Crib Chatter

In September 2009, we chattered about the price cuts at the new construction high rise 757 N. Orleans in River North.

See our September 2009 chatter here.

A year later, there are still units for sale from the developer and an advertisement in the Sunday Tribune which says “dive in…to river north’s best financing.”

But what happens to the original purchasers who now, nearly 2 years after the first closings, want to sell?

This 2-bedroom unit, #911, is one of those.

The listing says the Southwest corner unit has been upgraded with dark espresso floors and a marble master bath.

The listing also says this tier is sold out.

The unit is now listed for $24,500 under the 2008 purchase price (if you include the parking).

Jeffrey Proctor at @Properties has the listing. See the pictures here.

Unit #911: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, no square footage listed

• Sold in December 2008 for $459,500
• Originally listed in July 2010 for $405,000
• Currently listed at $405,000 (plus $30,000 for parking)
• Assessments of $456 a month (includes pool)
• Taxes are “new”
• Bedroom #1: 12×15
• Bedroom #2: 15×10
• Living room: 19×15
• Kitchen: 12×8

Contemporary lovers know the outside of this 5-bedroom house at 838 W. Webster in Lincoln Park well as it’s hard to miss on a block filled with vintage brownstones.

An AIA design interior architecture award winner, the house was built in 2004 and sits on a 48×115 lot.

The living room has 20 foot high ceilings and a wall of windows which opens onto the 22×40 courtyard.

In all, the house has 2400 square feet of outdoor space in 7 locations.

The finishes are what you would expect from a luxury home.

There is a Poliform kitchen with stainless steel appliances and black granite counter tops.

The house also has a rare attached 3-car garage which is accessed through the kitchen.

Robert John Anderson at Baird & Warner has the listing. See the pictures here.

838 W. Webster: 5 bedrooms, 3.5 baths, 3 car garage, no square footage listed

• Sold in October 2001 for $1.615 million (the prior house)
• Currently listed for $4.95 million
• Taxes of $39896
• Central Air through 4 HVAC units
• Basement rec room

Crain’s is reporting that there will be no second tower built at Walton on the Park, the new high rise development at 2 W. Delaware, in the Gold Coast.

You’ll recall, in mid-August, we chattered about the flips popping up in this building. See our prior chatter here.

In a sign that the new-condo market is expected to stay in a prolonged funk, the developers have dropped a proposal for a second residential tower, which would have brought the total number of units up to 385.

Instead, the developers plan to build a small commercial building on the site, according to the loan amendment.

Buyers have closed on 22 units and another 81 are under contract, confirms Ralph Oliva, a sales associate in the Lincoln Park office of residential brokerage Coldwell Banker NRT, which is handling sales at the 31-story building, located next to the landmark Scottish Rite Cathedral and near Washington Square Park.

But slow sales have become the norm for recently completed condo towers in the city’s most fashionable neighborhoods.

Walton on the Park’s developers “haven’t underperformed the market,” says Gail Lissner, a vice-president at Appraisal Research Counselors, a Chicago-based real estate consulting firm. “This is the new reality.”

According to Crain’s, two prospective buyers have also sued the developer, alleging in the lawsuit that the developer is planning on renting out the remaining 100 unsold units.

Shipka, Stein win condo loan extension [Crain’s Chicago Business, Andrew Schroedter, September 1, 2010]

Just 9 months ago, you could have bought this brick 2-flat at 2629 N. Harding in Logan Square for under $100,000.

Now, the listing says it has been rehabbed with new kitchens, baths, and mechanicals and can now be yours for $249,000.

Built in 1910 on a 30×125 lot, the building has original woodwork and built-in hutches.

The building consists of the following:

1. Unit #1: 3 bedrooms, 2 baths
2. Unit #2: 3 bedrooms, 1 bath

It also has a 2-car garage.

There is a washer/dryer in the basement but it looks like no central air.

Does this make sense for an investor?

Diana Forero-Mazzanti at Re/Max Exclusive Properties has the listing. See the pictures here.

