Prices Slashed at RD 659: 659 W. Randolph in the West Loop

We’ve chattered about new construction high-rise, RD 659, at 659 W. Randolph in the West Loop numerous times in the last year as it just started closings and some buyers had trouble obtaining financing.

Thanks to the tipsters who sent me information about the “bank liquidation pricing” that started on the remaining available units over the weekend.

According to someone who was in the sales center, it was a “madhouse.”

Are these reduced prices going to set the new floor for the west loop?

Here is a sample of some the reductions:

01 Tier: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1147 square feet, Northeast facing

  • Old Price: $459,000-$492,000
  • New Price: $341,000-$367,000
  • Parking included
  • Assessments of $430 a month

Tier 05: 1 bedroom plus den, 2 baths, 988 square feet, North facing

  • Old Price: $409,000-$421,000
  • New Price: $293,000-$301,000
  • Parking included
  • Assesments of $370 a month

Tier 18: 1 bedroom, 1 bath, 840 square feet, South facing

  • Old Price: $342,000-$369,000
  • New Price: $254,000-$260,000
  • Parking Included
  • Assessments of $317 a month

Tier 20: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1200 square feet, Southeast facing

  • Old Price: $482,000-$500,000
  • New Price: $357,000-$372,000
  • Parking Included
  • Assessments of $450 a month

Tier 11: 1 bedroom, 1 bath, 654 square feet, West facing

  • Old Price: $273,000-$276,000
  • New Price: $192,000-$194,000
  • No Parking with these units- wait list for a spot
  • Assessments of $244 a month

Chris McComas at @Properties is handling sales. According to his latest stats, 25 units have closed but the building is 51% sold.

You can see pictures of the model unit here.

You can see floorplans at the RD 659 website (where there’s no mention of the price cuts.)

400 Responses to “Prices Slashed at RD 659: 659 W. Randolph in the West Loop”

  1. Those prices are pretty close to the floor for that neighborhood. It will be interesting to see how deep the market is at 30 percent off. My guess is deep, and with “real” buyers.

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  2. Anybody who pays 200k for a 650sqft 1/1 without parking is a maroon.

    Matt what leads you to the conclusion that these prices are the floor for the area? There doesn’t appear to be a price floor for this area to me.

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  3. Anyone know if these prices include the old deal of a 1.5% discount from the market mortgage rate?

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  4. HC- Website still says they have 1.5% off

    Starting to seem like decent prices but I think west loop should be @ 200K 1br and 300K 2br.

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  5. Bob look what happened at Pure. Bank cuts prices 30 percent and 20 units sell in 3 days. Plus you get back closer to rent buy equilibrium, although not all the way.

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  6. The website also doesn’t list the new price discounts. I doubt it’s up-to-date.

    I’m sure they’ll sell quite a few units at the new prices. It’s brand new construction in a great location, with some solid amenities.

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  7. Good point but I recall the Pure discounts seemed a lot steeper. I remember they had a 2/2 listed for 230s. Pure prices were similar to Vetro: around $225-250/sf. These prices aren’t even close to that and this is (arguably) a worse location.

    At the entry level the Pure discounts were at least 20% cheaper than these: 160s for the 680sf unit, a lot cheaper than the 190s without parking for 650sf the developer is shooting for here.

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  8. The floor is when the developer rents 25% of the units to section 8 tenants…..we’re nowhere near the ‘floor’.

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  9. People will buy these up like crazy. Pretty good pricing for a new construction modern building.

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  10. Matt Garrison on June 1st, 2009 at 8:18 am

    The Pure discounts were steeper. I think they discounted more than they needed to. We will see, I think its within 10% of the floor for new construction in this area.

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  11. Just closed @ 565 W Quincy 2bd/2ba for $367k. Parking not included (I don’t have a car.) We looked at RD but were put off by the high prices. We live in that area and walk past RD all the time, it seems eerily empty. Quincy is now overpriced compared to RD due to the parking. But Quincy has bowling lanes which is pretty unique. Anyway I bought it to live in long term, at least that’s the plan.

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  12. Probably getting close to a floor. Assuming a buyer puts no money down courtesy of the taxpayers, it doesn’t quite pencil when compared to the cost to rent. Probably be looking at 2,100-2,200 per month (net of tax benefit) for the 2/2. Think you could rent it cheaper than that.

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  13. this place is up against/overlooking the Kennedy.

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  14. Another 10% needs to be knocked off in my opinion.

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  15. “Probably getting close to a floor.”

    I don’t think we’ll know floor numbers in South Loop until at least or year or two from now. There is just so much supply coming online this year and transaction volume is at unusually low levels (re: almost nonexistent). Until volume returns and these units set for delivery flood the market it might be tough to call a floor.

    Should definitely be some killer deals from renting in that area in the meantime if you don’t mind the neighborhood.

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  16. this must be inflationary….

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  17. Seen the yield curve lately?

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  18. This place is near the Kennedy but I don’t think noise would be a factor. I live in Skybridge, but on the west side of the building (away from the Kennedy) and I can’t hear anything.

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  19. Bob: this building is not the south loop at all, this is the trendy west loop, much more happening area 🙂

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  20. “the trendy west loop”

    I hadn’t realized that the land b/t the river and the freeway had become “trendy”. Isn’t this area best described as Prez Towers + Train Stations?

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  21. Seen the yield curve lately?
    and your point is?

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  22. I visited the sales center about a year ago. No one was there except the girl at the front desk. She said I could wait for someone or take a look around on my own. I looked around, and I liked what I saw. No sales person ever showed up so I left my name and no one ever called. I took my $288k to another developer.

    Maybe they have to slash prices because they have idiots trying to sell the units.

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  23. Is there any additional pricing reduction information on the other tiers?

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  24. forrealestate on June 1st, 2009 at 10:16 am

    how is the quality of the finishes in the bldg?
    hollow doors? laminate floors? or . . .

    which tiers are free-way facing?
    anybody remember?
    🙂

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  25. anon(tfo),

    Oh behind on nomenclature my friend. In fact just the other day I got some random gal in a tizzy for informing her she didn’t live in “The Loop” but rather in West Loop because it was this area between the river and highway. She definitely wasn’t having any of it.

    The new Loop, according to the youngins it appears, is out to the highway, the West Loop, is from the highway out to United Center? LOL.

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  26. “informing her she didn’t live in “The Loop” but rather in West Loop because it was this area between the river and highway”

    I’d have said she lived near the train station. Or next to the off-ramp. Like homeless people do. In a non-neighborhood. You need to try harder to irritate these sorts.

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  27. Reading these comments provided me enough laughter for days. Thanks! Someone actually thinks that a one bedroom with garage parking in the West Loop should be $200k.

    Just like a Mastercard commercial… these comments are priceless.

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  28. I’ve been in every single 2BR floor plan in the building. Every single one has something not to like about it. On the other hand, it is better than most new construction in the West Loop.

    I had a bunch of questions they couldn’t answer, but this sudden drop in prices does answer one of them (IE, when do they actually start trying to sell off the unsold units).

    Bottom line is that this area is still being deluged with rental construction. You can rent a 2BR for less than $2500 per month (including cable/internet/heat/AC) all day long and with the construction schedules for the currently under construction buildings the rates will NOT be going up for at least 2 to 3 years. Prices for R+D still need to drop more before it’s worth buying here.

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  29. The only Tier that seems even close to being a deal is Tier 20 considering it’s small size and proximity to the Expressway. When did sales start in this building?

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  30. “The only Tier that seems even close to being a deal is Tier 20 considering it’s small size and proximity to the Expressway.”

    ?? Tier 20 is the furthest from the E-way and is basically the largest non-PH unit, so I’m confused.

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  31. I just don’t understand the market here. I mean on this forum, everyone complains the prices are too high for what is offered. Now we get a new very nice building offering huge discounts and it seems it is still not good enough.
    Now what happens to those who buy at these new low prices, occupies the unit for 5+ years and there is no appreciation b/c of the low initial pricing? Buy low and it stays low, then what?
    I was pretty impressed with the 2/2’s here, but for a building this size to be out of parking at this stage is pretty ridiculous. Isn’t it a requirement for new developments to offer at least one parking space per unit?

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  32. Okay.. So I’m supposed to check this place out later today.. Any word of advice from guys who’ve been there already?

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  33. “Isn’t it a requirement for new developments to offer at least one parking space per unit?”

    Not “downtown”. City wants to encourage being car-less.

    “occupies the unit for 5+ years and there is no appreciation b/c of the low initial pricing”

    How does that work WL? Pay more for something and it’s worth MORE in the future? So, Damien Hirst’s “works” will all be that much *more* profitable for their initial buyers than Picasso’s? Isn’t it always better to pay LESS?

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  34. “I mean on this forum, everyone complains the prices are too high for what is offered. Now we get a new very nice building offering huge discounts and it seems it is still not good enough.”

    I can say with supreme confidence that people on this “forum” are not representative of the entire wealthy population of Chicago.

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  35. “Now what happens to those who buy at these new low prices, occupies the unit for 5+ years and there is no appreciation b/c of the low initial pricing? Buy low and it stays low, then what?”

    What happens then? Perhaps, after a long healing/rehab process, they regain some use of their fingers.

    As long as they wrap them in ice and get right to the ER upon closing, that is.

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  36. How do you know this with supreme confidence Sonies?

    “I can say with supreme confidence that people on this “forum” are not representative of the entire wealthy population of Chicago.”

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  37. “What happens then?”

    G, c’mon, if you pay more for it now, someone will *obviously* pay more for it in the future. It’s so obvious, I’m going to have to run down there and buy all of them at their higher asking prices–in 5 years, I’ll be rich!

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  38. Because if you were a real lawyer that actually made good money you wouldn’t have time to post on a real estate blog as a renter all day long.

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  39. anon, I always knew there was a driving principle in that ‘riches to riches’ story.

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  40. “lawyer that actually made good money you wouldn’t have time to post on a real estate blog as a renter all day long”

    The richest lawyers spend most of their time not really working–they’re all class action and PI folks. He’s just working the class-action-mortgage-fraud angle.

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  41. Actually, during the last year and a half I’ve been in my office a significant majority of my waking hours, including weekends (But not this past weekend thank god). So I figure I can spend a minute or two here and there posting. No needs for the personal attack Sonies, somebody’s having a bad Monday.

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  42. Sonies.. technically to be representative of an “entire” population, then by definition wouldn’t you have to literally be the entire population?

    And since the internet I thought the senior guys spent most of their time cruisin for teenage girls. Ever think how many people Steve Case is indirectly responsible for getting laid. Truly impressive.

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  43. Sonies IS the entire population, hence his supreme confidence. Must be nice up there looking down on the rest of us plebians.

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  44. Haha you’re right bob, let me tell you…

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  45. No posts yet from the FBs who were YELLING around here about the great building they would have since they had to jump through hoops to close (at original prices) and how that kind of commitment would only increase their sense of community and love of their home?

    I sure hope the sane voices among them stuck to their guns and did not close.

    If 25 units have closed and 51% “sold,” I don’t believe they understand the meaning of “sold.” There are 237 units. 51% sold would be 122 units max, less the 25 closed means there are 97 contracts at underwater prices that only a fool would close.

    I would think most will run away from their deposits and thank their lucky stars that the decision was made obvious for them.

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  46. This building certainly was a victim of bad timing and bad pricing

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  47. Here is some more info on the new pricing:
    http://www.659wrandolph.com/Listings.html

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  48. These prices are decent for where the market is *right now*. The problem is that the market is nowhere near the bottom yet. So if you don’t have to buy *right now* you are better off waiting. Buying now is still knife catching.

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  49. The problem is that some of these are still priced too high. Some are priced right, but like I said, some still too high. If you look at the 05 and 06 tiers which are the 1 bed plus den with 2 baths, they are still priced at around $300/sq ft or higher. How is that a deal? I understand that these are considered deals from what the prices were originally, and some of the other units are listed at under $300 per sq ft, but in this economic market, I would highly call paying $300/sq ft a deal. They aren’t even in the real west loop or at least the more desireable part a little more west (this is in the ficticious west loop). The fact of the matter is that they are priced competitevely, but they won’t be ultra-deals until they get down to some of the other buildings levels that had these price cuts in the $265/sq ft range.

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  50. I heard that they signed 33 contracts this weekend. As for the mortgage rate, apparently there were a limited number of those deals available and there is a good chance they are used up, but I don’t have a final answer yet.

