Hidden North Center “Crib” With Rooftop Basketball Court Has Reduced $955K: 3540 N. Ravenswood

We last chattered about this 6-bedroom single family home at 3540 N. Ravenswood in North Center nearly two years ago, in March 2010.

See our prior chatter here.

Most of you loved the house and said if you won the lottery you were buying it. Yes- it’s a true “crib.”

Built in 2007 on a 50×125 lot, the steel and masonry 9000 square foot house has 10-foot ceilings and central air.

It also has 2 kitchens that, as you can see from the pictures, are decked out with luxury finishes including stainless steel appliances.

The buyer can also enjoy the master suite which measures 22×50.

But what sets it apart is the indoor pool, hot tub, sauna and the outdoor basketball court on the roof.

It’s basically like having your own gym.

It also has a 4-car attached garage.

In the last 22 months, the house has been reduced $955,000 to $2.795 million.

Many of you thought the most suitable buyer would probably be a Cubs player given the athletic amenities (although many Blackhawks live nearby in Roscoe Village.)

In our last chatter some of you guessed this might sell for around $2.5 million. But that was then and this is now.

What price will it take to move this property in 2012?

Sophia Klopas at Koenig & Strey still has the listing. See the floorplan, walk through video and pictures here.

3540 N. Ravenswood: 6 bedrooms, 6 baths, 9000 square feet, 4 car parking

  • I couldn’t find any original sales price but it appears to have been built in 2007 (from our prior chatter there appears to be several PINs on the property)
  • Was listed in March 2010 for $3.75 million
  • Reduced
  • Currently listed for $2.795 million
  • Taxes of $13,329
  • 2 Kitchens
  • Indoor Pool
  • Basketball court
  • Central Air
  • Bedroom #1: 22×50 (second floor)
  • Bedroom #2: 22×18 (main level)
  • Bedroom #3: 22×18 (main level)
  • Bedroom #4: 22×18 (main level)
  • Bedroom #5: 12×12 (second floor)
  • Bedroom #6: 12×12 (second floor)

43 Responses to “Hidden North Center “Crib” With Rooftop Basketball Court Has Reduced $955K: 3540 N. Ravenswood”

  1. i just wish there were more windows and more natural light

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  2. Reduce it another million and it’s mine!!

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  3. I wish it had his and hers master bathrooms!

    I would rip out the basketball court. It’s too taste specific. I think more people would appreciate a garden than a basketball court. I despise basketball. I would rather have the hoops turned into two giant crosses and the rest be a garden (and I hate religion).

    Even better, turn that basketball court into a sanctuary for giant land tortoises!!!

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  4. Great deal on taxes!

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  5. Do these people fear looking outside or are that paranoid about people looking in. Sure, those windows let some light in but unless you want to look at the sky all day you cant see out of them. Would drive me crazy. Other than that, this place is awesome.

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  6. Lack of windows looking out blows, but otherwise this place is seriously pimptastic. I’d kill the b-ball court though and sod the entire roof for yard imho.

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  7. awesome house, drop it another 2.3 million and i’ll buy it!

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  8. that is of course if one of Rahm’s gay hedge buddies doesn’t buy it first

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  9. Yep if I suddenly came into $10-15MM this place would be at the top of my list. I love basketball but even I would tear out that court and make it a yard/garden immediately. I would only be interested in a bball court if I already had a solid yard.

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  10. I wish I was a little bit taller, wish I was a baller…

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  11. Can someone use their ‘skills’ to find out who owns this? I’m curious. You don’t have to ‘out’ their name; just their occupation–if you can find it.

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  12. “Can someone use their ‘skills’ to find out who owns this? I’m curious. You don’t have to ‘out’ their name; just their occupation–if you can find it.”

    please. commercial real estate development/redevelopment. Seems to be owned by the same entity that had/has an interest in a vegas casino-hotel

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  13. Yes, I came up with the same.

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  14. gringozecarioca on February 1st, 2012 at 4:42 pm

    Very attractive for a prison.

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  15. do you have to walk outside to go to the master suite?

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  16. If only the windows were larger, this place would have been gorgeous.

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  17. I wonder if I could rent just the second floor, all the things I really like about this place are up there….the master bath, outdoor space, nice small kitchen, AND a pool! I promise not to bother those below me!

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  18. I think the bathrooms are very nice. I like the small kitchen better than the larger one, but the rest
    Of the house seems very cold and sterile.

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  19. The building needs a design with a peristyle, like they had in Pompei, etc. And before anon chimes in about cold weather, I’m talking about with central skylight I suppose.