2629 N. Harding: 6 bedrooms, 3 baths, 2 car garage

• Sold in December 2004 for $375,000
• Lis pendens filed in February 2007
• Bank owned in October 2009
• Sold in January 2010 for $95,000
• Currently listed for $249,000
• Taxes are $5071

This 2-bedroom corner loft at 625 W. Jackson, the Capitol Hill Lofts, in the West Loop just came on the market.

It has timber ceilings and exposed brick.

Both bedrooms have windows in a split floor plan.

The kitchen has maple cabinets, granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances.

While the unit has no balcony, it does have the other bells and whistles buyers look for including central air, in-unit washer/dryer and deeded parking.

Is this a deal compared with other buildings in the neighborhood?

Patricia McEneaney at Coldwell Banker has the listing. See the pictures here.

Unit #204: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1262 square feet

• Sold in May 2001 for $282,500
• Sold in December 2006 for $309,000
• Currently listed for $299,900 (includes the parking)
• Assessments of $492 a month (includes cable and security)
• Taxes of $4554
• Central Air
• In-unit washer/dryer
• Bedroom #1: 10×12
• Bedroom #2: 12×13

Rogers Park has been hit hard in the housing downturn. 

This week in TimeOut Chicago, in the ”save this restaurant” feature, there was a discussion about a restaurant called Jamaica Jerk and the impact the housing bust is having on the businesses in the neighborhood.

While the food is generally consistent, the dining room sits empty some nights, waiting for locals whose condos have since gone into foreclosure, sending them fleeing to other areas and returning the neighborhood to its pre-gentrification crossroads of poverty and belt-tightening. A small handwritten sign advertising a chicken tender combo for $3.50 is aimed at residents who can’t, or don’t want to, pay $12 for a sit-down dinner, but it’s a concession the Waites made reluctantly. “We want to remain a nice restaurant for the neighborhood, even though it has not changed or improved as fast as I had hoped and expected,” Stanley says. “We are not closing tomorrow, but I wonder because from day to day it’s so difficult. Some days it’s so quiet and then some days you feel hopeful and think ‘this is a good day.’ We just need more of those.”

Read more: save-this-restaurant-jamaica-jerk

There are many vintage properties in the neighborhood, such as this 3-bedroom vintage unit in a 3-unit building at 7440 N. Hoyne.

Built in 1933-35, during the height of the Great Depression, the unit has many vintage features common for that era including coved cathedral ceilings, wall sconces and a formal dining room.

At 2000 square feet, it has more square footage than many single family homes.

The kitchen has granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances.

Parking is included, but there is no central air and it doesn’t look like it has any in-unit laundry.

The unit is now listed for $6,000 under the 2000 purchase price.

David Williamson at Choice Realty Group has the listing. See the pictures here.

Unit #3S: 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, 2000 square feet, 1 parking space included

• Sold in October 2000 for $165,000
• On the market most of 2009
• Listed in June 2010 for $159,000
• Currently still listed at $159,000
• Assessments of $450 a month
• Taxes of $2800
• No central air
• No in-unit washer/dryer
• Bedroom #1: 15×15
• Bedroom #2: 15×10
• Bedroom #3: 12×11
• Office: 12×9

This 4-bedroom vintage greystone at 1330 N. Bell in west Wicker Park has been completely gut renovated.

Built in 1908, the house is on a standard Chicago lot of 25×125.

Three of the 4 bedrooms are on the second level and one is in the basement.

The kitchen sports maple cabinets and stainless steel appliances.

The house also has central air, a 2 car garage and 4 outdoor spaces, including a rooftop deck with city views.

First listed in April 2010, it has been reduced $50,000.

What’s the market for a million dollar home in this neighborhood?

Mario Greco at Prudential Rubloff has the listing. See the pictures here.

