay, but some servers say they earn more with tips and the city’s ordinance hurts them, Amy Yee reports for the Chicago Sun-Times. Chicago’s law went into effect in 2024 to increase the tipped minimum wage to parity with the city’s standard minimum wage over five years.
“The recent backdoor effort to pause its implementation is not only harmful to tipped workers — especially Black, Brown and women workers — but also undermines the democratic process,” said Raeghn Draper, organizer with the Chicago Hospitality Accountability & Advocacy Database Project and bartender at Consignment Lounge near Logan Square. CHAAD is part of One Fair Wage, the advocacy group leading a national campaign to end the tipped minimum wage.
But Shanell Oliver, a server at Bronzeville Winery, said increasing the tipped minimum wage amounts to only a few more dollars an hour. Tipped workers are currently paid a base wage of $12.62 an hour, compared to the city’s standard minimum wage of $16.60.
And increasing minimum wages for tipped workers means rising fixed costs for restaurants, driving some owners to cut staff and hours, said Gina Barge-Farmer, owner of Wax Vinyl Bar and Ramen Shop near Noble Square. [Chicago Sun-Times]
3. On Opening Day, some Chicago Cubs fans leaned into sports betting while others remained wary
Sports betting has exploded in Illinois since it was legalized in 2020, with more than 26.3 million bets already placed this year. Fans heading into Wrigley Field yesterday could gamble on their phones or at a sportsbook at the ballpark, my colleague Nader Issa reports.
“I think it’s way too accessible,” Jerry Evans said of sports gambling as he headed into the Cubs game with his teenage son Jake.
While Evans told the Chicago Sun-Times he isn’t entirely opposed to betting, he doesn’t do it because he doesn’t want to lose his “hard-earned money.” He worries about younger people in particular falling victim to gambling addiction.
Jake Evans, 17, said sports betting has grown popular among his peers, who are becoming more engaged with sports than they otherwise would have been.
“They feel more interested about watching sports, and they care more, especially because they’re putting money on it,” he said. “And, obviously, they’re bragging about winning money off of sports betting, which kind of piques people’s interests.” [Chicago Sun-Times]
Featuring 140 pieces, the exhibition offers a rare opportunity to see works of art that, except for stops in Washington, D.C., and London, would require a trip to Seoul, my colleague Jennifer Tanaka reports.
There’s “Echo” by Kim Whanki, a large blue-and-green oil painting that greets visitors as they enter the exhibition on the ground floor of the Modern Wing. Then there’s the chaekado “Scholar’s Accoutrements in a Bookcase,” an eight-panel folding screen adorned with a painting depicting objects on shelves. Meanwhile, “Ten Symbols of Longevity” is a 10-panel ink-on-silk landscape that shows the symbols of “living forever” in the Taoist religion. “Tripitaka Bodhisattvas” shows three bodhisattvas seated in a row, each representing a different aspect of the world. Finally, “Vase with Landscape Motif” is decorated with cobalt-blue underglaze, the preferred aesthetic for ceramics during the Joseon period.
You can see photos of each piece in the link. [WBEZ/Chicago Sun-Times]
In “Even the Good Girls Will Cry: A ‘90s Rock Memoir,” the musician writes about how a drunken brawl led to her meeting Billy Corgan, who then introduced her to Hole frontwoman Courtney Love.
It all began on July 23, 1991, when The Smashing Pumpkins played an early show in Auf der Maur’s hometown of Montreal. A budding musician and cassette tape DJ at the time, she was transfixed in the crowd. But her inebriated roommate, Bruce, was not a fan and hurled a beer bottle at Corgan’s guitar, leading to a fight between the two men and an embarrassed Auf der Maur apologizing to Corgan “on behalf of Montreal.”
The exchange kicked off a fast friendship and mentorship. Corgan, whom she lovingly referred to as her “spiritual cowboy,” would go on to recommend Auf der Maur for a five-year gig in Hole before poaching her to join the Pumpkins for a short stint in 1999-2000. [Chicago Sun-Times]
Here’s what else is happening
- Now some airports are telling travelers not to arrive too early. [AP]
- In her first interview since her mother was abducted, “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie said she believed two ransom notes were likely real. [New York Times]
- The U.S. Treasury plans to put Trump’s signature on new paper currency, a first for a sitting president. [AP]
- Review: “Theater of the Mind” is trippy, unique and will make you question whether you can trust your memory. [WBEZ]
Oh, and one more thing …
Out today, “Almost There” is the first album in 18 years from Barrington pop-punk band The Academy Is… Many of the tracks memorialize moments when the city felt like the band’s oyster, Chicago Sun-Times music critic Selena Fragassi writes.
While much has changed for the band with the advent of families, gray hairs and new fans who weren’t even alive the first time around, there’s still a full-circle feeling for The Academy Is… in 2026. It’s not just because they’re playing the revitalized Warped Tour again this summer. “Almost There” is in many ways a continuation of the band’s 2005 debut “Almost Here,” with the road ahead a bit clearer this time.
“I hope that with this record, we were able to convey a level of self-awareness and honesty and modesty,” lead vocalist William Beckett said. “With the benefit of reflection about all these life experiences and personal growth with the peaks and valleys, I think it puts us in a situation where we may not know the destination, but we know that we’re on the right path.” [Chicago Sun-Times]
Tell me something good …
What song gives you a pick-me-up when you need it most?
Phoebe writes:
“Yoke Lore’s ‘Beige.’ It is a beautiful, hopeful, dreamy pop spirit-lifter that feels like listening to light in a kaleidoscope, with lines like ‘You know you’re beautiful/but that ain't half gold treasure/in your soul that you got/cause I want it all,’ and ‘I think we’d survive in the wild.’ I’ve been lucky enough to hear it live many times and I’m just missing the days Yoke Lore was small enough to come out and hug fans after shows.”
William writes:
“One song that has previously been a good pick-me-up is Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters singing ‘Accentuate the Positive.’ Another excellent pick-me-up by Bing and the Andrews Sisters is their song about Route 66 going from Chicago to LA, via various points in between. Just in case you need to take a test drive — without taking Route 66, that is.”
And Michelle writes:
“My go-to pick-me-up song? ‘My Old School’ by Steely Dan—loud. Combine the amazing horns, the guitar solo and Fagen/Becker’s intriguing lyrics (based on their time at Bard College) and I’m gone!
Whatever mood I was in before doesn’t stand a chance. And yes, it’s always on repeat. I first heard that song in the cafeteria jukebox at the now shuttered Maria High School in Marquette Park. This song not only picks me up, but it also brings back great memories of my old school!”
Thanks for all the responses this week! I received way more than I could fit in the newsletter, but I loved seeing the wide variety of songs you all sent.
Discussion in the ATmosphere