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  51. I guess I didn’t state my thoughts well, as usual…
    If this is not the market bottom (so doom and gloom) that many of you are looking forward to, to buy at this hugely discounted price you would be overpaying, right? Say in 5-10 years when the market rebounds and Chicago had captured the Olympics (I see that as only adding to the RE woes rather than helping) then you would only be breaking even if you were looking to sell your unit?
    Something is seriously wrong with this picture and I realized that, as I am sure many of you did, during the explaination of the special financing ideas this building offered when I first toured it.
    Regardless, I just don’t get the mindset of many here in seeking dirt cheap housing. You do end up getting what you pay for and at $265/sq ft you can’t seriously expect too much can you?
    And yes Sonies, you are correct about CC not being a representation of the monied population of Chicago, that is clear…

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  52. “You do end up getting what you pay for and at $265/sq ft you can’t seriously expect too much can you?”

    Oh, come on. For 10%+ over the median metro-area price, one sure as hell can expect something more than 1000 sq ft overlooking the freeway. Would I expect the same in NYC? Nope, b/c I’m not an idiot.

    WL–Now I get what you were saying–but of course those who don’t feel it’s cheap enough think that prices are going lower–if they didn’t, then they’d think it was cheap enough. It’s a truism, man.

    I think that these are probably “cheap enough” for what the units themselves are, but that the implied value of the location is still too high–ask yourself “if you dropped these exact same units into another location would they be more or less”–I think moving these a few blocks any direction (except directly along the E-way) makes them more worth the price, and, as has been noted, there are vaguely comparable south loop units available for *less* psf, so I think these have some room to go down, especially with *at least* 49% still available as of 3 days ago.

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  53. How many people actually bought for those old prices? I’m thinking few, if any – or at least I hope – for their sake.

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  54. OK. people, you should buy it if you are a serious buyer now. I have been waiting for this moment. RD659 has the location location location!

    Talking about Pure, i heard the bank will release some new units soon, but they will be priced much higher than the ones released in the previous round.

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  55. i did buy in this building over the weekend and there was a lot of people signing while we were in and out at different times. I know it may not be the bottom but I was happy with my purchase. I am renting from an owner in a nearby building and was considering buying in the same building but RD659 had comparable if not lower prices b4 the parking (which was free at RD659).

    As for noise I was very concerned and it is actually not bad at all minus the 2br unit on the northwest side. I bought on the other side and could not even hear the road from inside.

    The financing is still 1.5 off current market if you put atleast 15% down.

    I’m happy with my purchase and plan to live there for a long time.

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  56. oh and i think the initial issue with financing was due more to the market and peoples loans getting pulled back when they cracked down on approving every loan that comes across the desk. but there are sour grapes there for many i suppose and will look at it differently.

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  57. This is on the other side of the expressway from what I’d normally consider the West Loop, but there’s plenty of nightlife around Halsted and Randolph. A couple of bars, 2 Indian restaurants, 2 sushi places, and several other restaurants are within a half mile walk.

    Things can get a bit dicey when the clubs let out (Thursday nights at Mannequin can attract a Latino gangbanger crowd, pretty much every night at Shadow Bar can attract a shady crowd), but overall, not much happens around here.

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  58. Even if the Pure soon to be released units were priced $100k above these places it would be a better investment idea to go with that building. Having considering both buildings awhile ago, the layouts, location and the units themselves are a better fit for me. I am only looking at the top floor, largest sf units so I am not sure how the smaller units would compare.
    True anon(tfo), that next to the 90 location is not at all acceptable to me. Same with Trio on DesPlaines down the street, if you don’t have an east facing top level unit I think the noise and dirt would drive one crazy.
    Speaking of Trio, is that yet another not complete abandoned building? I have not seen any work on it since around November and it does appear to be deteriorating rapidly. What were these developers thinking?

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  59. My son looked at RD and Quincy but after researching the developers he felt more comfortable with the integrity of the people at Belgravia. Having grown up in South Florida it was refreshing to work with people that were not trying to sell out to flippers which in the long run devalues the property. I hope Belgravia is able to take their time and maintain the value of his home. He would not be happy to see a similar unit priced 25-30% less than the price he paid weeks before. Those RD people would be smart to refund money to the early buyers to maintain their reputation. But they might have the same idea as the developers that swoop into Fl and take the money and run leaving HOA’s in a mess with increasing assessments.

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  60. i posted here last winter. I’m a holdout contracted purchaser who didn’t close and I’m now quite glad of it despite the tounglashing I received here for being a “sore loser.” I’ll be closing at about a 30% discount off my oringal contract price, incl upgrades and parking. Not feeling like a loser, no.. not so much.. Feeling pretty smart, actually. Only a few of those who comprised the 47% under contract as of 12/08 actually closed and they wer 20 somethings afraid of being sued by the big bad corporation. With an empty building there are fewer owners to piss off. I’ll be enjoying this building now that I don’t have to worry about asssessments for unsold units. VINDICATED!!!

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  61. anon – so did the developer let you out of your original contract without any penalties?

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  62. To those of you who think parking is sold out…..the garage is completely empty.

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  63. heard they sold 35 units over the weekend.

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  64. Yes. They can’t afford not to. Mesirow is finally figuring out what a group of about 40 contracted purchasers knew 4 months ago. I guess Mesirow’s lender, like so many others, just wants its money.

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  65. Has anyone offered lower then what they are asking now? Any extra incentives that can be offered? Credit back? Closing Cost? Closing Credit. Any info would help

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  66. Anon, have you already had your lawyer go over the purchase contract? we had ours look at it today and suggested a lot of changes (said that is normal – sorry i am a 1st time buyer), are you asking for any changes? being as hardheaded as this developer seemed to be in the past, i am wondering if we will get any of it modified without pulling teeth.

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  67. bump 😉

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  68. Walk into this place, offer them 5-10% under what they quote plus parking, and they’ll probably trip over themselves as they throw a contract at you. They’d be stupid not to.

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  69. I am sad that I actually took the time to read all of these asnine quotes. This is as close to the bottom as you will get. The capitulation phase of the market has begun.By the time those of you who are actually interested and able to buy decide on something, it will be too late and you will pay more than what they are selling at now. I am a decently successful investor over the years. I have made both good and some bad decisions. Mostly good or I would not have bought one of these this past weekend. I have an agent friend who told me about what they did.
    It is an insane deal on a quality building in what I consider a better location than all the ones talked about in prior posts.
    A buddy of mine took me to Pure to buy a bulk amount. The bank said no. Then they dropped to what we would have sold them at. Then, I heard the bank was dumb enough not to sign a deal becasue they were too low.
    After the whole development team has basically been indicted for fraudulant activity, the offers were too low. I am glad we did not buy there.
    You don’t think Quincy will lower prices after all the units close or when those guarantees expire?
    Good luck. Belgravia is a fine development company but they want to make money as well.
    In terms of inventory, there will be no buildings built non rental for five years or more in that area. There is no better time to buy new construction at the right price.
    I feel it is the right price. My purchase is valid. If I am wrong I will pay the price. But that is the game.
    I just called over there and spoke to my guy.
    There are 236 units. At the time they started closing, they had 112 contracts. At this point, 55 have closed. 45 may still close and apparently have a chance to pay the lower price. As of 4:30, they have 51 contracts total with money. They have written over 60 but some have changed their minds.
    Buyers there that I saw are all buying as their home. I was told I was one of 3 investors that they had worked with.
    Enjoy the rumors. That is what the net is about but at least talk from fact.

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  70. Jason E. I am one who may be closing soon on a unit too. Would you be willing to chat with me regarding your unit. I want to make sure I negotiate the best possible deal. email is bbi@uicalumni.org – I would like to chat over the phone if your cool with it.

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  71. Jason – Are you also getting the contract modified? seems heavily favored to the seller (obviously since they made it! lol) Meeting with a lawyer next week to iron things out. I hope they expect people to come back want revisions.

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  72. FYI -> I signed a contract at pure. After taking in 70% of the units in the building, the bank took the contracts and sat on them (this was four weeks ago) and has taken all units off the market. They are currently unavailable and the sales agent has not indicated when they will re-emerge and at what price.

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  73. NQ and mac
    I am not at regular on this site but found it very interesting so I am back. I tried to negoitiate with them to no avail. Even left and came back a day later. The unit I wanted was gone but there was another like it so I jumped on it. Paid full price. I figured if I got anything it would have been so miniscule over the life of my owning it. I I try to hold anythign for 5 to 10 years.
    The contract is always more for the developer. I am aware of the three months assessments at close and the transfer stamps. I would estimate that the units are at the moment 10% under market. That gives me enough solace that I can withstand any downward pressure on the price for a while if there is any.
    It is a solid buy. I won’t think much about it for the first two years. The real growth will happen in years 2-5. But if I had to get out, I think I could clean with some profit in 1.5-2.

    Good luck. Everyone has to make their own decisions. IT is not for everybody. But if you were buying now and you like the building. It is the best deal out there. I wish I was moving in. That 1.5% thing is great if you can get it. I am an investor but could not. Still buying because I would pay the same rate somewhere else.

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  74. Jason E.
    Flippers love Fl. If you want to buy in bulk from fraudulant developers like you tried to make a deal on,according to your post, come on down. We have a lot of units in great locations by the interstate. You can get them for 50% less than the original buyers. Of course the developers have moved on to other states now because we all know they have no cash flow. And yes I’m sure other developers will play the same game then be unable to sell in Chicago and come to Fl. It has been happening here since the 20’s and if you needed an agent to tell you what happened you have not been paying attention to the market. So please opportunity knocks in Florida.

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  75. I also signed a contract at Pure and never got a reply (4 weeks ago). If anyone can give me some more answers on that it would be more than greatly appreciated. The selling agent there has eluded to the fact that the bank has leins or legal issues with the property, but I don’t know how to research it further.
    I am looking at the units in this building this week and hope that I like them as much as I loved the one at Pure.
    How many people here haven’t heard back about Pure? Any more advice for both buildings is much appreciated.

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  76. This thread has quickly become reminiscent of people defending the benefits of Amway and other multi-level-marketing schemes.

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  77. Amway doesn’t offer the leverage that RE speculation does.

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  78. “It is a solid buy. I won’t think much about it for the first two years. The real growth will happen in years 2-5. But if I had to get out, I think I could clean with some profit in 1.5-2.”

    Jason E:

    Just curious how you think you’ll make a profit in 1.5 to 2 years when other nearby buildings have not seen much appreciation for years?

    Buyers should look at Skybridge- right across the highway. It was an award winning building (won all those “best new high rise condo building” awards back in the boom years.)

    I haven’t looked recently- but not too long ago it STILL wasn’t sold out and it’s been completed for awhile. I’ve chattered about foreclosures in that building. It’s not like the owners are making a killing- even those who have owned for years.

    Also- isn’t anyone else concerned about the 20-30 homeowners in RD 659 who DID close on their units at much higher prices? They are underwater by a lot of money. It will take years and years to recoup that kind of difference.

    How many will stick around and wait it out versus just turning in the keys?

    If you bought your 2-bedroom at $450,000 and everyone else is paying $350,000 for the same thing- how long will it take to get back up to $450,000? (when we even start to see actual appreciation- which isn’t happening yet.)

    Many homeowners won’t stick around because of life changes.

    Barron’s had some interesting statistics about how many homeowners are underwater now- and it includes 25% of all prime borrowers.

    I’ll leave it up to you guys to debate what that means for future home prices (and mobility).

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  79. interesting point about the sky bridge. that got all sorts of great press when it was completed, though i also recall construction stalled out for a while (maybe early 2001). It’s a cool looking building, similarly next to the expressway but much taller so some units might have more buffer. if it’s still not sold out that doesnt bode well for this one.

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  80. I saw on some foreclosure search engine that there was a forclosure at skybridge for $448k.

    Anyhow..We bought at RD659 to live there for many years. I like living between the river and the highway (maybe i’m the only one). I currently rent nearby RD659 and do not have any complaints. minus the occasional crazy person walking by lol

    It does suck for those who already closed at the higher prices. I’m surprised anyone would pay that much. I remember going to the RD659 model kitty corner to the building last year… we couldnt believe how high the prices were, but i guess some people thought it was reasonable. but to each their own, I like the building and it was a price i thought was worth it compared to my other options (the edge,quincy,150s jefferson, etc).

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  81. You can read about skybridge in this old post from 2007:

    Skybridge

    It looks like there are currently 9 units for sale in Skybridge.

    But you can also look at any of the buildings in this immediate vicinity- 165 N. Canal, for instance. It’s not like they’re making any new loft buildings right on the river but there hasn’t been much appreciation in the building for the last several years.

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  82. Jason E. You are part of the problem, not the solution. No new construction project needs “investors” who are purchasing more than one unit. Hopefully this building will be owner occupied as I am a contracted purchaser who doesn’t intend to rent their unit. You clearly are ignorant of the Chicago market, esp. the west and s. loop if you feel you’re going to make $ in 1.5-2 years on this unit. Look at all sales in the w. and s. loop in the last 6 months, and compare sq. footage prices; you clearly haven’t. Maybe if the other owners are lucky, the stringent underwritig standards will lock you out. Clearly you’re a moron. Maybe the banks have learned something after all.