1330 N. Bell: 4 bedrooms, 3.5 baths, 2 car garage, 4000 square feet

• Sold in August 1989 for $10,000
• Sold in August 2001 for $325,000
• Originally listed in April 2010 for $1.049 million
• Reduced
• Currently listed for $999,000
• Taxes of $8504
• Central Air
• Bedroom #1: 18×18 (second floor)
• Bedroom #2: 13×9 (second floor)
• Bedroom #3: 13×9 (second floor)
• Bedroom #4: 13×12 (lower level)
• Family room: 18×17 (lower level)

This 2-bedroom condo at 1949 W. Leland in Lincoln Square has been on and off the market since March 2009.

The 8-unit building was a 2006 conversion.

The unit is on the top floor and has 12 foot ceilings, exposed brick and a balcony.

It has all the bells and whistles of new construction including granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances.

The unit also has central air and an in-unit washer/dryer.

Parking is a rarity with many Lincoln Square conversions and this unit not only has 1-car parking, it has 2 tandem parking spaces included.

The unit is currently listed for $17,500 under the 2007 purchase price.

Is this a deal?

Cecilia Kuhlmann at Koenig & Strey Real Living has the listing. See the pictures here.

Unit #3: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1145 square feet, 2 car tandem parking

• Sold in October 2007 for $357,000
• Originally listed in March 2009
• On and off the market
• Currently listed for $339,500
• Assessments of $173 a month
• Taxes of $5338
• Central Air
• Washer/Dryer in the unit
• Bedroom #1: 14×11
• Bedroom #2: 11×10

We last chattered about this 2-flat short sale at 710 W. Melrose in Lakeview which the listing calls a “great investment” way back in January 2009.

See our January 2009 chatter here.

Back then, the listing said the property was the “armchair opportunity of a lifetime.”

The listing hasn’t changed. It still calls this property the “armchair opportunity of a lifetime” and it also says to “hurry”.

The property is still in a short sale but has now been reduced $320,000.

The building consists of 2-units:

1. Unit #1: 3 bedrooms, 3 baths, listing says it rents for $3300
2. Unit #2: 3 bedrooms, 3 baths, listing says it rents for $3300

The building is new construction with upscale finishes, though the kitchen appliances are missing in at least one of the pictures.

Also, it’s unclear if it’s actually ever rented at these prices.

There is a two car garage and separate utilities for each unit.

When we last chattered about the property, taxes were “only” $3339. Now they are $25,817 and the listing says the “taxes can be appealed.”

The listing says the numbers work. Do they?

Kaloian Kouzmanov at Top Realty Group still has the listing. See the pictures here.

710 W. Melrose: 6 bedrooms, 6 baths, 2-units, both duplexes, 2 car parking

• Old property sold in January 2006 for $700,000
• Lis pendens filed on December 12, 2008
• Was listed in January 2009 as a “short sale” for $1.2 million
• Reduced too many times to list
• Currently listed as a “short sale” for $880,000
• Taxes of $25,817
• Rental income: $79,200
• Lot: 25×102

We last chattered about this 3-bedroom Victorian home at 4209 N. Bernard in Irving Park in June 2009.

See our June 2009 chatter and pictures here. The picture above is from the June 2009 listing.

It has been on and off the market since then and is now reduced $35,900 since June 2009.

The listing says the house has a new kitchen with stainless steel appliances.

Two of the bedrooms are on the second floor and the third is in the basement, which also has a full bath and a separate entrance.

While it has a 2-car garage it does not have central air (window units only.)

Elizabeth Bleeker at Prudential Rubloff now has the listing. See the pictures here.

4209 N. Bernard: 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, no square footage listed, 2 car garage

• Sold in January 1988 for $45,000
• Sold in July 2003 for $225,000
• Originally listed in March 2009
• Was listed in June 2009 for $344,900
• Reduced
• Currently listed for $309,000
• Taxes of $3716
• No central air- window units
• Living room: 13×13
• Dining room: 14×12
• Kitchen: 12×10
• Bedroom #1: 12×13 (second floor)
• Bedroom #2: 13×11 (second floor)
• Bedroom #3: 12×8 (lower level)
• Den: 11×7 (main floor)