Beth Foort has watched Green Bay Road in Wilmette for years from behind the counter at William Harris Lee & Co., the orchestral stringed instrument store she manages. When luxury condos started selling nearby for up to $4.6 million, she told the Chicago Tribune on Aug. 7: "If you have customers willing to pay, you go for it … I hope they fill up and do well, and I hope the people who move in frequent the shops here as much as they can."
That hope now has a number behind it. Kenilworth's typical home value hit $2,153,664 in June 2026, making it the most expensive place to buy a home in Illinois, according to a ranking published by Vettory using Zillow Home Value Index data. Winnetka ranked second at $1,929,615, and Glencoe third at $1,682,167. The statewide typical home value was $298,871.
The appreciation isn't slowing. Kenilworth and Glencoe each posted 13.1% year-over-year gains, the fastest in the top 10 statewide. Winnetka rose 12.2%. A Vettory spokesperson said the North Shore "is not cooling with the rest of the country. It is accelerating."
Rising residential wealth drives foot traffic and spending for local retailers, but it also drives up commercial property tax assessments tied to those same market gains.
Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi's office released New Trier Township reassessments in April 2025 showing a 39% jump in total assessed value, reflecting three years of market movement since the 2022 reassessment. Those reassessed values are reflected in property-tax bills being paid in 2026.
A 39% increase in total assessed value does not mean every bill rises 39%. Illinois's Property Tax Extension Limitation Law caps total levy growth, and the state equalizer moved to 3.0300 for 2025. But the burden shifts toward properties whose values grew fastest. Commercial assessments are calculated using estimated income, vacancy and expenses, so a shop whose assessed value jumped more than the township average will absorb a larger share of the levy.
The tension between residential wealth and commercial viability is visible in Kenilworth, which has just 4.1 of its 388 acres zoned commercial. Developer Michael Frieburger of NEWLOOK Development withdrew his Park Place luxury residential project on Park Drive in July after Kenilworth trustees required a retail component as a condition of approval. Frieburger told The Record North Shore the requirement was incompatible with a luxury residential design. The building at 515 Park Drive, formerly home to Federalist Antiques and Helen's Cleaners, sits with an active demolition permit and no new plan.
North Shore Business Ahead
Monday, Aug. 17 | 6 p.m. — New Trier Township Property Tax Appeal Workshop (free, in-person). Guidance on filing appeals with the Cook County Board of Review. Contact township Assessor Jan Churchwell or Deputy Assessor Michael Sexton at 847-446-8200.
Tuesday, Sept. 1 — Deadline to file 2026 property tax appeals with the Cook County Board of Review for all New Trier Township properties. The Board processed a record 290,533 appeals during the 2025 tax year.