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  83. I think the only safe plan for this place is if you like the area (for whatever reasons), plan on staying here for a while and can afford the monthly nut. If that’s the case, then go nuts! Enjoy!

    Are realtors in the west loop still using the phrase “up and coming?” Yeah. Uh huh.

    I know it has been mentioned before by other posters on this site, but people need to get back into the mindset that they are primarily buying a place to live and secondly purchasing a slow growth asset – that should hopefully outpace inflation.

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  84. Hearing almost 100 contracts since the price drop. Anyone else hear the same? What is the success rate of contracts to closing downtown these days?

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  85. Be careful of the ‘price guarantee’ on 565 Quincy. They were guaranting that if they reduce the price on another unit that has a ‘common relationship’ to the unit that you buy, then you will get a similar reduction. But try to ask them which units have a ‘common relationship’ to the unit that you are interested in. If you buy on the 15th floor and they reduce the price of a similar unit on the 8th floor, is the 8th floor unit in a ‘common relationship’ with your unit? Or will they say that it has to be on the same floor, looking in the same direction with the same view? Also, if they give free parking or free upgrades to someone who buys another unit that is similar to your unit, will they say that those freebies are really price ‘reductions’ — so that you will also get the same freebies? Or will they say that it isnt a price reduction, so you get nothing. Just be careful and ask these questions, and find out what the ‘price guarantee’ really means.

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  86. Please disregard my comments regarding Pure as a comp to this. As it looks like the Pure discounts are not being honored.

    http://yochicago.com/today/west-loop/pure-%E2%80%93-deal-or-no-deal_8902/

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  87. attn to anyone that was interested in Pure at 24 S Morgan and bid at those discounted rates… the discounts are gone. The properties have been re-listed. Hold on to your hats… The prices are now some of the highest in the west loop instead of the lowest. They raised all the prices over $100 thousand dollars! What happened to the titles being the reason they couldn’t go through with the first round of contracts?

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  88. I showed this building to a couple of my clients and they do not care about it so much due to the size of the two bedrooms unit, they were thinking around 1,400 – 1,800 square feet. But after the price deduction, I think it is a great value to buy now.

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  89. Ann, i hope R+D doesn’t do that! We are closing first week of July hopefully. maybe that 15k tax credit will be in place prior to our official closing date.

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  90. Mac,

    What is this 15k tax credit your talking about? Are they increasing it from 8k? This is news to me.

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  91. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=alfbV3LXPE_E

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  92. mac,

    That article is two days old. From what I have heard since the chance of this passing and becoming law is very small.

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  93. Didn’t they shoot the 15k tax credit down during the porkulus bill earlier this year and settled on 8k?

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  94. yea, i know. i agree long shot but a guy can hope right? lol. actually i’m just hoping they take the income restrictions off the 8k so i can tap into that.

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  95. I know this is off topic but really need some help. I am looking for someone to do inspection on a condo at RD659. I know some people do not believe in it for new construction but for peace of mind we are doing it anyways. Can anyone recommend an inspector? randomly picking off of webpages isn’t my cup of tea.

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  96. Dean Heineman at Insite Chicago always does a good job. Google him.

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  97. I was mentioning this to an acquaintance the other day and they couldn’t believe that developers are slashing so much, this developer must really need the cash right now whether they are making money or not. There are some real steals on the market!
    Eric

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  98. I have confirmed 55 closings to date from various sources. The MLS shows 28 contracts signed since 6/1/09, the last of which is from 6/13/09. It is possible that the developer has additional new contracts on units not listed in the MLS.

    It doesn’t appear at this stage that current prices will clear the numerous unsold units among the 237 total. Underwater buyers and abundant inventory do not indicate price stability. This is a long way from over.

    Here’s a sample tier:

    Tier 14 now $346,000 – $363,000 w/pkg

    414 closed 1/7/2009 $468,940 p217 80%LTV
    514 closed 2/27/2009 $422,900 p352 75%LTV
    614 closed 1/7/2009 $440,000 p211 80%LTV
    1214 closed 6/1/2009 $461,014 p226 90%LTV

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  99. those were sold pre-price break i’m sure. we are closing 1st week in july and we were told we are one of the quickest to get loan approved. we got a 2br/2bath penthouse for well cheaper then 1214 closed for the same weekend we signed the purchase contract. rumor has them getting 60-100 units under contract is the price drop so within 60days should see whats what in the building.

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  100. for laughs..check this out

    http://twitter.com/RD659

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  101. “we got a 2br/2bath penthouse for well cheaper then 1214 closed for the same weekend we signed the purchase contract.”

    This is going to be the problem in this building (and all others where there are closings and then later the developers cut prices) for years to come.

    Eventually the owner of 1214 will want to sell. And prices will be so far under what they paid for it that they’ll have to take a considerable hit.

    How many of the original buyers will end up in short sale/foreclosure? How many will simply walk away?

    It creates a really unstable building- in the long run.

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  102. Thanks for the info G. I’m trying to watch this building and now SoNo closely to see just how many of these units they’re selling at the “reduced” prices.

    Even the Vetro- which had all the buzz due to the auction and being the first building to really slash prices- has taken quite some time to sell all the remaining units (and is still selling a few, I believe.)

    As more and more building cut prices, it no longer becomes much of a “deal” where you have to race over there because there will be another building soon enough anyway.

    Which begs the question: what will become of, say, The Astoria or The Silver- both of which are soon to start closings? Those will be buildings to watch.

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  103. i understand what you mean Sabrina and not sure what the answer is for those owners, don’t think there is one. I always liked the building but it was overpriced pre-construction and we ruled it out. we had no plans to spend what we did but we fell in love with it (well the better half did, i wanted an ##01 unit with the lighter price tag) Also I did noticed they mixed up the unit numbers from what you would expect compared to lower floors. just a heads up for G when comparing prices! lol

    ….i wonder if that building on washington and desplaines will get built now, the catalyst, being so many empty condo’s in the area.

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  104. With all the shadiness going on at Pure, I wouldn’t buy there at any price until the developer is out of the picture. The building itself certainly isn’t great enough to justify the risk.

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  105. Here’s the only tier 1 closing to date with the new pricing:

    Tier 1 now $341,000 – $367,000 w/pkg
    1701 closed 4/8/2009 $498,606 p209 85%LTV

    “Also I did noticed they mixed up the unit numbers from what you would expect compared to lower floors. just a heads up for G when comparing prices! lol”

    Thanks. Could you give some specifics about that? The only exceptions to tier unifomity I see are #607 and the 18th floor. Tiers 4 and 21 are not mentioned on the new price sheet. Here’s what I have for unit sizes from the sales data and new price sheet:

    Tier Data Price Sheet
    1 — 1,147 — 1,147
    3 — n/a — 856
    5 — 788 — 991
    6 — 964 — 964
    7 — 826 — 826
    8 — 880 — 885
    9 — 1,120 — 1,119
    10 — 700 — 700
    11 — 655 — 655
    12 — 756 — 756
    13 — 783 — 786
    14 — 1,108 — 1,110
    15 — 799 — 800
    16 — 1,200 — 1,230
    18 — 850 — 847
    19 — 955 — 953
    20 — 1,206 — 1,206

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  106. About the Catalyst- the building still has an operating web site. Check in with YoChicago and see if they know anything.

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  107. i guess no rent restrictions?

    http://www.rubloff.com/property/4975747

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  108. G:

    Is this a typo: “5 — 788 — 991”? Or are they actually claiming the unit is 26% larger than it actually is?

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  109. just got our bank appraisal of our unit.. came back 3k over the purchase price. just makes you realize how OVER priced they were before hand. i’m stoked to get the keys next week!

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  110. actually 2-3weeks ;-( due to going on holiday

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  111. if anyone cares…Appraisals are saying around 105 under contract, 75ish unsold/not under contract (as of last week). Guess that means only around 55ish were sold and closed prior to the price reductions.

    of course i wouldnt be surprised if that 105 is inflated by the powers that be at @properties or developer.

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  112. thanks for the updates, mac

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  113. I like ending my sentences with “,mac.” It makes me feel all Dick Tracy-esque.

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  114. it is a lil lonely in the building. i hope other recent discounted unit purchasers close soon 😉 otherwise, love’n the building!

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  115. Hopefully I’ll see you around next month, mac 🙂

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  116. Mac,
    The numbers are not inflated. I have hesitated to post anything on this but sales are still strong. We are being as transparent as possible.
    We are 72% sold at the moment. It looks like we will maintain that and keep going higher as more contracts are being written as I write this.
    I would estimate at this clip, we will be sold out in four months or less.
    5 buyers from the recent sales have closed already so more people are living in the building with many set to close this month.
    There were 55 original buyers that closed. Many more will close at the new prices. Those that ultimately are not closings will have their units released to the public. The few that are out so far have seen their units sell fast.
    We are still getting great traction. Traffic remains strong and interest is still there.
    We do have many good units available. To give you an example, we lost a penthouse deal on Monday. I am told by my team that it will be resold by Sunday with perhaps multiple offers after there have already been three second showings on it this week.
    To my knowledge, you will not be seeing Catalyst coming out of the ground anytime soon. To my knowledge, you will never see any new construction like this built, let alone sold, at this price per square foot ever again. It is simply too expensive to build a high rise and buy the land at this price. It is a great time to buy new construction in a building that is selling.
    Best of luck to all of you in the market. Things are starting to pick up down here.
    Thanks,
    GS
    PS I do sell these so take what you want from this, but it is all what you can find out anywhere.

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  117. Also, note that Vetro is now in bankruptcy. Note the difference in financial situation of the seller in an auction and in a price drop.

    Your developer and Lender at RD are on very firm financial ground.

    just something to consider.

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  118. GS: Thanks for the update on the status of sales in the building.

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  119. Steve Heitman on July 10th, 2009 at 8:32 pm

    Hey Mac – A bank appraisal will always come in right at the purchase price. It means noting…

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  120. Steve Heitman on July 10th, 2009 at 8:37 pm

    Still can’t see paying close to $300 per sq ft to live here. Think of all the foreclosures from the units that were sold prior to this craziness!

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  121. “A bank appraisal will always come in right at the purchase price”

    That caught my eye. Why is that or why do you say? I’m an RE newbie, just curious.

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  122. Steve Heitman on July 11th, 2009 at 7:27 am

    An appraisers job is to justify the purchae price on the contract. The appraiser will not over value a property if the buyer received a great deal. 99% of the time the appraised value will be within a few $1000 of the ocntract price, even if the property is worth much more than it is contracted for.

    Ask G, he is an appraiser.

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  123. “even if the property is worth much more than it is contracted for. ”

    Or much less.

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  124. Steve Heitman on July 11th, 2009 at 12:31 pm

    No Bob, an appraisers job is to justify the price. If the value is not there then the appraiser will value the property where it should be valued. They will however not go above the ocntracted price.

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  125. The place we bought was appraised 10k over what we paid… explain that one steve.

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  126. Ours was appraised at 5,000 over purchase price in Feb/March.

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  127. Steve Heitman on July 11th, 2009 at 4:33 pm

    Give or take 2%. You guys are tough!

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  128. Heitman:

    Appraisals do come in above the contract price. Just this year, I have had several appraisals come in about $40k more than the contracted price.

    We are seeing quite a few appraisals coming up short though. Even if the appraiser values the property at the contract price, bank underwriters are cutting the values if the comps are not VERY SOLID.

    The reality though is that the RE market is pretty efficient. It is a Realtor myth that homes sell for less than they are really worth in most cases. If it is worth more, a buyer would have come along and paid more.

    There are some good deals out there and even more where the sellers have their heads stuck where the sun don’t shine though. Even if some of these sellers find a greater fool, unless they are paying cash, the deal will fall apart because there is a high likelihood that the agreed upon purchase price will not be supported by an appraisal or will get cut by the bank.

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  129. GS thanks for the info. I am happy there are people coming in. I know there was one that moved in this weekend for a 2/2 unit. I think I know of the PH unit you are speaking of that fell threw but I also know that unit is awesome and not surprised it sold again so quickly. All the 2/2 PH’s are perfect in my eyes. We lost out on one and instead we took a different one and couldn’t be happier. Infact we like it more b/c of the more open space feel. It was a great price and we plan to be here for many many years.

    side note, I see a lot of bashing on buildings between the river and highway and people saying who wants to live there. I guess answer is people like me. I love walking to work, taking my dog out at lunch, saving a ton of money in gas or other commuting costs. Maybe we are lame to some people but we like the fact the loop empties out after 6pm. Our only area of interest was the units between the river and highway. To each their own.

