The Kernahan Group

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The Kernahan Group

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The Kernahan Group offers a Concierge Real Estate Experience for buyers and sellers in Chicago and on the North Shore. We know Chicago!

Will and Maria Kernahan - a husband & wife team that offer concierge level real estate service to their clients, all while still staying happily married.

10/28/2026

🏡 Thirty years in one house = a LOT of stuff.

Thinking about selling your longtime family home in New Trier Township? Here’s what to know:

✅ In a fast market, you likely don’t need to renovate. Clean out, clear off, and you’re most of the way there
✅ The IRS lets you exclude up to $250K of gain ($500K if married filing jointly)
✅ Age doesn’t change the exclusion, but Medicare premiums can
✅ We have partners for the clean-out, the handyman fixes, and the photography

And the biggest question? “Where do we go next?” Let’s talk it through together.

Want to talk through your options? Give us a call ☎️ 847.877.7100

10/20/2026

**A warm coat. A warmer community. 💙**

Chicago winters are no joke. And while most of us are pulling our winter coats out of storage, too many of our neighbors are facing the cold without one.

Today, October 20, is **National Share the Warmth Day**, and we're proud to shine a light on **One Warm Coat**, a nonprofit dedicated to providing free coats to children and adults in need.

Have a gently worn coat you no longer need? Consider donating it. Want to do a little more? Today, financial donations to One Warm Coat are being matched, up to $30,000.

We believe a great community is about more than the homes we live in. It's about looking out for the people who live around us.

**A little warmth goes a long way.**

Find out how you can help: https://www.onewarmcoat.org/about-us/share-the-warmth-day/

💙 The Kernahan Group
Christie's International Real Estate

10/19/2026

Chicago, you always give us another reason to look up—and step inside. 🏙️💛

Spent the weekend touring AND volunteering at Open House Chicago, exploring the spaces and stories that make this city so special. Our stops included Judson & Moore Distillery, Guild Row, the International Museum of Surgical Science, the McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum, PRU, and Seventeenth Church of Christ Scientist.

From copper stills and beautiful old libraries to bridge gears and sweeping lakefront views, there was something to discover behind every door. Loved being part of the volunteer crew helping others explore, too.

A weekend well spent—and a camera roll full of reasons to love Chicago. 📸

09/18/2026

The Fed raised rates a quarter point on Wednesday. Mortgage rates are now knocking on 7%. So, buy now or wait for spring?

Here's the math on a $1M purchase with 20% down: 🍂 Buy this fall at 6.95% → $5,296/mo ❄️ Wait, rates rise a half point → $5,566/mo 🌱 Wait, rates rise AND spring prices climb 3% → $5,733/mo

That's $271 to $438 more every month for the same house. And the fall market has fewer buyers competing, which means more room to negotiate.

Sellers, you're not off the hook either. If you're thinking "we'll just list in spring," you need to know the conversation buyers are having right now. It shapes your spring.

Full breakdown for buyers AND sellers, link in bio. 👆

09/01/2026

Who says nothing in life is free?

Stop by tommorrow from 9:30-12:30 for a Specialty Coffee on us! ☕️

08/24/2026

Is it normal to get teary at a museum?

We had a fantastic visit to the Obama Presidential Center and were so impressed with the entire museum and campus. The emphasis on hope, human rights and an American for All was just what we needed. Highly recommend a visit - don't forget to see the grounds!

08/06/2026

Plot twist: Chicago's Lincoln Park and Lake View are now selling faster than New Trier Township. 🏙️⏱️

New Trier Twp: $1.45M median (+13.7% YoY), 36 days on market
Lincoln Park & Lake View: 29 days — nearly a week faster than the suburbs
Near North Side: still the slowest at 78 days, but tightening quicker than anywhere else

A few highlights from our latest market report:
→ New Trier Township's median sale price is up 13.7% YoY to $1.45M
→ Lincoln Park and Lake View have both fallen to just 1.0 months of supply — tighter than New Trier
→ Lincoln Park and Lake View are now selling in 29 days on average, faster than New Trier's 36
→ Near North Side (River North/Streeterville) remains the most spacious of the four, though its single-family inventory is contracting the fastest

Full breakdown of the numbers, and what they mean for buyers and sellers on both sides of the city line, is up on the blog now.

07/21/2026

Chicago is overachieving — and the numbers tell the story.

While national home price growth flattens out, Chicago's luxury market keeps climbing: 6.1% price growth in March vs. just 0.66% nationally. Lincoln Park's median just hit $800,000, up 8.8% in a single year. The $4M+ market logged 62 sales in the first half of 2026 — the third-highest total on record. And homes here are selling in 27 days on average, nearly half the national pace.

The data doesn't lie: Chicago isn't just holding steady, it's outperforming.

Curious what's driving it? Full breakdown on the blog — link in bio.

07/09/2026

Woke up early, walked the whole loop — zoo, conservatory, the nature museum, both ponds, straight out to the lake. 🦩🌿🏙️
This is the thing about Lincoln Park that never stops getting us: 1,200+ acres of genuine wild space, and it sits right up against the best skyline in the world. No either/or. Just both, all the time, for anyone willing to get up early enough to have it mostly to themselves.
Lincoln Park Zoo has been free since 1868. The ponds are full of herons if you're quiet. And the walk from the conservatory to the lakefront takes about the same time as your coffee gets cold.
If a morning like this is part of what you're looking for in your next home, that's a conversation we love having. 📍 Lincoln Park, Chicago

06/09/2026

We love positive feedback. But what we love more? This ⬇️

"I had the pleasure of working with Maria Kernahan as our buyer's broker, and I can't recommend her highly enough. Our search spanned Chicago and the North Shore suburbs — where I grew up in — and she adapted quickly as our criteria evolved. Maria never missed a beat. She was consistently responsive, quickly recalibrating her recommendations each time she learned more about our interests, and always kept us focused on our priorities. What set Maria apart was the quality of her guidance. She didn't flood us with options; she was thoughtful and strategic, pointing us toward properties that genuinely fit our needs with specific understanding of the communities and market. Her deep market experience was evident at every turn — from how she framed our offer to how she navigated the negotiation — and ultimately she helped us secure our first-choice home within our budget, and in a highly competitive environment. If you're looking for a broker who combines real expertise with genuine care for her clients, Maria is the person to call." — R.C.

Finding the right home for the right people. That's the whole job. 🙏 If you're ready to start your search, let's talk. 📲 847-877-7100

Address

Winnetka, IL
60093

Website

http://www.kernahangroup.com/

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