    Re: athletes being the target market, is the realtor the wife or related to the head coach of the Chicago Fire?

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  20. Thank you!

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  21. Well the building does does fit in with the other commercial buildings.

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  22. I take that back, after looking at streetview this is a FU house parked right on the Metra rails and 5 houses in from the brown line… I couldn’t live here no way

    2 million gets it done!

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  23. One of the strangest properties in the city. The only windows which you can see out of have a view of a basketball court. The person who commissioned this house obviously had major privacy issues, but now they will pay for that with a low resale price. $1.5M.

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  24. Looks like a lot of wasted opportunity to bring in natural light to the place. Reminds me of the jail downtown with the rec yard on the roof.

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  25. “And before anon chimes in about cold weather, I’m talking about with central skylight I suppose.”

    Retractable roof! Made of glass!!

    Just a skylight would be too much like Kleiner’s place.

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  26. This house got my wife and I started on our house hunt a year and a half ago.

    It is a bit of an “FU” house as its right on top of the neighbors to the west…at this price we might have taken the leap although we ended up in Bucktown and are much happier here.

    It is a hell of a place with top of the line finishes…It was just a little too much for us, and with dogs we really didn’t like the ground level property line to property line element. The train noise wasn’t an issue at all.

    Had it been in Bucktown/Wicker Park/Logan Square we might have been all over it.

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  27. If more light or bigger windows are the goal that is fairly easy. The lentils are in place so bringing the glass down three or four feet is fairly easy and is not the only ssue holding up this sale. I suspect that it is price price and location. Still don’t know where tt ends but it will be a great home for someone!

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  28. “If more light or bigger windows are the goal that is fairly easy.”
    It is difficult to make the windows larger as the building is right at the lot line and larger windows would afford great views inside the house and low privacy on the first floor. Larger windows on the second floor would work as long as designed well.
    I like the building as is, it is contextural. Great house for a family or individual that values privacy.

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  29. “The lentils are in place”

    Heh. The should have soup at the next open house.

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  30. Now even groove will say that a FULL COURT bball on the roof top is much. the groove knows many people and his BBQ’s are darn large but even then i dont think my BBQ will ever break out into a full court game.

    cut it down to a half court right in the middle, green up the sides by the master bedroom and the other top floor kitchen. then you have a beautiful view out the *ONLY legitimate windows and still keep the court for balling and parties.

    that said i still feel the raw potential when the first conversion happened is a fail. It could have been so much more!

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  31. No basement???

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  32. the lack of windows would help is Ze wanted to use the basketball court for a pot-growing operation.

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  33. typo: meant the house, not bball crt.

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  34. As I looked out and saw some neighbors on their rooftop having a party it reminded me of this place and I had to check back and see if someone picked it up this spring. It’s still one of my favorites.

    Loved this comment – “No basement?”

    What do you need the basement for? Perhaps for some storage but there is a 4 car garage for the junk accumulation. Otherwise everything that I’d want to do in the basement is more than provided in this place on the first or second floors!

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  35. Nope. No one has biten yet on this one. They may have to wait until next season’s new Cubs players to move it.

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  36. Maybe a Bulls or Blackhawks player. I think a few hockey players actually live in Roscoe. Long commute to Berto center for practice but at least on game nights and in the summer the youngster and his posse will be in the hood to party. It will also be easier to get Trixie to break from her sorority sisters to go back to a place in Lakeview vs. the long ride up to Lincoolnshire or Deerfield.

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  37. “Maybe a Bulls or Blackhawks player.”

    or groove with a winning lotto ticket.

    sadly i will cut the court down in half to accommodate the rooftop garden. finnally no dang rabbits, they cant get up there [insert evil laugh here]

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  38. still love and covet this place! Definitely needs a sports bachelor to scoop this up. Eventhough there’s a family living there now, I think most families would be turned off by the layout with the kids either on the far end of the basketball court upstairs or on another floor entirely.

    This doesn’t bother me a bit and I’d scoop this up if I had the cash, but I know lots of families where this is a deal breaker.

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  39. Under contract!

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  40. ” DZ (February 22, 2013, 1:33 pm)
    Under contract!”

    So either sonies or groove hit the powerball?

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  41. Sold for $2.4m. Apparently puchased in ’07 for $2.25m.

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  42. Back on the market at $2.9m:

    https://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/3540-N-Ravenswood-Ave-60657/home/17949794

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  43. Still on, at $2.69 now.

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