    I’m just in love with this building as are all of my relatives and friends that have seen our unit thus far.

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  130. For all of you thinking of buying in this building, I can only say you will be dealing with some shady shady people. I have been taking in by their bait and switch. The sales agent(Initials AH) and the developer are the worse of the worse. I was ready to buy this place after already walking away last year since I couldn’t close.

    Well I get a call a month back telling me the prices were dramatically reduced and that my unit original price 330k with parking is now 243 k with parking. After checking the unit I am generally happy and accept the 243k price after negotiations to lower the price did not work. Well guess what, they decided that this unit is an upgraded unit and now want 251k+ for it, telling me the 243k price was the “base” price. How can this be? This unit is already built and ready for move in. The price offered was 243k, I even signed the first purchase contract for 243k. How can they add more for “upgrades” on an already built unit? Anyhow I decided the price was still fair and accepted full price after their “discounts”. The loan was already in place.

    I had an inspection done and there were many issues that needed to be corrected. Some were minor such as floors needed buffing, dent in refrigerator handle, baseboard in vanity cracked(major issue to me) and lastly and the most major issue is water was seeping in from outside to my bedroom(floor was damp and inspector had a device that measured the level and it was high and off the charts; meaning moisture was continually seeping in from outside. I had asked for everything to be corrected, but of course their lawyers took a big magic marker and crossed everything requested out and sent back the rider.

    At this point I was extremely upset. I have gotten my finances together, the loan is 95% approved. I hired an attorney and invested in an inspection(why didn’t they just tell me before that any thing inspector finds would not matter). So I decided that the moisture issue HAD to be corrected and also the baseboard vanity needed to be fixed. This is supposed to be a new condo, I do not want water damage on a new property and mold is an issue in this case. I figured the developer would be willing to at least fix that. Well guess what, they said this is AS IS and nothing will be fixed! I have decided to cancel my contract and walk away from this nightmare. I have done everything I can to buy this condo and it’s like they do not want to sell it to me at all. So for anyone who thinks this is a great deal and see the full page ads in the Redeye, make sure you get everything in writing and think twice before hiring an inspector because it may be all for naught!

    Lastly their sales agent emailed me the same day, asking “why did I cancel” unbelievable!

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  131. *Update” I got another email from the Sales Agent. This is the best one yet. She asked me to come in now to see that the floor is not wet and there is no moisture, she checked herself! As you all know it has been pretty warm the past week with barely any rain, so of course the floor is now dry. So my $300 inspection was basically worth Diddly and I guess she has a new day job as an inspector. I declined to come in, not worth it anymore.

    Anyhow that’s my 2 cents, RD and I were not meant to be.

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  132. sounds like that 300 was money well spent.

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  133. Sorry to hear about that ‘cheated’. we only had a few minor things during the inspection but it was all cosmetic stuff (most of which was fixed or not even asked to fix – i.e. 1 scratch in the floor). Our price didn’t change at any time either. But like CH said, that is probably the best $300 you’ve ever spent! could always check out a different unit but i too could see why maybe you are sour on RD659.

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  134. mac – check your floors along the windows whenever it rains a lot and especially during the winter. My inspector commented that this was definitely seeping in from the outside and not just condensation. She also said if this were a building wide issue to expect a special assessment real soon.

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  135. I don’t know if there is a big problem here, but I wouldn’t expect any special assessment anytime soon. The developer is nowhere near turning the place over to the association (the sooner of 3 years from condo declaration or 75% closed) and you can rest assured no special is coming as long as they are responsible for the biggest share. Oh yeah, and they are sure to be “broke” if any liability is later determined to be their responsibility.

    Even if this is a minor problem, everyone will pay since it is a common element (exterior wall.) Even then, I would expect foot-dragging on declaring a need for repairs until more “owners” can be stuck with the bills.

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  136. I have not seen any issues with leakage. We are on the top floor and i even was checking for this because we get more rain exposure on our balcony door. I will make sure to keep an eye on it though.

    btw i had the same agent as you and did not have any issues. as for the “as is” statement. That was told to us upon our initial viewing of multiple units and they said it was due to the reduced prices. obviously we weighed that in our decision and if it bites us it bites us.

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  137. i will say our inspector did check the floors/windows and mentioned ours were better then a previous one he had inspected. said the floors were angled poorly in the other one. if that was yours, i do not know. i think he said it was on the 6th floor?

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  138. Mac – that’s great she told you it was AS IS. I was told any issues would be fixed by the developer. With the price switch scam and the bold face lies, I have learned a lot. For one do not believe the word of the sales agent. Anything of importance that they say, note and make sure it is in writing and signed. I will make better judgements next time around.

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  139. just curious, which unit are you speaking of?

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  140. I just looked at a unit on the 6th floor. I’m curious which unit you saw (or looked at on the 6th floor) that had the water damage. Make sure I don’t get myself in trouble.

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  141. brady, i dont remember which unit the inspector was talking about but i thought he said 5th or 6th floor but he just mentioned the slope of the floor compared to our unit. i dont think he was saying the other one was awful. i was only wondering if cheated’s was the same one by chance. like i’ve said a few times, i love the building thus far take it for what its worth.

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  142. It was a 7th floor unit. You won’t be able to tell of any water seeping in unless it is humid outside and there has been a snowstorm. Don’t be surprised if you buy a unit and not find about an issue until after the fact. Remember they are selling these AS IS. If any agent says they will fix any issues, that is not true and I have a rider full of black marker to show for that.

    On another note I ate at a restaurant nearby and I looked and saw maybe 2-3 lights on at 10pm on the west side of the building. From how they screw buyers, I can see why it’s a ghost town in there.

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  143. mac – who was your inspector?

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  144. i used Dan from Domicile Consulting. Real nice guy and helpful. His report is very detailed and reasonable price.

    it’s not new news about not many lights on but people are just now starting to close since the discounted pricing. I expect it to be a busy moving elevator the next 30-60 days.

    cheated, you seem really P.O.’d. (i saw your other blog dedicated to what you’ve posted here) All I can suggest is have a beer, relax, and move on. Don’t let it eat you up, there are ton’s of new construction building in the city that are offering discounted prices.

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  145. mac – sure I’m PO’d – I sunk 22k+ in this with nothing to show for. I will move on, it’s just money. But I just think others should know about the shadiness. Was it really a lot to ask to have a water issue fixed? Anyhow you seem to love it there, so we’re all happy for you.

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  146. Ah so you lost your earnest money? things make a lil more sense, though if you were still working on the purchase contract/rider you should of been able to get out of it, no? even when we got our updated rider there were ways to get out of it till the specified date (think it was 10 days after the final updated rider).

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  147. nm, actually you are probably speaking of the initial incomplete closing awhile back when all those issues were popping up.

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  148. cheated – how did you lose $22k? If you knew your earnest money was at risk, why wouldn’t you move in? The special assessment, or any repairs, certainly wouldn’t cost that much, would it?

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  149. i believe the issue was back then the prices of the condos were too high. People had to get 2nd mortgages but when the bank appraised the unit they wouldnt close b/c they did not appraise out. So basically they couldn’t close w/o bringing money to the table. I guess the developer wasnt giving earnest money back to the pre-construction buyers if they could not close. I think there is a thread on this site that talks about it. I’m sure i’m getting it slightly wrong b/c I am an I.T. Geek and not much of a RE buff. 🙂

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  150. You know I gave them every chance possible to sell me this place. All I wanted was the repair for the moisture coming in. Floors not buffed, ok fine. Dent in refrigerator, fine. Cracked tiles, fine. Even the crack in the vanity baseboard, I was going to take. But not the water, that’s a potential mold issue. This comes down to principle. A “NEW” condo should be in “NEW” condition. I had already lost my earnest from purchasing last year and was ready to move on, then the scam artist sales agent decided to give me a call with the price drop, told me 243k, raised it to 251k after they got me to sign for 243k. I accepted the higher price It goes on and on with them. Their lawyer made no concessions at all. Why even get an inspection then? It’s not even about the 22k + 1k for lawyers, inspection, etc. I was fed up and I highly doubt I am the only one in this boat. I don’t get why they post high price ads in the redeye, change up their website when they have ready, qualified buyers and piss em away.

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  151. cheated, there are 55 “owners” who did much worse than you by closing at the higher prices. Small consolation, sure, but at least they didn’t get you to close just before the price reductions.

    Take #1214, for example. They closed 5/19/09 for $461,014 w/pkg. The new pricing of “Tier 14 now $346,000 – $363,000 w/pkg” was announced May 30-31. Oops.

    How about #918? They also closed 5/19/09 for $344,681 w/pkg. New prices for the tier: $254,000-$260,000 w/pkg.

    Eight more units closed in May at the old prices with disaster looming. Be happy you ignored the pressure to close then. BTW, I still believe prices will have to come lower to move the remaining units here.

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  152. I just got my appraisal done. It was $4,000 over the purchase price.

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  153. nice… its starting to get busy as far as moving trucks so seems like the closings are rolling in. Still loving the building. Only snag has been our cable/internet which was due to some floor renumbering on our floor. cable guy was just completely confused for awhile but its all good now. G, keep that in mind when you are looking at the closing prices on 18th floor and they don’t make sense. i.e. PH12=1805, PH10=1803. PH08/PH09=1812/1813 the other floors seem to have stuck to the tier numbers except i think 6th floor has an exception too.

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  154. I am considering purchasing a unit in this building. Does anybody know anything bad I should know about before signing? Thanks

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  155. Hi whipit, i’m currently living in the building if you have any questions about it. my email is sudocrashr @ gmail.com

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  156. I just moved in yesterday. So far, I haven’t noticed anything too bad. The refrigerator in my unit is louder than I would like, but I also haven’t got enough rugs/carpeting down, so everything is louder than I’d like at this point 😉

    One real annoyance is that water tends to pool on the left (wall) side of my shower in the front, so I will just wipe the water off after I shower to prevent it from sitting there.

    I also figured out that the studs in the wall I want to mount my television to are 24″ apart. My mount needs two studs that are up to 18″ apart. I’m having the building engineer over tomorrow (yes, he works Sunday!) to see if he can install it…he said he had done it for other people. Otherwise, I’ll get a carpenter or something.

    I’m pretty pleased with the internet service so far, which was already turned on when I moved in. All I had to do was plug my computer/router into the ethernet port and voila! I’ll have to call the company that handles the internet and TV service on Monday to order a satellite box for my television, though. We get DirecTV here, with basic service included and available upgrades…not sure of the pricing yet. You can also order faster internet. I tested my speed at about 2mbps/1mbps currently, if that’s important to you. Overall, I think you get a pretty good deal with the assessments here.

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  157. directv is 35ish for HBO with 2 recievers (1 HD DVR and 1 HD).

    have you tested your phone lines? we had an issue with ours but i think it has since been resolved just waiting on AT&T to come back out. It wasn’t a building issue but rather the AM3 guy messed up my wires (my inet wasnt on when i moved in so they had to come out) I need dsl as my work requires 2 inets at home incase 1 is down.

    thanks for the info on the tv mounting. we want to do that also for the bedrooms. let me know how you get on with that.

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  158. parking? I looked at one bedroom units the other day- loved them!… but there is no parking available for 1 bedrooms anymore. can anyone give me any ideas on street parking or rental parking in the area? and also let me know if there is parking when guests visit.

    thank you!

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  159. my guests have been using the side and front of the building. some times there is nothing and have to use that parking lot behind the building which isn’t too expensive (and it beats the parking meters).

    is parking not available for 1br’s at all or is it that it is no longer free?

    monthly rental parking is expensive unless you can find a condo owner in this building or nearby who is renting the parking spot for 100-150/mo. (I have not seen any spots posted on the board)

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  160. Mac, I had the building engineer come over and install the mount on my wall. We ended up putting one side in a stud and the other is just in drywall. The plate that the rest of the mount sits on is a few inches off center, but the mount itself can move in all directions so that isn’t a problem. It hasn’t fallen down yet and I’ve adjusted my (42″ LCD) TV around on the mount numerous times. Jasim did my mount install and the wall-mounted component shelf install with some help from me and did a pretty good job.

    My internet was working straight away and I haven’t bothered to test a phone line because I don’t use DSL or a landline telephone. I’m a bit annoyed that when I called AM3 yesterday the earliest they could schedule an appointment to set up my DirecTV service was next Wednesday. However, I’m only paying $99 for the HD DVR instead of $199 which is what the sheet in our binders quotes. The “Total Choice” package is included (exact package is on DirecTV’s website) and you can upgrade to the plus version for $5 (I didn’t). I got HBO for $15/month and Showtime for $8/month if I remember correctly. There’s also a $10/month charge for HD service and a $6/month charge for the DVR, so I’m basically getting the 150+ channel package plus HBO and Showtime with the HD DVR for ~$40/month. I was slightly disappointed to hear that there are no upgrades for the internet service speed. 2/1 is ok, but it’s slower than I’m used to. It also seems like AM3 might have occasional routing issues. I’ve had temporary outages at a number of sites including here (cribchatter) and my credit card website.

