Foreclosure Alert: Stresses Appearing in 510 W. Erie in River North

A 1-bedroom bank-owned unit has appeared in Erie on the Park at 510 W. Erie in River North.

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A second 1-bedroom unit two floors below is also in short sale.

Is the bank-owned unit even a deal?

Here’s the listing on the bank-owned unit:

GREAT OPPORTUNITY! BANK OWNED! UPGRADED 1 BDRM/OPEN FLOOR PLAN IN FAMOUS LUCIEN LAGRANGE BLDG. DESIERABLE RIVER NORTH , BY PARK & RIVER. FLR TO CEILG WNDWS, BALCONY .

UNUBSTRUCTED CITY & PEAKS OF LAKE VIEWS. SPACIOUS KITCHEN W/ ISLAND. STAINLESS STEEL APPLN, GRANITE CTRTPS, HRDW FLRS, MRBL BTHR, W/D IN UNIT. BLDG W/24 HR DRMN & GYM. GARAGE INCLUDED!! SPECIAL ADDENDUM AND PREQUAL THRU CHL REQUIRED.

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Re/Max Villager has the listing. See more pictures here.

Unit #1308: 1 bedroom, 1.5 baths, 860 square feet

  • Sold in July 2002 for $264,000
  • Sold in October 2002 for $287,000
  • Sold in January 2006 for $340,000
  • Lis pendens filed in September 2007
  • Bank-owned as of September 2008
  • Currently listed for $327,900 (includes the parking spot)
  • Assessments of $518 a month
  • Taxes of $3595

Here’s the listing for the short sale, Unit #1108:

Wow!!! Short Sale Deal! Sixty thousand dollar reduction on desirable unit in Lucian LaGrange building. Parking included in price.

Brazilian cherry hardwood floors, balcony, w/d, imported cabinetry, stainless, granite and marble. Heat and air included in asses. Make an offer, foreclosure imminent.

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Barbara Weaver at Baird & Warner has the listing. See more pictures here (if that B&W link doesn’t work properly.)

Unit #1108: 1 bedroom, 1.5 baths, 860 square feet

  • Sold in August 2002 for $267,000
  • Lis pendens filed in September 2008
  • Currently listed as a “short sale” for $299,000 (includes the parking)
  • Assessments of $497
  • Taxes of $3442

30 Responses to “Foreclosure Alert: Stresses Appearing in 510 W. Erie in River North”

  1. To answer your questions Sabrina… No this is not a deal and the unit will not sell for what they are asking. I walked through each of these units this weekend and they are average. $260k would be a safe price to purchase but nothing more…

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  2. I agree with Steve. What does this unit in are those ridiculous assessments. What is an owner getting for $6,000/year in assessments?

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  3. Bob: Q: “What is an owner getting for $6,000/year in assessments?”

    A: “24 HR DRMN & GYM”

    A: “Heat and air included in asses”

    And hopefully a well-funded maintenance reserve.

    It is a hoot that 2 floors higher = 3.6% higher assessment.

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  4. Some well paid doorman. Yeah it is a hoot because the doorman probably lives two floors higher.

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  5. “Some well paid doorman.”

    Found that there are 124 units in the building. 24-hour doorman is a minimum of 4 FTEs; so that’s over $1000/year/unit, is equally divided, and more likely $1500-1800/yr/unit–in other words, the doorman might be as much as 25% of the assessment (probably less, but who knows).

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  6. I never liked doormen. I always went thru the back to avoid them. Kind of wird having someone you need to think of things to say to

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  7. Just don’t say anything and let them sleep. I think doormen are really paid to provide a false sense of security to residents. Not sure what they could really do other than prevent vandalism to common areas and take delivery of packages. Nine out of ten times they don’t seem to be worth the additional assessments.

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  8. Hey Bob – You can say the same thing about roughly 80% of corporate America. Serfing the net is the national past time of a good work day. Fire them all!!

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  9. Just have to put my worthless 2 pennies in on this doorman thing.

    Our previous condo on Astor was staffed by 24hr. doormen and 24 hr. car parkers. According to the annual budget report their respective salaries increased every year…along with our monthly assessments. Our building’s employees also ran a “limo/delivery” service on the side (during their paid shifts I might add),not only for the residents but for the amazingly wealthy neighbors. Translate: TIPS TIPS VERY BIG TIPS. Further, every year a letter would be placed at our door with each employee’s full name “in case we would like to remember them” at Christmastime! Translate: TIPS TIPS VERY BIG TIPS.

