Want a Gold Coast Coach House? 1234 N. Dearborn
This coach house at 1234 N. Dearborn in the Gold Coast is part of a larger condo association. It does NOT have parking but it appears to have a rooftop deck.
There’s no square footage listed, but the room sizes are pretty generous. Both bedrooms are on the second level:
- Livingroom: 23 x 18
- Kitchen: 17 x 9
- Bedroom #1: 20 x 16
- Bedroom #2: 12 x 11
It’s bank-owned.
Does someone have “vision”?
1234 N. Dearborn #CH: 2 bedrooms, 2.5 baths
- Sold in June 2000 for $395,000
- Currently listed for $450,000
- Assessments of $335 a month
- Area Wide Realty has the listing
Great job staging! That realtor ought to be shot. I don’t care if it’s bank owned, at the very least, pick up the chairs on the patio!
Well put. I’d love to fix that place up to bad there is no parking.
Parking? Who needs parking when you got a roof top PARTY deck??
The price seems very reasonable.
I have vision – if the price was $325,000.00
the price in 2000 would have been reasonable if it didnt look like there was damage that was prob. not there when it sold for $395,000
anyone know what the taxes are?
What damage do you see?
Here’s a timeline:
11/13/2006 listed $649,000
12/18/2006 canceled
12/18/2006 listed $599,000
12/18/2006 canceled
9/21/2007 foreclosure sale to Mid-America Bk
4/3/2008 listed $460,000
price since reduced to $450,000
The last tax bills were for $7,921.90 (2006 pay 2007.) It is currently at full rate like an investor would pay. A homeowner’s exemption would lower them.
Anyone know if there are any places nearby where you could buy a parking spot? Sometimes I see relatively cheap condos in LP with no parking (sometimes 70 to 80K cheaper than comparable places with a parking spot), which often makes me wonder if it’s smarter to save the cash on the purchase price and try to find a spot for sale on the same block…or if you’re better off just renting a spot. If a parking spot in some neighborhood sells for 30K, let’s say, but there are condos with no parking selling for much more than just a 30K discount to comparable places, is it usually better to find an alternative parking arrangement? Or is it too big of a draw on appreciation when you eventually want to sell? (I wish someone would do the number crunching for me…taking into consideration property taxes on a parking spot, rental costs in different ‘hoods, etc.)
Kenworthey – I see floors that look damaged, walls that prob. need to be fixed up (it looks like there are cracks & holes in them) and based on the condition in the photos – stuff thrown all over, abandoned looking…i’m guessing the last owner didnt take great care of the place – so a decent amount of cosmetic repairs at least. Structurally the place could be great or not – that requires an inspection but basing on these pictures i would say someone is going to spend around $50k on repairs so the price should reflect that.
there are other buildings nearby where parking can be purchased or rented monthly…its just a question on resale of whether someone will be willing to walk 2-3 blks to their car…
Sabrina, is this place in the MLS? I just tried every search parameter I could think of and didn’t see it.
try looking at it through urban real estate…i found it there although it gives a different amount for property tax.
Danny,
Do you have an agent or mortgage broker? If so, ask them to run the numbers for you.
Sorry i know this is off topic…but since i am new to the chicago real estate market. I need some help. I am looking at a property right now…
Address: 1000 kingsbury chicago IL 60610
1br 1ba 780 sq feet with indoor parking
Tax: 2500 (about)
Assessment: $238 No doorman,no pool, no workout, Includes basic stuff and parking assessment is included.
Other info: Hardwood floors, upgraded countertops(granite), black appliances,washer/dryer included. NO window in the bedroom (kinda loft style) Building got rehabbed in 2003. All concrete and next to river
What would be a fair price on this unit? Please help a first time buyer.
What is the unit numer? If you have the PIN that would be easy.
Hello John,
Is that Domain or the building just south of it with the dramatic statue on top? That building was formerly plagued by special assesments. You should get a knowledgeable agent like SR or others on this site and bargain hard. An agent costs you nothing.