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  161. Also, I figured it might be good for other people to know that the granite counters in my kitchen were *not* sealed when I moved in. Plan on having to seal them yourself.

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  162. hmm i’ll have to check that. i read on the web you just stick a wet papertowel on the counter for 5min and see if it darkens at all..which means it would need sealing.

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  163. I will be moving in soon and have a parking space that I will be renting out if anybody is interested

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  164. My counters soak up water (and, presumably other stuff which is more permanent…) like a sponge. It’s more noticeable on lighter granite, so if you’ve got dark countertops you may not notice.

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  165. I sealed my counters over the weekend and it made a huge difference. Now water beads on the counters and doesn’t soak in at all. I used this stuff which I got from the Home Depot off Roosevelt: http://www.miraclesealants.com/s_511_impregnator.html

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  166. I almost forgot to mention…the ground in my bathroom is not sealed either. That’s my project for this coming weekend…though it’s less pressing since I don’t envision spilling wine, oil, etc. in my bathroom 😉

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  167. Grout, not ground. This is what happens when I don’t think while I type.

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  168. Hello All rd659er’s.

    I’m under contract in the building as of last Thursday. Inspection is tomorrow,anything in particular I should have them look for?

    Also, mac, I believe I’m on your floor. May I ask what type of flooring you have? I’m not a big fan of mine and am curious if its standard.

    Kind Regards.

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  169. When we had our inspection everything went pretty well, We went with the bamboo floor and because they used a floating floor it was soft in places, this can be fixed easily. Also the floor socket in the bedroom was not to code and had to be fixed. The biggest problem we faced was with the shower in the master. We picked a rain shower head which they installed to low, after some pressing on our part they did fix this problem

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  170. kinghippo – we have the walnut colored floor. it’s darker then some of the others while not as dark as the bamboo. we liked the look but mainly it seemed to be better for our pup’s nails.

    what floor are you going to be on? we might be next to each other based on whats available on our floor.

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  171. 1813. Our unit has light, and imo ugly looking floors. I’m debating whether to just sand and stain them darker, or put new ones in. Maybe I can sneak a peek at your darker ones? Your bedrooms are also carpeted?

    Regards.

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  172. And thanks for your input Mover.

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  173. Kinghippo,
    Much of new construction uses a prefinished wood floor system which has a thin layer of flooring laminated on plywood backup. I beleive it can’t be refinished. See if you can get a scrap piece and meet with a floor refinisher to discuss.

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  174. A pre-finished engineered wood floor can usually be sanded about 3 times. This is also typical of a solid wood floor as there is only so much you can sand off before getting to the nails holding it down. Pre-finished engineered wood floors are actually better for high-rises as they dont buckle as much do to movement/sway of the building.

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  175. yes, bedrooms carpeted. I think i know of the light colored floors you have. I saw them in one of the 01 tier units. i think we have the same floors as 1803. I’m in 1805, just give me a hollar via email if you want to check out the floors when you move in — sudocrashr at gmail.com

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  176. I didn’t like the light colored floors, myself. It could be that with all the walls and interior doors painted construction white, anything as far away from white as possible looks best. Darker flooring seems more versatile to me as far as decorating goes, but I’m no interior designer.

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  177. Thanks for the responses.

    Have any of you selected window treatments?

    If so, how did you anchor them?

    I was there yesterday and it looked like I may have to get creative.

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  178. we went with shades from budget blinds and should have’m installed within a few weeks. All the blind places are EXPENSIVE. (plus 12ft windows adds a few bucks) I am not sure how they plan on anchoring them but I know they have done many of the windows in the building. they suggested we see how the shades do on the heat before we buy window treatments.

    did anyone else know the blinds/shades cost so damn much? maybe i’m just cheap.

    maybe we should start our own RD659 blog? lol

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  179. We wish you would. Sabrina often reminds us that,”We’re here to talk about the property NOT the paint color, the furniture,…”

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  180. I’m ordering mine through Design Window Solutions. I saw they had an advertisement in the binder new residents get on move-in and didn’t really feel like looking around too much. They should be getting here/installed in around 2 weeks I think, but I have no idea how they’re anchoring them. I’m having both my living/dining area and bedroom done with “solar shades”.

    The cost of the blinds seems about in-line with the price of other furniture, considering they’re custom measured, cut, and installed. However, that definitely doesn’t mean they’re cheap 🙁

    It might be nice to have a community website. There is a Facebook group, but it’s not really active: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=54321264850&ref=ts

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  181. PARKING SPAVE FOR RENT:

    I have just closed on my Unit and have a parking space for rent if anybody is interested.

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  182. They just replaced all of the spouts in the bathtubs on my floor today due to some defect (not explained) in the previous ones. However, the new ones don’t match the other hardware and they are plastic! Does anyone know the story behind that?

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  183. Caveat emptor?

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  184. On a semi-related note its good to live on the top floor.

    This is demonstrated again when Bob comes home from a party last Wednesday at around 11:30pm (weeknight) and his bathroom is flooded from a slow drip.

    Bob calls emergency maintenance and leaves a message but this can’t wait. So runs upstairs to interrogate the person there..no answer. But the door is open. Empty apartment.

    Maintenance crew was apparently updating the bathroom and replacing the tub faucets but decided it could wait until tomorrow. There was a copper pipe where the knob should’ve been to adjust the water. It was slowly leaking into the tub. Unfortunately not going into the tub drain but into a hole where the tub faucet should’ve been.

    This reinforced my belief that if you don’t live on the top floor your crap is going to get flooded occasionally, no way around it. Bob successfully tapes up the hole where it shouldn’t be going in and that stops the flooding. What if Bob wasn’t home or on vacation?

    Bottom line you’re freaking insane to live below anybody and pay a bunch of money (my rent is cheap). There are freaking idiots everywhere and this is the second time Bob’s bathroom got flooded in four years from idiocy above him.

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  185. I spoke with Grohe and they say that there was no defect with the spouts. Interesting. I was wondering how the heck you make a defective bathtub spout. They’re not exactly the most complex things in the world.

    For anyone interested, the model that was replaced (at least in my unit) was 13611000. It appears to be available, but isn’t on Grohe’s website anymore. There is a very similar model on Grohe’s website currently: 13549000. The only difference as far as I can tell is that the switch for the deflector is further back.

    Now I guess we just have to figure out what the “defect” was. Since a manufacturer usually replaces their equipment with another model that they produce, I’m going to assume that the developer made some installation error which somehow caused these parts to be both broken and irreparably damaged. How you damage a metal bathtub spout, I don’t know. But that’s the only thing that makes sense to me.

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  186. blech I hate my Grohe faucets and fixtures, they are pieces of shit! I can’t wait until I replace them. That’s next on my list.

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  187. I’m fine with the Grohe. They operate smoothly and the water comes out without turbulence which I like, but that new plastic spout bothers me every time I look at the shower. Since most of the cost of replacement will probably come from hiring a plumber, I may replace it all at once…not sure yet.

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  188. Bob… Speaking from experience, funny thing is if you live on the top floor.. good luck with roof leaks…

    And Grohe is not bad. Others I admittedly prefer but Grohe is fine. I did kitchen all KWC and very happy with those.

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  189. I think mine are the developer cheapo specials then. I seriously can’t wait to get rid of them. Kitchen sprayer cracked and leaks when used, shower handle is falling off, loose & wobbly fittings. I don’t know what im going to get yet, but they will be better than the ones i currently have.

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  190. Sonies.. a heads up… just crazy diff in price for all that stuff b/w stores and internet. Find in store.. buy online.

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  191. I brought a couple of clients to come to see this development yesterday. They really like it. But it is still over their price range. Since there are a lot of choices, it’s hard for people to make up their mind!

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  192. Consumers Plumbing at 1110 W. Lake is a good place.
    http://www.consumersplumbing.com – just got a kitchen fixture there that I love.

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  193. Thanks Ze, I was probably going to do that but now its confirmed!

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  194. never knew the name but there is a place over on pulaski, just north of fullerton that has dirt cheap prices. its kind of a scavenger hunt type of thing. got some moen for like 75% off, bought my deuce hole and a pedestal sink there for insanely cheap price

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  195. kinghippo, I got me shades installed today and they anchored them in the ceiling and, if I’m remembering correctly, on the side walls where applicable. They just drilled some holes into the cement.

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  196. http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/apa/1365945430.html

    Looks like a bunch of 1br/1ba are on Craigslist for $1,495 now.

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  197. since there is no home owners association yet does that mean there is no possible cap to the number of renters?

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  198. looks like there are a few 2/2’s on craigslist for more then my monthly nut. it’s cheaper to buy in the building! wonder how many units are left. the place seems to be pretty full now a days.

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  199. “since there is no home owners association yet does that mean there is no possible cap to the number of renters?”

    Mac- that is correct. The developer has to turn over the association to the other owners when it is either 70% or 75% sold (I can’t remember which it is off the top of my head.)

    Once the association is in place- the association can propose the rental cap and the owners vote on it.

    It has been my experience talking to people in new condo buildings in the last few years that it’s nearly impossible to pass the cap (too many investors are in the buildings.) And nearly everyone wants the right to rent it out- in case they can’t sell at a later date.

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  200. Thanks for the info David. I close on Monday. I’m meeting the floor guy there today, curtains will be next week.

    Makes sense there are rentals showing up on Craigs list. It is a 237 unit building, with the cheapest units facing west. IMO, it would make sense to see many of these available for rent. (I too am impressed by the rental prices, are they actually getting them?)

    It is my understanding the building is more than 70% sold. Do any of you know why there isn’t a condo association yet? Have there not been enough closings to date?

    Thanks for the info Sabrina. I dont plan on renting out my unit, but would have a hard time supporting any rental restrictions. Too many variables in life.

    My guess is you’ll see far less rentals in this building then in similar ones purchased at bubble prices, where many underwater owners would rather bleed slowly renting out their units then chop off an arm in a sale. This is happening at my current location, 630 n. franklin. Nice building, good location, but most units were purchsed in ’06, and every month I’ve been there more and more renters keep moving in.

    Kind Regards.

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  201. I just spoke to the salesperson about one of my clients. They are solidly above 80% sold with 127 units closed and more scheduled next week.
    The association does not have to be turned over until after the are 75% CLOSED. According to them, that should be around the November/December.
    Just so you know, if they are allowed to do FHA loans at 3.5% (already closed one at 10%), this building will be sold out by the end of the year for sure. Still not negotiating, but I believe my client is going to get some sort of nominal credit for parkign since they don’t have a spot for one bedroom.
    I also asked about the rental situation. I was told that they were aware of selling approximately 10 or so to investors but the rest were bought as priomary residences either for the owner or their child. Even if there ends up being 20 rentals, that is still less than 10% so a cap will be unnecessary.
    The pool looks awesome. My client is in her late 20’s. Seems like a blast. How is it?
    Last tip: Whenever you move into a new place, buy a few things: white caulk, silicone clear caulk, and stone or granite sealer. Sealing the stone sounds fo forboading and expensive, but it is the easiest thing in the world. if you have ligher granite, seal it twice a year at least.

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  202. I’m having trouble closing a 5% down loan right now. Anyone else having issues? Has anyone used a FHA loan here? Are people taking advantage of the TaxSmart credit?

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  203. We were told that an FHA would only go through so far and then the developer would reject it. Even though its listed as an FHA approved building the developer wont sign the forms.
    Guaranteed rate is supposidly closing people with 5% down

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  204. hello,

    Why don’t you try to save up 10 or 20%

    Hate to tell you but if you can’t bring 10 or 20% to the table and the developer isn’t willing to deal, they know something about your financial risk that you don’t. They are saving you from yourself.

    I know if I ever buy a condo its not going to be in a building that does the FHA thing as FHA is the new subprime.

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  205. Don’t believe FHA is the new subprime?

    http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125211204270688031.html

    “As private lenders sharply curtailed credit when boom turned to bust, the FHA became one of the only places to turn for buyers who couldn’t afford big down payments or who wanted to refinance but had little home equity. The number of loans backed by the agency has soared, and its market share reached 23% in the second quarter, up from less than 3% in 2006, according to Inside Mortgage Finance.”

    “At the end of June, some 7.8% of FHA-backed loans were 90 days late or more, or in foreclosure, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, up from 5.4% a year ago.”

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  206. 20% will become easier to save as prices continue to fall.

