The fire happened around 3 a.m. in the 14000 South Wallace Street in Riverdale, police said.
Officers said they discovered the woman had been set on fire. The Cook County medical Examiner's Officer ruled the death a homicide as a result of "multiple sharp force injures."
Police said the victim appears to be a small Hispanic or African-American woman and she was wearing a silver wristwatch. She also has a large tattoo of praying hands on her upper right arm.
Anyone who knows anything about the crime or the victim has been asked to call Riverdale police at (708)841-2203.