Nobody will even come close to paying that asking price even if they do clean the place up. To sell it in this kind of condition, the seller had better drop the price at least $100,000 and even then be prepared to negotiate.
It’s not 2005 anymore; you can’t ask nearly a half million dollars for a dump and expect to even get any offers.
John,
That is the RVL building. The building wasn’t rehabbed, rather it was new construction that was completed in late 2003. Most of those units in the ’03-’05 tier I thought had been going for anywhere from $270-$285k with a parking space in the garage attached to the building. Not sure when the last closing was in the building. It is a pretty good location. Close to brown and blue lines. Close to the loop, and that area has come a VERY long way since 2003.
Its called river village loft it is the attached to the domain’s parking lot and the unit number is 103. Thanks for the help. I just don’t want to overpay in this market…at the same time i don’t want to be priced out of the market because i think the prices are to high still. Pleae any help would be a big help thanks again guys.
Click on Knifecatchers and read the debate. You’ll never want to buy after reading it! What is the MLS number?
hey jason here is the mls #06720585 thanks
oh yeah jason do you have the article link?
John: Jason is referring to the category on the Crib Chatter home page called “knifecatchers”. There is a discussion there about the market and whether or not people should be buying now.
Also- I second the notion that you need to get a real estate agent if you are thinking about buying. A good agent will know what is what with building, what is supposed to be built (or not) nearby, the comps etc.
In this market, you should really arm yourself with all the information you can to make a fully informed offer. It’s no cost to you to have your own agent.
jason
don’t have the expertise on the value question of your proposed purchase, but i moved 3 blocks south of your unit (erie and kingsbury) ten years ago and love the area. easy to get out to the expressways and walkable to all the river north/gold coast amenities.
1. anyone who purchases without a real estate agent representing him/her is making a mistake. the buyer does NOT pay the commissions – the seller does. if the buyer does NOT have an agent, this just means the seller agent takes the entire commission. being unrepresented is like showing up at trial lawyerless when the other party has an attorney. a good agent will help his/her client LEARN what the client needs to know to make an educated, informed, careful decision.
2. this coachhouse is an amazing little oasis. i went to check it out not long ago with a colleague and am still thinking about snatching it up. this is the goldcoast. it needs work, but it is amazing and unique. unfortunately, the bank is represented by an agent who NEVER calls back and never responds to offers. annoying. for all we know, the property is under contract and he simply hasn’t bothered to change the status on the mls. heh.
A buyer pays for an agent, in an increased cost of the unit. If the buyer comes without an agent, the buyer can negotiate a lower price. A buyer who knows the market well and does his/her due diligence is not necessarily making a mistake, and is certainly not crazy. This doesn’t mean the buyer *should* forgo having an agent. Perhaps it is worth it to him/her to have someone else do the research (though of course, such a buyer will have to tolerate the fact that the buying agent’s primary interest is not in getting you to the best price, but in getting you to buy). But saying that it is “free” to the buyer is simply wrong.
Kenworthey:
I cannot tell you how many times people have written me wanting information about a property that really only an agent can give them. Yes- a buyer without an agent can find out the prior sales price and what other units have sold for in the building.
But try finding out that it was last listed 8 months ago for $50,000 more. Or two years ago and withdrawn with no sale. The sales listing actually tells you a lot about the property and only an agent can give you that information. You are at a disadvantage in the negotiating process without it (in my opinion.)
While I agree with you that having agents involved can add on costs to a property- it only helps you if both you AND the seller don’t have agents. Then, yes, the seller is usually willing to sell for a lower price (no agent cost obviously.)
If the seller already has an agent- what’s it to you as the buyer? That cost is already included in the purchase price. In fact, the seller’s agent LOVES IT if you come in without an agent because that agent gets the full 5% or 6% commission- instead of splitting it with the buyers agent.
Win-win.
And- I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve seen buyers without their own agents make offers on units and use the SELLERS’ agent! This is even more laughable. Whose interest do you think that agent is going to be for?
I do agree with you- however- that some agents simply want buyers to buy and don’t care if the price is right, the unit is right etc. But if you are a careful buyer with a good agent- it can be great for the buyers.