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  207. I saw an ad for some shady lookin real estate company on the bus yesterday that said “Only need $500 down!” I lol’d, sorta…

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  208. $500 is 20% of some properties….in Roseland.

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  209. Just use a cash advance on your Sears credit card to buy a house in the Wil’ Hunneds! Seems like a financially prudent move!

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  210. The building has had one FHA loan close. There is not a paperwork issue. The building is FHA approved. Right now, because there is no 10 year extended warranty, you just cannot get a 3.5% down FHA loan. They were told by various lenders that this would change after October 1st. We shall see.
    I have two clients excited to buy there if that happens. The price is right and even with so little down, it is pretty much a better situation for them to buy in the building versus renting in the area.

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  211. If you go FHA, can you still use the 1.5% discount incentive?

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  212. I assume not. From what I understood, 1.5% is exclusively through national city and has nothing to do with the developer.

    I say this but just realized that I don’t know this for sure so the best thing to do is to talk to the lender directly. I hate rumors.

    They would know best.

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  213. are they even offering the 1.5% off anymore? i had heard some word that they only had a limited number of the discounts left back when we closed beg. july. i dont see it advertised on the rd659.com nor 659wrandolph.com anymore either.

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  214. Has anyone living in the building done electrical work to their unit? If so, who did you use? I would like to install another box for track lighting and looking for some help!

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  215. “Has anyone living in the building done electrical work to their unit? If so, who did you use? I would like to install another box for track lighting and looking for some help!”

    Does the building have a property manager yet? Many times the building has its own electrician and you can pay them a small fee to install something like this. Check with the building. (And yes- I’ve seen this even in new construction buildings.)

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  216. Has anyone purchased washer/dryer? What dimension did you decide on?

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  217. I made the mistake of thinking that any of the stacked units would fit in my alcove, so I got a 27″ unit. Unfortunately, it was too deep, so I had to swap it out with a 24″ unit. I looked at some of the other blueprints, and it looks like a lot of them have more space available than mine for the washer/dryer, so I’d judge the size you need based on your unit/tier. I’m in a tier 19, btw.

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  218. @TM –

    “Has anyone purchased washer/dryer? What dimension did you decide on?”

    I’m also in Tier 19 and squeezed a 27″ stack washer / dryer into mine. The install was tight, but it fits perfectly! The dimensions are below:

    # Height: 75-1/2″
    # Width: 27″
    # Depth: 30-13/16″

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  219. I am in the process of closing right now, found out a few construction “errors” however, the developer will be fixing this…
    Happy with the price and the 1.5% off, however, the mortgage people are jerks…they are extremely busy and annoyed… they need more people working on these applications… the property seems great, I’ll be changing a few things here are there around the condo… but nothing major… see you at there..

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  220. Wecome New. Is the 1.5% off still available? I was under the impression it was not?

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  221. Weird. There’s absolutely no way the 27″ Whirlpool gas unit I had originally ordered was going to fit (and allow me to close the sliding door) because of the hoses in back. Maybe you got better installers 😉

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  222. Yes it’s still available, with a lot more restrictions

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  223. I purchased washer and dryer and the washer dimension is 27 3/4″ deep by 27″ wide. It fits fine. I’m in tier 20. Installers were from the store and told me they’d been in the building many times.

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  224. My closing took over 3 hours because the lender could not get it together even at that late date. They were a disaster. If it weren’t for the good rate . . .

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  225. To Sabrina: Mary Kuhn is the property manager and has been here since day one. You cannot install another junction box in the concrete. You can run a line off the existing boxes you have.
    Don’t ever drill or do anything to the concrete without talking to Mary first.

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  226. National City is horrible. I’ve been dealing with them for days trying to close. They are disorganized and if it weren’t for a good rate, i wouldn’t want o touch them…

    Does anyone know if there are any move-in fees?

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  227. $100 move-in fee. I think your mortgage issues with Nat City are commonplace and are a reflection of current market problems. I too had issues (although not with Nat City), even though I was putting up a substancial down payment.

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  228. I’d be curious to hear the name of the person at nat city that gave you issue to see if it was the same guy as mine. I don’t want to trash anyone on a public forum though. Maybe just drop the first letter of his name lol

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  229. I went through Kendall at National City and the process was very smooth. I also got an amazing rate (with the 1.5% discount) and didn’t have any trouble with/at closing. That was back in June, though, so I don’t know how things are now.

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  230. I’m trying to close with 10% conventional and was told by the lender a week before closing they couldn’t meet the closing date because the building has to be 90% sold or under contract to meet a Fannie/Freddie guideline, otherwise you can’t close. Is this a new rule?

    I tried to do an FHA loan first. The building is definitely not FHA approved.

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  231. To O
    Is this a new rule?
    They pulled the same trick with me. It is not a new rule — the PMI is not available for 10% down until the building is 90% sold. This change happened some time last spring. I would like to think this lender stalls because they think the building will reach the 90% before you need to actaully close — otherwise one might think they are desperate to sell those second mortgages (interest payments only–recipe for disaster) so they make up the lower than market rate. Be careful and do your math. They tried to really move the figures around without checking with me so I would have ended up with a far bigger second mortgage than I needed and about $20,000 less in the first mortgage. They also left off 5% of the money I put down when they prepared the closing papers and doubted that I put down 10%. Keep in touch with them and constantly request status updates because they never initiated any contact with me — I initiated all contact via email.

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  232. I was over there today looking at some of the 1BR/1BA’s on the west side of the building. Anyone who lives on the west side of the building (or know someone who does) who would care to comment on their experience living next to the Kennedy? Do you really get used to the noise?

    Also, I’m thinking of putting a bid in on one of these units. I was hoping to close in time for the homebuyer credit. Given your experiences closing on units in this building, what are the chances of that happening?

    Thanks!

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  233. “Do you really get used to the noise?”

    I have a friend who lives in another building near the Kennedy (not this one.) The noise isn’t the problem (just a constant hum.) It’s the pollution.

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  234. Lenders have been extremely slow! I was told I’d be able to close 2 weeks ago! Still waiting…
    It’s been a bad experience as far as the loan approval process has been!

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  235. Noise isn’t a prob on our side of the building (near south east corner) can’t even hear anything unless you open the window.

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  236. I’m with Mac. I’ve got a South-facing unit that’s pretty much in the center of the building. I hardly hear anything from the outside, and most of what I do hear is when someone drives by in a modified (to be loud) car or motorcycle on Washington. The only time I really notice any noise from the outside is when it is completely silent in my condo and I’m standing near the windows listening listening for it.

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  237. I have a west facing unit and the noise from the highway has never bothered me either. I only notice it if I am standing by the window trying to hear it.

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  238. Hey, I’m looking to close on a south-west, corner unit and upon inspection of the unit found that when the wind blew, there was a humming noise and leakage of air between the south and west facing windows. Has anyone experienced a similar problem?

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  239. @ O “I tried to do an FHA loan first. The building is definitely not FHA approved”

    I just closed a FHA loan with 3.5% down in this building about 3 weeks after filling out the loan paperwork.

    @ Kyle “Do you really get used to the noise?”

    I’m facing south, and with the windows closed I don’t hear a thing. When they are open, there is a hum from the highway, but it’s subtle. We sleep with the windows open…

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  240. matt, how did you close FHA, from what I understand the FHA lenders needs 10 warranty from the builder, that they do not have? I am in the process of an FHA and want to avoid this problem like you did. Please let me know.

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  241. matt – 3 weeks? That’s awesome. I’m not sure how it worked though. Since it’s new construction, it has to be on HUD’s approved list or or else meet many requirements for a spot approval. It isn’t on the HUD approved list and off the top of my head, I think one spot approval requirement is that the building be turned over to the association for at least a year. All of this changes on 11/1 though (supposedly). Anyway, I’m glad it worked out.

    I’ll also say that the building is extremely quiet. They must have put a lot of thought into that when they designed it. I don’t think I’ve ever been in one quieter at that close distance to a highway.

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  242. I just closed!!! it’s great…had to yell at National City to push it thru, they told me it’ll take another week after dragging their feet for 2 weeks, so i called up the U/W and yelled and screamed..and they did the paper work the same day… Love my new place!

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  243. Congrats new!

    Welcome to the building.

    Question.

    Do you guys all have the large red fire alert intercom flasher on the walls of your units?

    Kind Regards.

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  244. Is National City still offering 1.5% of market rates?

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  245. Kinghippo: I do not have one of those fire intercom things anywhere in my unit…plenty of sprinklers though.

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  246. I wish I had discovered this website before investing $285 into an inspection. Seems like cheated had a similar experience. I want to share my experiences of R&D with you all so you don’t make the same mistake I did.

    I was under contract for the top floor unit 1810 recently but had to withdraw after the inspection revealed water was leaking into the bedroom from the outside(luckily there was heavy rain the day of my inspection). I was so upset to find this and that there were substantial cracks in the brand new limestone tiles in the bathroom and that someone had used the microwave as there was food inside of it. I withdrew my offer immediately.

    After the inspection i bumped into a neighbor in the corridor and asked him if he had faced similar issues and he said water had leaked into his living room from the outside and that he didnt trust the developers.

    My inspector said a full external assessment of the building was necessary; don’t expect a quick uptake on this. On closer inspection you can see some substantial water marks looking up at the exterior.

    New Construction + Water + If something seems to good to be true it usually is = NO NO. You’ve been warned…

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  247. Thankyou David. Is yours a 2 bed unit? I have them in every room and was told they’re code in every unit. I guess not.

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  248. Kinghippo, I’m in a 1br+den (tier 19). I’ve looked around for one and I can’t find it if it’s here.

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  249. 1st Time Buyer,

    How recently was this?

    What direction was your unit facing?

    Has anyone else had this issue and if so how was it addressed?

    I can only speak for my unit, in which the inspection went very well. The last couple of weeks have been very rainy and I havent had any sort of water penetration. Could be a problem with north or west facing units. All units should be under warranty until Feb. And this sort of thing should be addressed before then.

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  250. no water issues in my unit either. also nobody used my microwave or ate my porridge. 😉

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  251. also King, i dont have those fire intercom’s either.. maybe it’s code for the big units only?

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  252. “Hey, I’m looking to close on a south-west, corner unit and upon inspection of the unit found that when the wind blew, there was a humming noise and leakage of air between the south and west facing windows. Has anyone experienced a similar problem?”

    I don’t live in this building, but had a similar problem in a place I used to rent. Depending on how bad the leak is, you will have to weather-proof your windows every winter, or spend a lot of money to heat your condo, or both. At the very least, get a professinal inspector to check your windows.

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  253. I recently checked out the 09 unit, I really like it and am planning on making an offer. Would it be too low to offer 10% off the asking price? I am new to buying homes and am a first time home buyer. Also, anyone currently lives in tier 09? Could anyone tell me how much tier 09 property tax cost? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

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  254. I did have a professional look at it and he recommended it to be fixed and warranted. Does anyone facing West or South have similar issues where when the wind is blowing hard, a humming noise is heard near the windows? Also I am concerned that there are now two reports of water leaking through the windows on this forum. There was no water leaking through in the unit I checked, but there was air. A few other things: Does any one know what date the air conditioning was switched over to heat for the building? And has anyone had to fix anything in their unit and run into problems asking the developer to fix it?

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  255. B-

    I had an issue with the garbage disposal and a balcony lock. E-mailed developer representative and both were fixed the next day and followed up by and e-mail making sure issues were resolved.

    Also, I called the developer rep left a message about the fire alerts in my unit. Call was returned shortly after. (Turns out my unit is “disability friendly”.)

    No humming on windows. My contactor did notice a spot he thought some cold air may leak in through the winter. He padded and caulked it quick for no charge.

    Kind Regards.

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  256. I have a West facing unit and have never had an air or water leakage issue. I also do not have the fire intercoms in my unit – just a lot of sprinklers 🙂

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  257. B – the heat and air work at all times. interestingly enough my heat was not working properly on Friday with 1 of my units. they had a contractor come and take a look within a few hours and get it back up and running while the part for it came in. they came back on monday and put the part on. The developer also fixed some issues with my phone lines very quickly awhile back. (was due to how the 18th floor was wired initially). If anything is going to break within the 1st year is best! lol But the building has been real good about helping with any issues.

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  258. My inspection was two weeks ago and it’s a north facing unit.

    Having said that the building is in a great location so i’m disappointed I had such a bad experience but good luck to all of you 🙂

    Now i’m looking into other contenders such as:

    – Silver Tower in River North
    – 565 Quincy with the great developer
    – 235 Van Buren

    All these properties are in the same price range i’m looking for. Has anyone heard anything about these?

