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Habitat 50th

Celebrating a Milestone

In celebration of Habitat's 50th Anniversary, we wanted to take a moment to look back at the last 50 years and explore the stepping stones and jumps Habitat has taken to get to where we are today. With amazing leadership and an equally impressive team, Habitat has grown, developed, and thrived these past 50 years and now we want to share our story with you!

A Noteworthy History

From our launch in 1971, all the way to our current 50th Anniversary, there are plenty of moments in Habitat's history that we are celebrating this year. Learn more about our company's story via our timeline!

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Words from Habitat's Founder

With such a momentous achievement, Habitat's Founder and Chairman, Daniel Levin, was invited to share his thoughts on our 50th Anniversary Celebration. Follow along below and read about his thoughts on this wonderful moment in time for The Habitat Company.

My professional career began as a lawyer in my hometown of Detroit, Michigan. I began doing legal work for a Chicago company which was starting a large urban renewal real estate development in downtown Detroit called Lafayette Park. In 1957 I moved to Chicago as the in-house legal counsel for that firm and began to build my career in real estate development. I developed a few small residential buildings and after a few years I started a partnership with James McHugh, who was the head of a big construction company, to help quicken our growth. We started to build more and bigger residential communities including South Commons on 30 acres in the near South Side. South Commons was one of the first large, diversified communities in Chicago. It included affordable housing, senior housing, market rate apartment buildings and townhouses. It also had a small retail center to serve the community. I organized The Habitat Company in 1971 to combine all our development activities and wanted a name that best represented our goals going forward. These were, and are, to provide a very good “habitat” for our residents in the communities in which they live.
Over the years we have grown from about less than 40 employees to over 800. Habitat has been involved in developing and managing over 18,000 residential units and related commercial. I am proud of that, and of the culture we enjoy and continue to nourish.  
I am confident that Habitat will continue to steadily grow. We now have the best and most experienced management team we have ever enjoyed. We have never been stronger as a team, and as dedicated to being proud of who we are. And, continuing to grow our culture of full respect for our employees, and for the diversity they represent, while developing and managing existing and new properties with our standard of excellence in all that we do and who we are.
In celebration of our 50th Anniversary, I wish good health and fulfillment to everyone in their professional and personal lives.

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Daniel Levin,
The Habitat Company Founder & Chairman

See Highlights From Our 50th  Celebration

As a company known for breaking boundaries and being an industry leader, we have also developed a reputation for being an award-winning company. As testimony to our excellence, we have received the following awards and honors in our recent company history leading up to our 50th Anniversary:

An Award-Winning Team and Legacy

  • Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM) – Property Management Company of the Year – 2020​

  • Satisfacts National Company Award for Residents Satisfaction, Insite Program – Superior Company Score, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2018​

  • CARA Good Neighbor Award – 2015​

  • NAHB Pillars of the Industry Awards – Hubbard Place, Best Marketing Campaign – 2014​

  • Friends of Downtown – Award for Best New Residential Building – Kingsbury Plaza – 2008; Hubbard Place – 2014​

  • ​Chicagoland Apartment Marketing and Management Excellence (CAMME) Awards – 1993-2013​​

  • Alfred P. Sloan – 2010 Finalist, and 2011 and 2013 Winner for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility​​

  • Great Lakes Area STAR (GLAStar) Awards – 2002-2013​​

  • American Society of Interior Designs – Design Excellence Award – Kenmore Plaza – 2011​

  • Chicago Housing Authority – Best Marketing Strategy – Mixed Income Portfolio – 2011

  • Chicago Association of REALTORS® Good Neighbor Award – 400 East Randolph Condominium Association – 2010​

  • Chicago Housing Authority – Best Marketing Strategy Award – 2009​

  • ​​​Chicago Mayor’s Award for Landscaping: Kingsbury Plaza – 2008; 400 East Randolph – 2006-2007; West Point Plaza – 2007-2008​

  • Business and Professional People for the Public Interest – Champion of Public Interest Award – 2007​

  • League of Women Voters Corporate Contribution Award – 2004​

  • Merit Award for Builder’s Choice – Community with Mixed Housing – Kinzie Park – 2002​

  • Local Initiatives Support Corporation – Campaign for Communities – 2000

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