To me- there’s nothing but an advantage for a buyer to have his/her own agent.
Sabrina,
It is advantageous for a buyer to do an offer/transaction if they bypass the owner’s agent. This is easy enough: you already have the seller’s address.
I think this route is only really worth it if the buyer is experienced, however. This is the biggest investment decision of their lives more than likely, so they better know damn well what they’re doing.
There are other ways to get the semi-proprietary information you have mentioned. There is one here named G who apparently has it, whether he would gather this info at a reduced fee structure is of course complete speculation.
I do think the real estate agent fee model is going to have to change in the future, however, much as the stockbroker model did in the late 90’s. They earn drastically different amounts not depending on the quantity of their work but rather the list price of their property. Eventually people might wisen up and it might shift to a fee based model.
Bob: G provides us information from the MLS- and great information it is. Wouldn’t you want the information he has if you’re a buyer? I would.
The only way to get MLS information like that is to be an agent, a broker or somehow “in the industry” where you would have access to it.
Also- if you think- as a buyer, that you can somehow bypass the seller’s agent by calling them directly- I don’t see how that’s possible as the seller has a signed contract with his/her agent specifically so that that scenario doesn’t happen.
But I agree- that if you can somehow find a property that has no agent and neither do you- you can get the property for cheaper. But in this market- I haven’t seen many properties selling FSBO. There’s too much competition.
i am a real estate agent. i am also a licensed attorney (i was a litigation attorney at a large firm in the city for 3 years after graduating and passing the bar in 2001). i work in the city of chicago. this is my job/this is my life.
first, sabrina is correct — if a seller lists his/her property with an agent, the seller has a contract with that agent agreeing that the agent is given a commission if (this is the dummy version) the property sells during the tenure of the listing agreement. write the seller all you want, you’ll still end up dealing with the seller agent.
let me see if i can explain a little bit more about why you want a GOOD agent representing you (using myself, of course!, as an example) . . . .
i spend all day, every day, doing real estate (with the occasional afternoon nap or long brunch on a tuesday). i do NOT fool around. i read the news, the blogs, . . . i read the laws and monitor the changing mortgage guidelines and rates (i also have my mortgage originator license — but i don’t originate loans in this kinda market — that’s a full time job too!). i comb the mls, i talk to other agents, i drive around, i walk around. further, because of the company with which i work, i have access to the insights/experience of 150 OTHER agents who do this all day every day.
if real estate is NOT your full time occupation and you, as a buyer, have NOT negotiated 50 deals for yourself, and do NOT have the above listed advantages, you simply do NOT have the same level of professional knowledge/experience that i do — and you can bet your booty that the seller agent DOES.
you know what they say about a lawyer who represents him/herself in a court case, right?
a fool.
in the world, there are intelligent/worthwhile ways to save money.
being cheap is NOT the best way — it’s short-sited.
the rule: YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR.
there are, certainly, agents out there who do NOT represent their clients’ best interest.
i am NOT that agent. most agents are NOT that agent.
also, THANK YOU, sabrina!
i almost noted in the above post that YOU are probably the exception to the rule that a buyer needs an agent! ha!
forrealestate,
I’ve no doubt you have access to information a one-shot buyer could never have. The question is whether it is worth paying for at the rates at which your profession is offering them. A buyer *should* be able to negotiate with a seller (and of course, that seller’s agent) for a lower price on the home, if she has come to the table without an agent. In other words, the seller’s agent will not have to pay 3% to the buyer’s agent; this means there is an extra pot of money to be divided among the actors. The buyer isn’t likely to be able to get the full 3% discounted from her purchase price–but she should be able to get most of it.
As for all the information and negotiation skills that someone like you could provide, why don’t you guys sell your services either for a fixed fee, or by the hour? Tying it to the price of the home is absurd. Tying it to whether a home gets sold *at all* is absurd (and taints your loyalties).
I keep waiting and waiting for these scandalously-structured fee arrangements to end. Why haven’t they?