    My husband and I figured each doorman to be making in excess of 100K considering the bulk of their income is cash money honey. The best gig in town however is the night car parker in that building. The majority of residents are “of a certain age” and typically are safely tucked in by 9pm. His shift begins at 11pm. He punches in, goes into the cute little room with the TV and barcalounger, catches up on his programs, then it’s goodnight moon (or Irene depending on your age group :-))

    It took 8 years for us to “see the light.” We were unbelievably fortunate to have sold and closed just before the bottom fell out. Now, I just need to figure out where to go for Doorman Training.

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  10. Your doorman hates you. 🙂

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  11. Doorman are paid based upon a union contract (which puts them at a base of about 35-38k right now). They are hourly employee’s eligible for overtime. Yes, they can make tip money, but the vast majority of them are not in super luxury buildings and do not make anything close to what the previous poster noted.

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  12. I know a thing or 2 about doorman.

    Depending on your building (union or not), doorman generally make $10-$15 per hour. That’s anywhere from $20k to $35k a year.

    If they are union, each doorperson costs about $50K to the Association (including benefits, payroll taxes, etc.). Thus, 4 doorpeople = $200K in assessments.

    Erie on the Park is non-union, so the total cost to the building is much less – around $150k annually. Thus, if there are 124 units, it would be about $1200 per unit.

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  13. Do they have a freaking 12 year old as their listing agent? DESIERABLE and UNUBSTRUCTED are not words. I wouldn’t buy for that reason alone. What is the listing agent doing to earn their keep?

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  14. forgot to add this one:
    UNUBSTRUCTED CITY & PEAKS OF LAKE VIEWS. Unobstructed from other buildings maybe, but there’s also a GIANT cross section obstructing the window.

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  15. “Doorman are paid based upon a union contract (which puts them at a base of about 35-38k right now). They are hourly employee’s eligible for overtime. Yes, they can make tip money, but the vast majority of them are not in super luxury buildings and do not make anything close to what the previous poster noted.”

    My sources confirm this information as true except the base salary is actually a bit lower than $35-38, it’s more like $28k-$33 with time and a half overtime. Supervisors make in the $40’s. In some stratas of society a job as a parking attendant is a good job – unionized, good pay, health benes, stable employment, fairly easy work, no formal education necessary. People who get those parking attendant jobs generally keep them for a long time.

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  16. Homedelete I agree completely. Its only the RN snobs who associate one’s formal education with one’s status and not income who are the ones really losing out (see Margo’s post). Only in River North and similar areas would these people be looked down upon. The rest of us who aren’t subject to a caste mentality likely wouldn’t spring for the added cost of doormen nor would we understand why one would. Margo said it best: eight years of that increased expense and for what? I’m puzzled it took her eight years to figure out when from looking at the assessments it took me two minutes.

    There are plumbers/welders/etc who earn more than those with grad degrees. I’d be laughing all the way to the bank too if I were a doorman. Anyone who says a ‘blue collar’ but well remunerated employee is somehow lower on the totem pole than say a social worker with a grad degree needs a reality check.

    *disclosure: not ‘working class’ as traditionally defined by occupation but I don’t have many characteristics of the ‘refined’ class people either.

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  17. Bob:

    What can I say? I’m a sloooow learner.

    BTW, I would never begrudge anyone from ekeing out a great living wherever they can. My only gripe was that the doormen/car parkers were performing duties resulting in MAJOR LEAGUE $$$ for the neighbors with deep pockets, one of whom owns a hotel chain :-0, while on the clock. And, what’s up with paying a guy to sleep for 8 hours? As a quick aside, of the 8 full-timers (including engineer assistants)and 2 part-timers, 6 were blood relatives!!!

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  18. ChiGuy:

    They just don’t have a brain, or spell check for that matter.

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  19. People want doormen because it sounds great in a listing I guess.
    Most doormen I have seen couldnt run 10 feet without passing out.
    But if you got one, you dont want to pay them a McWage. You want to hire a guy who can pass a REAL background check and you dont want to be hiring a new guy every 2 months.

