Rents are going up, forcing Chicagoans to make lifestyle changes, or hunt for more affordable housing

CHICAGO — When the pandemic started, photographer and public relations professional Micaeh Johnson realized she needed a little extra space for social distancing in the apartment she shared with her now-7-year-old daughter.

So she rented a two-bedroom, two-bathroom townhouse in the South Loop near McCormick Place for $3,250 a month.

Johnson, director at Chicago’s Simply Be. Agency, had been paying $2,875 in monthly rent for her two-bedroom apartment in the South Loop, and upgrading to the townhouse was a stretch for her monthly budget. But the supplemental child care income her company provided during COVID-19 helped. So did staying inside and not traveling.

But once the pandemic started to ease and things began to open up, she felt the pinch again. And then the furnace went out in