Get a 2/2 Loft With Parking for Under $350,000 in North Center: 3900 N. Claremont
This 2-bedroom loft in the St. Ben’s Lofts at 3900 N. Claremont in North Center just came on the market.
The building was constructed in 1907 and has 24 units and gated parking.
This is an authentic loft with exposed brick and timber ceilings.
The listing says the espresso hardwood floors were just redone.
It looks, from the pictures, like it has the common loft configuration where neither bedroom has a window.
The kitchen has white cabinets with a marble backsplash and the listing says it has brand new stainless steel appliances.
It has a south facing balcony.
The loft has the other features buyers look for including central air, washer/dryer in the unit and parking is included in the price.
At $340,000, is this a deal for a 2/2 in this neighborhood?
Janet Jasmer at @Properties has the listing. See the pictures here.
Unit #205: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, no square footage listed
- Sold in October 1998 for $209,000 (parking included)
- Sold in October 2001 for $268,500 (parking included)
- Currently listed for $340,000 (secured gated parking included)
- Assessments of $276 a month (includes exterior maintenance, lawn care, scavenger, snow removal)
- Taxes of $4141
- Central Air
- Washer/dryer in the unit
- Bedroom #1: 14×13
- Bedroom #2: 12×12
Decent looking unit with modern amenities and +1 for parking included. -1 for lack of dual vanity in master bath; more of a “want” than a need though. It’s a bit too far of a walk to the brown line as well. My walking commute right now is 14 minutes but in the dead of winter and ball-dropping sweat of summer it’s brutal and I say this someone who is in good shape. I’m sure some dink couple will buy this and sell it in three years with a crib in the 2nd bedroom, and we’ll be chatting about said crib which will spur arguments over the value of living in the city vs suburbs with kids.
JAN SEZ MEH! MAYBE $299K
VERY SMALL MAKES JAN UNHAPPY FOR BAND PRACTICE.
GO CUBBIES LOLZ!!!!!!!!
“-1 for lack of dual vanity in master bath”
and -1 for the $79 shower door.
And those tetrahedral handle faucets suck, too.
“-1 for lack of dual vanity in master bath”
which do you think is preferable? two sinks or one sink and a lot of counter space on the vanity?
Assume two vanities with lots of counter space not an option.
“And those tetrahedral handle faucets suck, too.”
are those really tetrahedral (or w/in shouting distance)? need a better pic.
“and -1 for the $79 shower door.”
those frameless glass doors are expensive!
“which do you think is preferable? two sinks or one sink and a lot of counter space on the vanity? ”
I have a giant shared sink (2 faucets) with limited counter space on each side of it and its kind of annoying to be honest, looks nice though
“which do you think is preferable? two sinks or one sink and a lot of counter space on the vanity?”
ick has a point. do people really use sinks at the same time?
“are those really tetrahedral (or w/in shouting distance)?”
They look to me to be these (faucet is a little diff, but the handles..):
http://img.homeportfolio.com/cms/681207/grohe174-bath-sink-faucets-21175ooo-200.jpg
I don’t see how this location is worth it. Right off busy Western and at least a mile to the train? No thanks! I agree with Jan Terri’s $299 assessment. For less than this you can get a 3-bed, probably with only street parking, but right off the brown line if you are willing to go as far as the Francisco stop. That is really not that much further on the Brown line and a ton more bang for your buck. The only think this has going is slightly better interstate access, but even that is sub par on a Cubs game weekend.
“They look to me to be these (faucet is a little diff, but the handles..)”
close enough (horse shoes, hand grenades and geometric (really topological) categorization of bathroom fixtures on the cc)!
This is in the Bell school neighborhood. That’s what supports the price. Further on the Brown line might be a ton more bang for your buck, but then you are not going to get Bell school.
@Elliot – This is not from some dink couple. This is for a couple with a kid who has already had the arguments over the value of living in the city vs suburbs with kids. And decided “city” if the elementary school was good, like Bell school.
They will be all set for a few years. However, if the kid doesn’t get into Lane, or some other selective enrollment high school, and Lakeview isn’t to their liking, this family will be heading the the suburbs for high school.
That’s a well worn path.
“This is in the Bell school neighborhood. That’s what supports the price. Further on the Brown line might be a ton more bang for your buck, but then you are not going to get Bell school.”
Nope. With 3/4 walls no one with school-age children is living here or even thinking of living here.
“at least a mile to the train?”
Not quite sure how 3900 Claremont to 1800 IPR = more than a mile. Seems like it’s under .75 miles, to me. Google sez 15 minute walk, which *is* right at the cusp.
“The only think this has going”
I looked at listings and recent sales of 3bed/2ba condos “near” the Francisco stop. This (and other units next door) looks like what’s out there:
https://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/3100-W-Leland-Ave-60625/unit-201/home/26804755
But that’s really “near” Kedzie, and, while a nice size and a decent unit, that’s really a very different neighborhood.
I actually know someone in the building. Single mom with a school age daughter. I doubt the 3/4 wall would bother her at all.
I know that she brought at that location because of Bell school.
I think the 3/4 wall is only the first bedroom and the closet. The master bedroom and both bath walls go all the way up.
I just don’t understand the appeal of this neighborhood. I dread being invited to visit my friends who live near here since it’s just so damn far from both Lake Shore Drive and the expressway.
If You’re a movie buff, you might appreciate the historical “cachet” of living amongst the ghosts of Charlie Chaplin and other film pioneers who used this building to develop their craft (along with the Essenay building in Uptown and some of the loft buildings in the South Loop).
“so damn far”
~1.5 miles from the Kennedy.
“those frameless glass doors are expensive!”
They are, but there is a middle ground b/t that and this thing that really is as cheap as is available.