There’s Something Special About The Brewster: A 2-Bedroom At 2800 N. Pine Grove In Lakeview
This 2-bedroom in the historic Brewster at 2800 N. Pine Grove in East Lakeview recently came on the market.
It is a short sale.
Owners in this building are extremely loyal, with many living in the building for years (sometimes decades).
The Brewster was built in 1896 as a luxury apartment building and it has internll iron staircases, cat walks and a huge skylight.
Not only did Charlie Chaplin live in one of the penthouses in 1915-1916, but several movies were filmed in the building including the Untouchables and Child’s Play.
This unit is one of the ones in the turret.
It has an updated bath and a kitchen with 42 inch cabinets, granite counter tops and white appliances.
There are parquet floors in the living room, exposed brick and a decorative fireplace.
The two bedrooms have carpet.
There is no parking, no central air (wall units only) and no in-unit washer/dryers.
But that hasn’t stopped sales in the building. This 2-bedroom is the only unit currently available. The building is also in a prime East Lakeview location.
This unit is listed $85,000 under the 2007 price.
Is this a deal?
Laura Meier at @Properties has the listing. See the pictures here.
Unit #2K: 2 bedrooms, 1 bath, no square footage listed
- Sold in February 1989 for $54,000
- Sold in June 1994 for $75,000
- Sold in April 1997 for $91,000
- Sold in July 2007 for $265,000
- Currently listed as a “short sale” for $180,000
- Assessments of $366 a month
- Taxes of $3309
- No central air- wall units only
- No in-unit washer/dryer
- No parking (rental in the neighborhood)
- Bedroom #1: 12×11
- Bedroom #2: 12×11
no parking, no central air no in-unit washer/dryers NO thanks. Quite the cramped dungeon-esque unit as well. I wouldn’t even consider renting this unit.
You’d have to be a real Chicago history buff to want to live in this building. “Dungeon-esque” describes just about every place I’ve ever seen in it.
Yuck, horrid, dingy, dark and clearly not updated within the last 30+ years!
I’d really love to see what the penthouses look like.
I rented a unit here back in 1995. The building is breathtaking, but living there has its drawbacks.
Lack of central air? Check. Lack of central heat? Check. My rental had a similar wall/window unit and it was for air AND heat (dual purpose). I assume this unit is the same.
My heater quit working during the coldest week of that winter and I had to live in 5 layers of wool clothing for several days. It’s cold even when the heat works. The floors and walls are ice cold, as there is no central heat.
Also, the units are tiny. And laundry was shared. You will hear your neighbors. That said, if you you’re looking for a wonderfully unique, historical home in a great neighborhood, The Brewster is that. Giving tours to friends was the best.
The only beautiful things about this building are its red-stone exterior. and the skylit common area with its glass floors and cage elevator.
Unfortunately, you can’t live in the hallway. The apartments are ugly and never quite livable or comfortable no matter what you do to them. The windowsills are too high, and the floor plans are impossible, with windows overlooking the hallways. “Dungeon-esque” is a good word for most of the units.
I wouldn’t even rent here, either.
I’ve seen the penthouse. It was on the market in 1995 or 1996 and my wife and I came by and looked.
Although it was large, it was definitely meant for a single person or a couple without kids. It felt like one huge room. I think there was just one bedroom, though that might reflect some previous owner knocking down walls. Despite all the windows, the unit still seemed dark.
It had a very nice outdoor space looking over Diversey and east to the park and lake. That was the main attraction to me.
If I remember, they were asking around $300,000 at the time, which seemed like a lot to us back then (and in fact the real estate agent presiding over the open house completely ignored my wife and me, as if we were far too young and penniless to afford such a unit – and indeed it was too expensive for us. We were in our mid-20’s and just went there to gape).
If memory serves, Sabrina featured one of the penthouses on this site a few years back. It was an ugly, tacky dump.
nice recollection Laura
http://cribchatter.com/?p=1563
” CH (September 18, 2012, 12:45 pm)
nice recollection Laura”
CH this is your second way back time-machine cribchatter post. i think we need to promote you to director of CC wiki as icarus has not got the wiki started.
That penthouse needed a ton of work, but it had a world of potential. I wonder what the buyers did with it. The seller was some party guy and the realtor was a total hot mess. Views of the lake from your bedroom windows, awesome outdoor space, very spacious. But a ton of work was needed. I’d love to see a finished product.
It was difficult to discern what “potential” the place had from the photos. I couldn’t make out the size of the rooms, or how they flowed, or what condition they were in, from the shots of the seller’s tacky furnishings.
A penthouse on Diversey always has potential. This building does have a great location and the apartment featured today ought to sell close to the ask price if only for the neighborhood. It’s difficult to find 2 bed apartments of any description at this price point in that area.
“CC wiki as icarus has not got the wiki started.”
dude, i’m busy finding a house. At least Sonies has you looking for condos and houses for him.
speaking of old time posters, Z and G (mostly) seem to be mia. This happened once before and Z popped back onto the grid over xmas 2010 (maybe 09). G returned to slap clio around.
I kind of suspect we’ll hear from mia miu soon though. you know she’s lurking , at least occasionally
“speaking of old time posters, Z and G (mostly) seem to be mia.”
Ze’s prob still on summer break. I’ll pass along the le chayim.
hasnt he been on endless summer break since heading south
“hasnt he been on endless summer break since heading south”
Yes, but. Different break. Can’t remember what was on cc v not. I’m sure he’ll regale us on return.
“At least Sonies has you looking for condos and houses for him.”
and Im not even in the market!
Ze is doing some time. Likely a minor drug bust or something. I suspect that he should return soon.
I lived here for 5 years and it was one of the happiest times of my life. It is not a dungeon, it is filled with history and charm. sitting in the turret watching a thunderstorm or snow fall is magical. The window units are fine for both heat and cooling of the smallish apartment. They missed taking photos of the wall detail, the transum and arches in the bathroom. I miss this place so much.