Crain’s Headlines: New York Investor Buys ‘Big Red’ for $370M


One of the standouts on Chicago’s skyline is changing hands.

Big Red – the former CNA Center – is selling for $370 million to a New York investor. Prominent Chicago Developer John Buck bought the 44-story tower from CNA Financial in 2016 for roughly a third of that price.

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The sale gives downtown landlords a shot of confidence after commercial property sales took a dip in Chicago last year.

In other Chicago-area business news:

Chicago’s housing market closed out 2019 with one of the strongest months in a long time – the city saw big boosts in both the number of homes sold and the median sale price.

More than 1,800 homes sold in December, according to Illinois Realtors. That’s 9% higher than 2018 and the biggest sales increase since March of 2017. Before that, the city was facing a nearly 15-month stretch of down sales.

The city’s median December sales price was just under $280,000.  Those numbers are in line with the national housing market in December. Across the country, home sales were up about 11% from the year before.

Pre-orders start this week for a modern twist on a throwback piece of tech.

Motorola will start selling its new $1,500 foldable Razr phone in the coming weeks. Presales start this Sunday.

The company missed sales over the big holiday season because of supply issues.

The new foldable Razr looks just like its early 2000s predecessor, but runs an Android operating system and has touch screens inside and out. Motorola didn’t blame any technical problems for the delay.

Companies like Samsung have had a hard time launching foldable devices because of problems with failing screens.


Crain’s Headlines is a joint production between WTTW and Crain’s Chicago Business. It airs every Monday through Thursday on the WTTW News program “Chicago Tonight.” 


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