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  259. I looked at 235 Van Buren, but the price reductions at R+D made it much more attractive. The main problems I have with 235 Van Buren are that it has very few amenities, the units are tiny, and the area is completely dead once people leave work. It’s an amazing location though, as far as getting to work (assuming you work in the area). It was a 5 minute walk to work for me, and that along with the prices was the main draw. 235 Van Buren ended up being my second choice, though I was out of the market by the time they actually opened up the demo units, so I haven’t seen the inside.

    I remember passing by Silver Tower, but never really looked into it too much.

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  260. I went to see all of them at the weekend. My impressions are:

    235 Van Buren: Pretty decent units with nice finishes, but the location sucks and 710 ish units in a building can’t be good. I can see some big price cuts comings soon.

    Silver Tower: You can hear the train go by from some units which turned me off and the finishes aren’t as good as I was expecting

    565 Quincy: Meh nothing special, tried to sell me with a two lane bowling alley in a really smelly basement no thanks and hate the location

    BUT

    then i saw Emerald which is Gorgeous, in an awesome neighborhood with room to grow, i’d highly recomment it, i’ve submitted my offer.

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  261. WARNING to the R/D Owners! After seeing the water and wind infiltration comments I thought that I would share a thought on this subject. My wife and I own a condo that she lived in prior to our marriage in the south loop. What started out as a few units complaining of minor leaks and water infiltration has turned into a nightmare for EVERY UNIT OWNER IN THE BUILDING.

    Her building (1717 S. Prairie) had to take out every single window. The process currently under way is to re-seal the window openings correctly and re-install them. In addition they have to peel back the drywall inside the unit to search for mold. This happens inside EVERY single unit.

    There are lawsuits pending but the developer long ago removed all of the profits from the LLC. Shady developer and a bad situation for all unit owners. We are faced with a $25K+ special assesment for a one bedroom unit.

    I urge you unit owners to IMMEDIATELY address this issue. It would be advaantagous to have a lawyer and outside contractor asses this situation prior to the builder taking any profits out of the building. You also may have some leverage while they are still trying to sell developer owned units. Once those are closed things will be very difficult. Do not put this off. A small repair now on a few leaking areas is minor compared to what 1717 is facing.

    Good luck!

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  262. Thanks for the heads up JP3.

    Question. How long was this going on before the issue was properly addressed? Mold doesnt happen overnight, ?

    Also, FYI the workers on the outside of the building today and yesterday are resealing windows, and fixing any possible roof issues responsible for the leaks.

    If your unit has had any issue whatsoever, make sure to notify the building engineer.

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  263. King, I saw that on the inside part of the “L” of the building. Did you see them on any of the other sides of the building? It had sounded like, based on previous comments, this issue of leaks was on west and north facing units.

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  264. Mac, i sent you an e-mail.

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  265. The initial leaks were noticed in the warranty period during the first months of occupancy. Apparently the builder did some initial repairs to try and satisfy the affected unit owners. This solved the immediate issue but once the water started getting in behind the brick additional damage had already been done.

    Later it was found out that the flashing and seals were not done correctly. This meant that water was getting in at many points around the building. Many unit owners had no idea that the back side of their drywall was covered in mold.

    Substantial issue! This building will forever have an asterisk next to it on most realtors minds.

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  266. Ouch. I hope you’re vindicated in the lawsuit. That developer should never build again. Good Luck!

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  267. Since I’m already in . . . I don’t see any leaking with my naked eye — what are the signs should I look for? Worth getting an inspection (at this late date)? In T20.

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  268. Since I’m already in . . . I don’t see any leaking with my naked eye — what are the signs to look for? Worth getting an inspection (at this late date)? In T20.

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  269. Well you guys aren’t in this alone..apparently problems like these are quite common.

    http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/25/realestate/25cov.html

    I can’t help but not feel sorry for the people buying those million dollar condos in NYC though. You’d think if they were smart enough to be able to finance that kind of property they would realize they were being limited partners with the developer and taking a huge risk with new construction.

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  270. I’m on the north side of the building and haven’t noticed any water. Not even a little bit. I also don’t notice any significant outside noise with the windows shut.

    Here’s a question for those moved in though. I turned the temp up and down on the thermostat just to make sure the thing is functional. When it comes to cooling, the system can’t seem to get the temp any lower than about 68-70 with the fan turned all the way up (level 3) and the setting as low as it goes and the windows closed. It is pumping out some cool air, but maybe not enough to cool the place down. Open a window and it can easily get down to 60. I thought this is a little surprising considering the cool outside weather. Has anyone checked out the cooling ability in the unit and found it should go much lower? I just want to know if this is typical performance. Thanks.

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  271. I’ve never tried to freeze myself out of my unit before, but it’s done a fine just of keeping the temperature around 70. I noticed during the summer that the hallway AC was frigid near the vents and much colder than the air that came out of my unit, so I’m not sure how exactly the system works.

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  272. The developer has confirmed with me that my unit will be fixed. They will be addressing a caulking issue between the south and west corner. I have examined the exterior of all units on that corner, and my unit seems to be the only one with an visible problem. Does anyone on the south/west corner experience any leakage of air/water or any type of noise when the wind blows?

    As for the temerature, I also noticed that my unit does not get below 70 degrees. Does anyones unit with alot of windows experience problems with cooling the unit down on a hot/sunny day? Does anyone have an airconditioner that cools the unit below 70? When I examined the air units, which are 4 pipe units, the 2 cold water pipes had a substantial amount of condensation plus it appeared to be slightly leaking toward the valve. Has anyone in the building experienced this? I’m wondering if the air conditioning is being effected by the amount of condensation/leakage? Also, this summer was very cold. If we get a prolonged period of 90 degree weather, I’m concerned about units that have alot of windows and direct exposure to the sun. Please share if anyone has had a problem with cooling the unit. Thanks!

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  273. B-

    I have a unit with many windows. It does get warm when the sun is shining (I have no blinds/drapes as of yet). However, I only been in a month, so temps have only been mild.

    Window covering should greatly improve this. i used to live in one of the black glass Mies VDR buildings and if you didnt have blinds down it would be a solid 90 degrees most of the year with nothin you could do about it. With blinds/curatins etc, it was vastly improved, to the point of it being a non-issue. Units will need window coverings during the summer months.

    The condensation concerns me. Please, point this out to Jasim or Meho, the building engineers. if they are unsure, they’ll get a hold of Mesirow.

    King Regards.

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  274. Hi Guys,

    We are looking for track lighting for our living room. anyone have any suggestions where to get it from and how much it costs?

    Thanks!

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  275. B-

    I’ve gotten my unit to 68, maybe lower, during the summer. I do have solar shades, though. I was never really interested in going much lower. However, I have noticed that sometimes it helps to set your thermostat 2 degrees above/below the temperature you actually want to achieve.

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  276. Thanks for the comments on the A/C. I don’t have any shades yet either so it’s probably not something to worry about.

    Next question is about the internet. Does anyone use an xbox or anything else that needs ports opened up (VPN, remote desktop, ssh, ftp, torrent, etc…)? It seems there is a firewall at the ISP level blocking almost everything except the most basic ports like 80, where all your regular http pages go through. I think it’s pretty lame that the xbox (or similar) traffic would be blocked since there aren’t really any other options for ISPs. That’s something you usually only see in places like dorms or libraries.

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  277. My landlord in my apartment building does that (port blocking).

    A few years ago when I was playing a MMO game and they turned it off I complained and he re-opened the ports. I quit playing the game but it appears they are re-blocked.

    Complain to your ISP. If you were promised “internet access” with no asterisks or limitations they really aren’t within their rights to do crap like port blocking.

    I’ve wondered why there are no services out there for port forwarding for this kind of crap but just assumed it is rare. I think I smell a biz opportunity.

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  278. Thanks Bob. Definitely a good opportunity.

    To update, I called the ISP and after much confusion, they confirmed the IP’s are in fact private and all the ports are blocked, despite previous claims of no port blocking. That will never be changed. They will sell me a public static IP with no port blockage for $7 a month.

    I hate that kind of sneaky way to hit you for more cash, especially on monthly charges. By the way, all the units are “pre-wired” in all rooms for high speed internet, but be ready to pay up and extra $75 for each room you want “turned on”.

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  279. The internet access is also fairly poor as far as speeds go (not to mention temporary outages/routing issues). 2Mbps should not repeatedly have to rebuffer YouTube videos, etc. It’s a good thing I don’t use the internet from home for all that much anymore. This is something I hope to bring up once the condo association gets going. There’s got to be an alternative to AM3 if they can’t provide quality service.

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  280. O,
    I didnt know that about the extra fee for room. I just thought they f’d up my wiring b/c the first AM3 guy in cut my telephone line while setting up my inet first time around. I’d be tempted to call for them to turn on the other if I didnt think something else would get messed up.

    I did the static ip recently and it’s worked well for the xbox. The speed sucks overall – you are right. They told me months back that when the building filled they would add speed upgrades but nothing on that yet.

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  281. david.. i have at&t dsl also in my unit but its not that much better. it’s 4-5Mbps down, under 200k upload. Atleast the AM3 has a much better upload speed which helps with gaming. Neither is even close to as good as Comcast inet.

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  282. Yeah, I never thought I’d be longing for Comcast. I do like the DirecTV, though. It’s too bad FiOS isn’t available.

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  283. Mac,
    How did you get AT&T’s DSL here? I thought we didn’t have a choice to use another ISP besides AM3.

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  284. well the AM3 is built into the walls and is included in your assessments. You can get AT&T dsl..but you have to pay for it. I was the first to get dsl in the building so it took at least a month for AT&T to get it all working properly but I don’t think anyone would have a problem going forward. If I didn’t need the 2nd ISP for work/gaming I probably wouldn’t waste the $ on it. I’ve surfed on both and not much difference. I do use the AT&T to download for directv ondemand since it’s a tad faster down speed…the whole directv ondemand is a joke. directv is better then comcast in every area except ondemand.

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  285. Mac,

    Thanks for the response. I don’t mind paying extra for faster internet. I’m using WiMax actually instead of AM3’s slow connection. It’s good enough for gaming and streaming stuff, but I would still prefer to have a wired connection instead of wireless. I’m definitely getting DSL then. Thanks again for the advice.

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  286. Mac,

    Thanks for the info. Did you get the normal AT&T DSL or AT&T U-verse?

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  287. The apartment building I live in (a couple blocks from R+D) kicked their provider out about 2 years ago and signed a contract with OnShore. They came in and assessed internet usage and put in a system with the proper amount of bandwidth for the building. Every unit gets something like 8MB/sec and there is bandwidth to spare even if each unit is maxed out at the same time.

    I would highly suggest checking out the contract you have with AM3 when your association starts meeting. If they aren’t going to properly serve the building get rid of them as soon as you can. There are other providers out there that do a great job.

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  288. Mac,

    I just got off the phone with AT&T, they said they will have to send a tech out to test the line to see if I can get DSL. What type package and speed do you have? I’m getting 3.5 to 4Mbps down and 1Mbps up with Wimax.

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  289. I wish it was U-Verse. Isn’t that one really FAST?

    I don’t think the AT&T DSL is that much faster then AM3. AT&T is 4-5Mbps down but only 200k-ish up. The building, AM3, internet probably is running 2Mbps down but 2-3Mbps up (i’d have to test it). So i think it depends what you are going to use it for. Gaming is running better off of the building inet right now b/c of the better upload speed. For downloading the DSL might be better. I don’t really download a ton so surfing seems the same on both thats why I think it’s probably not worth the $45/mo for dsl if you don’t absolutely need a 2nd ISP.

    I call AM3 every other month or so to request speed upgrades. They had said they would do this when the building fills up. I spoke to them last week b/c the building is pretty darn full…but they still don’t have any plans to offer upgrades at this time. She told me to keep calling once a month to check in. I would suggest everyone call to bother them. That might be what actually makes them make faster speeds available. (of course they will likely charge a nominal fee! lol)

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  290. U-Verse is AT&T’s competition to FiOS. It’s basically a fiber network, but unlike FiOS it doesn’t remain fiber all the way to your door. It’s significantly faster than regular DSL, but it still doesn’t compare to FiOS. It will also be interesting to see what happens once Comcast implements DOCSIS 3.0 in Chicago. Apparently it’s already available in the suburbs.

    To give you an idea of how bad AM3’s service is, especially in peak hours (like now), I just tested the connection speed against a Chicago-based server. The ping was 100ms (yuck), download was .45Mbps, and upload was .68Mbps. That is, frankly, ridiculous.

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  291. “download was .45Mbps, and upload was .68Mbps”… that’s some crappy speed. I am an online gamer and can’t live with slow speed…damn..

    What about direct tv? I have a shared account with my family and am wondering if my own direct tv receiver would work in the building?

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  292. Mac,

    Thanks again for the AT&T tip, I ordered the Elite package online on the 9th and i’m up and running today on the 12th with 4-5Mbps goodness.

