Ghost Town in Yorkville

Yorktown was a booming exurb of Chicago, until the mortgage crisis put the kibosh on a number of developments in progress. Residents of these 'ghost towns' find themselves stuck with properties they can't sell.

October 14, 2008, 8am PDT | Tim Halbur

"Unfinished subdivisions now dot once-open spaces on Chicagoland's fringes and in other exurban areas across the United States. Search online for "unfinished subdivision" and watch half-built housing developments pop up from Arizona to Georgia, Florida to Michigan.

Residents are stuck, some literally in the weeds, in homes that are losing value and, in many cases, impossible to sell.

Almost two years ago, Tracy and Michelle Miller were among the first families to move into Yorkville's Grande Reserve, a project of more than 1,100 acres that was to include 2,650 residences in 19 distinct neighborhoods.

Now the Millers want out."

Full Story:

Yorkville spurt now stunted

Published on Monday, October 13, 2008 in Chicago Tribune