Kenworthey:
I have heard of situations on luxury properties where if the buyer comes without an agent- the seller’s agent marks down the fee to 3% or whatnot. Perhaps some agents can confirm that this does happen at the higher price points.
But otherwise- the agent has a contract with the seller for the 5% or 6% fee- or whatever they contracted to do. Why should the seller’s agent give up part of that simply because someone walks in the door without an agent? The marketing costs and the work of the seller’s agent is still the same. In fact- it could be MORE if the buyer comes in without an agent (because they’re usually not very knowledgeable about closing on a property etc.)
The system clearly isn’t perfect- which is why the various low cost agencies have popped up and more people are doing FSBO. But as the market tightens, it will be the best agents that rise to the top and if you really want to sell your property (or get a good deal buying), you will want to hire someone like that.
But that’s just my opinion.
i second that.
and repeat: you get what you pay for.
if i charged by the hour, many of my clients would end up paying MORE. that’s the truth. gas is 4+/gallon, and i’m filling up twice a week for my work (that’s 140×4=560 bucks per month JUST for gas).
i do million dollar deals — but i ALSO do deals for properties at 140k. and, usually, the buyer agent/agency only gets 2.25-2.5% of the purchase price.
keep in mind, also, that depending on split with an agent’s broker, the agent is NOT taking all of that home.
on a 200k condo as a buyer agent, the total buyer commission is 5000. at my agency, i would get between 1750 – 3250 of that, and my brokerage takes the rest.
it’s a LOT of work for a little money on those deals.
just an fyi.
forealestate:
I am in complete agreement with you. Ideally in the low end the percent cut works out well for the buyer and seller: the amount certainly isn’t exorbinant. But on a per transaction basis on the low end think of all the work that goes into trying to do a deal only to have buyers with unrealistic expectations or expecting exorbinant time committments from you to see 50 properties, etc.
Overall (especially when you’re talking about 300k+), I think it would be much more fair for your profession to goto an hourly rate or some other system to determine pricing. I would have no problem paying $75/hour plus expenses at the higher end. It would also give prospective buyers an incentive to do a deal more quickly, thus not wasting your time.
Given that half of all properties sell below the median and the median in Chicago is 250k, I think such a change in the model might be beneficial for most in your industry. However there is always resistance to change I suppose and theres probably a ton of regulation around how realtors are remunerated.
With the % commission model the realtors get the short end of the stick on the much more numerous lower priced properties, and the homeowners do on higher priced properties. Better incentive alignment would be beneficial for all involved parties.
Anyone who feels they can get by without their own agent can always use a broker like Buyside Realty dot com. They rebate 75% of the co-brokerage commission to the purchaser. Its not for everyone, but its definitely great for some buyers.
Sabrina,
The reason a seller’s agent would drop the commission from 5-6% down to 3% in order to close a deal with an unrepresented buyer is simple. SOME commission is better than NO commission. In a stagnant market like this, realtors are definitely more flexible in order to make a buck. This is short sighted thinking on their part, but it’s the reality of today’s market. Everything is on sale these days (homes, stocks, clothes, etc) so why wouldn’t a seller’s commission be?
Forealestae… ROFLMAO!!! If someone can not figure out comparable value in a 200 unit condo surrounded by other 200 unit condos, and post an ad by themself and wait for a phone call or e-mail to set up a showing, they do not have the faculties to be entitled to buy something in the first place. Oh you made my day with this one!!!
Oh that’s a good one!
“if real estate is NOT your full time occupation and you, as a buyer, have NOT negotiated 50 deals for yourself, and do NOT have the above listed advantages, you simply do NOT have the same level of professional knowledge/experience that i do — and you can bet your booty that the seller agent DOES.
you know what they say about a lawyer who represents him/herself in a court case, right?
a fool.”
and YES Sabrina.. on the very high high end a GOOD broker will very willingly go sub 3-4% both sides and bust there ass for it
lol.. Forrealestate.. you know why they say that expression so often about lawyers and you have never heard it said about realtors?????
getting a seller to give a broker a listing is a gift!!!!!! Oh and to return the favor lets snap a few pics with the cell phone!!!
Still ROFLMAO!!!