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  20. ” Looper,
    they can make tip money, but the vast majority of them are not in super luxury buildings and do not make anything close to what the previous poster noted. ”

    Also include contractors pay $50 a day low ( west side ) $100 a day high ( gold coast ) for timely accesses to the roof, boiler room, loading docks, power rooms. Without tipping we notice additional 2 hours to a standard 8 hour job. With a labor rate of $110 an hour we save the building/condo owner an hour and add on the tip. Some of the best doorman setup parking which saves the building quite a bit in billable hours. Now add up all the contractors ( plumbing, HVAC, electrical, elevator, sprinklers, etc… ) the come through a building a month and $100K a year is reasonable.

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  21. Margo,

    I am in agreement with you too. I have been in jobs where the idle rate is higher than doormen and the hours are indeed third shift. The difference is that you better _not be out_ fiddling if rome is burning (ie the crap is hitting the fan). Most jobs like this are cake 95%+ of the time, so long as you mind the store. Jobs with odd hours that pay well with high downtime exist because you better be damn well aware of the other times and what you need to do. If your doormen in your example were abdicating their simple responsibility I would be enraged. And that is painting how I would fell in the best light possible.

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  22. I just don’t like doormen because I don’t like the interaction and having to use Visine so much. I get the need many people see in having one. In NYC it is a must for almost any woman.

    Now a great doorman – this morning my doorman just called to schedule the 3rd showing he has set up for me this week. My bet is he will have one hell of a Christmas.

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  23. Gotta chime in one more time. Our previous building’s live-in engineer has, hand’s down the BEST JOB IN CHICAGO. His annual salary, again according to the annual budget, is 100K. Union rules require annual salary increases regardless of the economic climate. He lives in the building with his family paying absolutely NOTHING. No rent, no parking fee ($250/mo is the going rate for residents and he has 2 cars), no assessments. Now then, unless it is an absolute emergency he is NEVER to be called (he is not a “super”)after his hours of business that begin @ 7am and end promptly @ 3pm M-F only. Lunch and 2 breaks are included in that time.

    The residents, as I mentioned earlier, are “of a certain age group” and daily call upon the engineer to, for example change a light bulb on a table lamp. For that, they happily tip him a 20. Without blinking an eye, he happily accepts. I bore witness to this and so many other occurrences over the 8 years of being a resident. Do the math and this guy must be making “billions.”

    Beware of live-in engineers who ARE NOT “supers.” You will pay dearly for that “luxury” as well.

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  24. A full-service building is what a lot of people require, due to their busy careers and life-style. What’s the big deal about having a doorman for security and for all the other amenities they provide (taxis, receiving packages, arranging assistance for car problems, guest parking, etc., etc.)? And, for those of you who think RN is not worth the price, thank you. Many of us who live here couldn’t be happier with the location, the proximity to all the city has to offer, and the great variety of residential options, including this one from Lucien LaGrange. When Steve Heitman suggest these units are worth $260K, then I know to ignore all future posts by the guy. He hasn’t got a clue!

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  25. John.. just learned that?

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  26. Hey John – we will see what they close at?

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  27. These units rent for $1,650 per month. You do the math and try to rationalize a $330k price. It does not work… Plus your views will be blocked once they build that 15 story building across the street. Only a very small percentage care who built it and it really has no affect on pricing for resales.

    It is a simple building on the edge of a good neighborhood. Any time you are limited to walking in 2 direction when you leave your home it is a negative. Walk west and you get wet and walk south and please be careful.

    Just my 2 cents…

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  28. I should have said walk “north” and be careful.

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  29. i was under contract for the 1108 unit for 75 days and the sellers bank finally responded and refused my offer of 270000. If the sellers agent had actually notified the bank that they were conducting a short sale, the wait would have been around one week. Even after countless emails, they still waited 65 days to file the necessary paperwork.

    is the market to blame or just incompetent agents?

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  30. Whomever bought this one bedroom if it was anywhere near ask made a poor financial decision.

    Unit 905 came on the market on February 24th, 2011. It is a two bedroom two bath unit with 1,225 square feet listed for $348k. Parking is an additional $30k. That’s $378,000 total.

    Price per square foot of the short sale unit featured on this listing in 2008 (incl parking) = $347.

    Price per square foot for a buyer today in 2011 (incl parking) = $308.

    Lluerna I think you owe the incompetent bankers a hug because it appears their ineptitude saved you from making a poor financial decision.

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