Shutter BoysPlantation shutters in Bloomington
Homes in Bloomington
Bloomington's 37,162 homes are a mix: 55% detached houses, 34% apartments or units in buildings of two or more homes and 6% townhouses and other attached houses.
The biggest building period was 1950 to 1979, which accounts for 29% of homes standing today; 24% are from 2000 or later. The median home dates from 1982. 62% of homes are lived in by their owners.
In Normal, 3 miles away, 44% of homes are apartments, more than here. Nationally, Bloomington's homes are newer than those in 51% of the 881 US cities we have census figures for.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024. Estimates carry margins of error.
Out-of-square openings
With 48% of homes built before 1980, many openings have had decades to settle. Measure each one's width at the top, middle and bottom, and both diagonals. If the diagonals differ by more than about ¼ inch, add a mounting frame in the designer, or choose an outside mount so the shutter covers the uneven edges.
A whole house in Bloomington
The most common home in Bloomington has two bedrooms: 30% of homes. Three-bedroom homes make up another 29%. The median home has 5.5 rooms.
Detached houses are the most common kind of home here. Across the US, the middle home among detached houses has 10 to 15 windows (EIA, 2020). Shuttering that many windows at a typical bedroom-window size comes to roughly $3,200 to $6,000. For scale, that's about 2.3% of the median home value here, $203,300 (owners’ estimates, 2020–2024).
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 (bedrooms B25041, rooms B25018, value B25077); U.S. Energy Information Administration, Residential Energy Consumption Survey 2020, Table HC2.1 (windows). EIA RECS 2020, Table HC2.1
A typical home10–15 windows
All of them shuttered$3,200 to $6,000
Every window priced as a 36 × 48 in opening in our basic build (flat moulding, paint stage 1, 3½ in louvers), before tax and shipping. Your windows will differ; the designer prices each one.
Price your own windowsOne room at a time
Homes here cost less than in 87% of the 881 US cities we have figures for, and many owners do a house in stages. Start with the rooms where light and privacy matter most, usually bedrooms and the street-facing front, and keep the same louver size and colour so later rooms match. Your saved design keeps every size.
Working from home
21% of workers here worked from home in the 2020–2024 survey years, more than in 77% of the 881 US cities we have figures for. Glare on a screen comes from direct sun and bright sky behind or beside it. Louvers tilted up throw daylight at the ceiling instead, so the room stays bright and the screen stays readable; wider louvers give the clearest view when you open them.
Ages (B01001), working from home (B08301) and value (B25077): U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates, 2020–2024. Rankings compare the US cities we have figures for.
Bloomington weather and your shutters
At Normal 4NE, IL (5 mi away), July averages a high of 86°F and January a low of 15.6°F. Average highs reach 85°F in July and average lows sit at or below freezing from November to March.
About 26 days a year reach 90°F, 133 nights fall to freezing and 38.6 inches of precipitation falls, most of it around May and least in February.
That's more freezing nights than in 86% of the 881 US cities we have climate normals for.
Daylight runs from 15 h 4 min on the longest day to 9 h 17 min on the shortest, and the midday sun stands 73° above the horizon in June and 26° in December.
Source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, Normal 4NE, IL (temperature) and Bloomington Wtr Wks, IL (precipitation, 2 mi away). Daylight and sun height: calculated from the city’s latitude.
Monthly figures
| Month | Average high | Average low | Precipitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 33.4°F | 15.6°F | 2.1 in |
| Feb | 38.2°F | 18.9°F | 1.8 in |
| Mar | 49.8°F | 27.8°F | 2.7 in |
| Apr | 62.8°F | 37.9°F | 3.9 in |
| May | 74°F | 49.8°F | 4.5 in |
| Jun | 83.3°F | 59.9°F | 4.4 in |
| Jul | 86°F | 63°F | 3.8 in |
| Aug | 84.4°F | 60.8°F | 3.8 in |
| Sep | 78.8°F | 53°F | 3.1 in |
| Oct | 65.6°F | 41.8°F | 3.1 in |
| Nov | 50.2°F | 30.7°F | 2.9 in |
| Dec | 38.3°F | 21.4°F | 2.5 in |
Cold winters
With 133 freezing nights a year, warm room air meets cold glass for months. Shutters closed tight overnight hold that air against the window, so condensation can collect on the sill: tilt the louvers open in the morning, and wipe the sill on windows that often run wet.
Fitting them in Bloomington
Shutter Boys shutters are made for you to fit yourself: an inside or outside mount takes a drill, a level and our step-by-step guide. If you'd rather hire someone, a finish carpenter or blinds installer can fit them; ask on your quote and we'll tell you if we know one near you. You arrange and pay the installer directly.
More about shutters in Bloomington
Each page takes one question further (fitting your windows, room by room, sizes and colours, louvers, or how shutters compare with other choices), using Bloomington’s own figures.
For designers, contractors and stores in Bloomington
Interior designers, contractors, window covering stores, realtors and property managers in Bloomington can sell or refer Shutter Boys shutters: dealers buy at trade pricing with a protected area; referral partners earn a fee on each client they send. No fee to join.
Price your windows
Pick your look once, add every window, and see each one drawn and priced. Send it to us and we reply with your quote.