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  293. I have no idea if your receiver would work, though it would probably violate the terms of DirecTV’s service contract. It’s sort of a moot point anyway, since the cost of DirecTV is included in your assessment. You do, however, have to pay extra for premium channels and HD ($10) and DVR boxes ($6). It costs me $42/month for the HBO and Showtime packages plus an HD DVR box. The Total Choice package is included.

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  294. Also, the speed of the internet isn’t always that bad. That night was, for some reason, worse than usual. Right now (morning, obviously off peak) I’m getting 1.93Mbps down and .79Mbps up. AM3 gives you a full 2Mbps upload burst speed, but after a few seconds going full bore you get throttled back.

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  295. Got our first comed bill this week.. ~$56 for 10 days?!? Does that sound high for anyone else? Anyone else on the top 3 floors get a crazy first bill this week?

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  296. It’s not right. Got mine as well, was for 20 days and less than half yours.

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  297. My bills have been very, very low…usually in the $20-30s. I have replaced all my lights with CFLs and don’t leave lights or electronics on when not in use. I would look at the components of your bill to figure out how it got that high.

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  298. Kinghippo – I spoke with AM3 and they said that my DirectTV account was not properly linked to the building rate. I emailed them a copy of my bill, and they had it taken care of in about a week. Although the internet is god-awful slow, the CS folks at AM3 have always been more than helpful.

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  299. ok. Thanks for the heads up.

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  300. anyone know the rule on animals per unit? Is it 2? Based on sq ft maybe? Do cats count in that number? lol (not a cat fan)

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  301. I had AM3 out today to activate my 2nd wall jack. Apparently it’s not as simple as just activing a jack b/c you only have 1 internet line coming into a unit. The guy told me they would actually put a router where the line comes into your unit so it will split the connection. I did not want to add another hop for my xbox so I just had him move my building internet to my living room jack to be closer to the xbox. besides, where my tv/internet come into my unit there is no power outlet to run a router.

    BTW with the association starting up in Jan. maybe we can work on getting faster internet as the first order of business!

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  302. Ordered AT&T phone and DSL ($11 + $35), the sales rep told me that I could cancel the phone line after a month and I could still keep the DSL for $35/month. Got an email from AT&T today saying DSL is not available, called them and told them that my neighbors are currently using AT&T DSL in the same building, they said they will have their engineers take a look at it. I need to call them back on next Wednesday. Guess I will need to deal with AM3’s crappy speed if DSL is not available.

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  303. I was actually googling to find drapes, and through a random series of searches found this page. I’m new to RD659 and I’ve found the comments here to be pretty helpful in getting prepared for what to expect once I’m fully moved in.

    In regards to the internet: I’m really disappointed to hear that AM3 is blocking ports. Throw on the low speed and I’m pretty much over them. If the first order of business for the condo assoc is to get a proper TV in the party room, the second order of business should be finding a new ISP.

    Mac, I was told by AM3 that I have 2 internet lines coming into my unit: one for the tech center and one in my bedroom. I’d prefer to have a router so that I can network 2 computers together, but I’ve been told that’s not possible. Once I’m fully moved in, I’ll do some of my own investigating…

    Has anyone installed drapes in their unit? Currently my windows are bare, but due to the metal frame and concrete ceiling, I’m having a difficult time finding hardware to hang drapes. Any advice would be appreciated.

    Overall, I’m really pleased with my experience at RD659. Aside from some geek issues that won’t be an issue for most of the owners, I’m extremely happy with my unit. I think with the formation of a condo board, we’ll be able to hash out the rest of the problems relatively quickly.

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  304. I’m not surprised by the wiring situation. I haven’t looked at mine, but I suspect all the wires originate inside a panel that is likely in a closet by your door (and AM3 has probably accessed it to set up your TV/internet). You may be able to put a router there and put all of your ports behind it (however, it does look pretty small and I’m not sure about power outlets).

    I’ve done a similar thing with cable internet (or DSL/whatever) before in two different buildings. You can wire the router on the cable connection into the wall and put a switch inside/next to that panel to activate all the ports (though you may have to put the physical plugs on the cables or have someone do it for you).

    The way our building is set up, with the connection coming in on CAT5 already and going, I presume, to the cabinet area first, you can simply put the router there. You could also use a non-wireless router there and hook an access point up to one of your jacks if you would prefer a different location to originate your wireless network. It might make for a messy closet, though, since the cabinet/panel/whatever isn’t large enough to fit equipment inside it if I’m remembering correctly.

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  305. Danny,
    “I was told by AM3 that I have 2 internet lines coming into my unit: one for the tech center and one in my bedroom”

    The problem is the AM3 person on the phone is wrong and doesn’t know the details. The tech himself explained it as basically you have 1 line coming into your condo. You then have 2 wires going to 2 jacks within your unit. You can only pick 1 jack to have internet going to otherwise they will put a router at the location of panel where it comes into your unit. (for $70 and you have to provide the router). For that price you are probably better off just keeping the 1 jack and putting a wireless router of your own on it to save the $70. Tech told me customer support has no idea how the building is wired and shouldn’t be offering the 2nd jack without explaining it better.

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  306. Any of you know where is the phone jack located? tech center? I cant seem to find mine… AT&T is still have difficulties installing DSL in my unit, I was told again that DSL is not available. They are going to send another tech to check the line when I requested to cancel my phone line.

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  307. The phone jack is located in the master bedroom of the unit I live in. I hooked up my DSL in the master bedroom and connected my wireless router to the DSL in the “tech center.”

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  308. There’s a proposal to build a 34 story apartment building at 108 n jefferson. Saw the plans, it looks terrible, and doesn’t fit the neighborhood at all (other then skybridge).

    R+D is in the 27 ward, but 108 jefferson is apparently in the 42. Its a parking lot now, my opinion is the proposal needs to drop about 15 floors. Please feel free to contact either or both of the aldermen (as I did) as well as the Chicago Planning Authority and express your opinions (good or bad) as neighborhood residents.

    Regards.

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  309. so it’s going to be on Jefferson and not DesPlaines? i dont want it either way though. Found other info about it on the web. Sounds like it is going to tower over RD659.

    http://blog.chicagoarchitecture.info/2009/11/new-residential-skyscraper-for-west.html

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  310. i see you already posted on there king, lol. You got the alderman info handy?

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  311. Ward 27

    Served by Alderman Walter Burnett, Jr.
    Office: 1463 W. Chicago Ave.
    Chicago, IL 60622
    wburnett@cityofchicago.org
    Phone: 312-432-1995
    Fax: 312-432-1049
    City Hall Office: 121 N. La Salle
    Room 300
    Chicago, IL 60602
    City Hall Phone: 312-744-6124
    312-742-8489

    Ward 42

    Served by Alderman Brendan Reilly
    Office: 311 West Superior
    Suite 212
    Chicago, IL 60654
    office@ward42chicago.com
    Phone: 312-642-4242
    Fax: 312-642-0420
    City Hall Office: 121 N. Lasalle St.
    Room 300
    Chicago, IL 60602
    City Hall Phone: 312-744-3062

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  312. brendan.reilly@cityofchicago.org

    wburnett@cityofchicago.org

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  313. Hippo:

    It appears from the zoning map that the lot may be defined as extending to the centerline of Jefferson–which is *very* non-standard in Chicago. Without that (absurd, imo) inclusion of public land, they can only build ~260 (depending on exact deminsions of the lot) units. So that might be your best approach to challenge the project, as it appears (cursory exam only) that it’s basically an as-of-right project w/r/t height/bulk/unit count/use.

    That despite my personal preference for more tall buildings b/t the river and the freeway.

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  314. Anon

    Thanks for the info. As I know nothing about Chicago zoning and am definitely not a real estate expert would would you mind expanding on your comments? As-of-right project, public lands, etc.

    Regards

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  315. “As-of-right project”

    A project that complies with all of the requirements of the zoning code w/o and variance, density bonuses, special use approval. The easiest example is in R-districts, where one may build a SFH of X SF and Y height. If your plans comply with those limits (and the building code), no one can do much to stop you.

    A good example of this (from my part of town) is the Cityscape project on Western, just south of Irving–the developer bought ~10 standard lots and proposed a single-entrance condo building (which I thought looked v. cool), but it exceeded zoned height or unit count limits (both-iirc), so they needed approval for a zoning change and/or variance. There were a number of people opposed for a variety of NIMBY and legit reasons, so they didn’t get approved. Instead, they’ve built/are building, essentially, 4-story, 6-flat-over-retail-type buildings, which are permitted in the existing zoning w/o any zoning consent. The project, as-built, is crap to look at, but reports are they are nice units inside (altho too expensive, esp. directly on Western).

    The public land thing:

    generally in Chicago, parcels end just streetside of the sidewalk. The rest is part of the street and thus public land. This is often not the case on DT parcels, mostly, i think, to allow for this sort of shenanigans on permitted units and FAR, etc (someone who does actual Chicago development correct me if I’m off).

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  316. Thanks Valeu, I will check my master bedroom when I got home.

    Does anyone know what kind of satellite dish our building use? I somehow messed up my receiver’s setting and now I am not able to watch any channels, it stuck on the “searching satellite” screen… I am trying to reset it and it asks for satellite dish type, 04 slimline 5nb..etc. I have a HD receiver. Thanks.

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  317. Hi IU:

    I’m looking at my HD box and I have dish type: “Slimline-5”

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  318. Thanks hoosier, it works!

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  319. About to buy, comments concerning. Any news in the frigid weather with wind/heating problems. Anymore signs of leakage? Thought since drywall is up etc, inspection mute. Let me know what you think

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  320. I haven’t had any issues with cold or wind in the middle of the building, facing south.

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  321. I can hear wind blowing outside from my unit, I guess thats normal? facing north/west.

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  322. I have been putting off blinds for way to long. Who have you used for your blinds and what are your thoughts on them?

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  323. I have black bamboo floors in my unit. Does anybody else have these installed and having any problems with them in terms of quality? Mine has started curling up on the corners?

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  324. Mover,

    i have the same issue as you, just noticed today, that the floors are curling up around the balcony area… not sure what to do?

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  325. Hardwood floors expand and contract with the season. Getting a humidifier may resolve some of this.

    If you dont think that’s the reason take photos and email them to the developer rep. He has been very good at getting back to me and resolving issues with my unit.

    Most of these things are under warranty and should be brought to the attention of the developer immediatley. You should have a sheet with his contact info in your move-in packet.

    Kind regards.

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  326. have the same issue by our balcony door. it doesnt look like its water damage but rather the glue has come up on the floor as its loose and a hollow feel for a small portion of it. We emailed the developer who had someone come out and confirm it wasnt water damage. At our request they said they’d get another engineer out to look at it to double check but we’ve yet to hear anything back (not sure we will without following up) but that was a few weeks ago. sounds like it is what king said but can never hurt to double check since there was a history of water issues in some units.

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  327. It appears the developer or flooring company are not offering any kind of solution for the flooring issue aside from a gift card, which hardly comes close to the upgrade price we paid. Im waiting to hear back from somebody on the project to see if we can agree on a solution.
    If no solution can be made a good colleague of mine who works at CNN said they can work my situation into a piece they are working on. so I guess either way I’ll get a smile out of the situation.

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  328. I just got back into town and notice a TON of water condensation on the metal (Aluminum?) window frames and the edges of all of the windows (on the north side of the building). There’s so much that it is actually pooling on the white ledge under the window and dripping down the wall. However, I don’t think they are leaking water. I think the frames are just getting so cold it is condensing water on the inside.

    Does anyone else have this going on and do you know of any way to prevent it? Thanks.

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  329. I just drove by 659. Half the building looks empty. Why not just buy into an existing building like 125 jefferson or other existing buildings with good reserves. Buying new construction is overrated. A lot of these developers come up with fake #’s for assessments just to unload these buildings. They hand it over and book.

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  330. O, I haven’t had that problem, though the north and south side windows are different. The north side is probably colder because there’s no direct sunlight in the winter. Do you have a humidifier running? If so, it might be a good idea to move it away from the window (if it’s close) or maybe turn it down a bit.

    Andy, the building is definitely not half empty. The association is starting up this month (not sure what that means as far as % closed) and I only know of one or two vacant units on my floor.

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  331. I think it needs to be somewhere over 70% closed for the association start-up. The building does not seem empty at all, and has been over 50% for quite a while. I’m not sure how you could make this estimate while driving by, this really doesn’t seem possible. If it’s based on how many plain windows you see, I think many people haven’t bought treatments yet. I know I haven’t.

    Thanks for the idea on the humidifier. I don’t have one running though. I still think it’s just condensing moisture but it seems excessive. I’ve never had aluminum window frames before though so maybe this is typical on really cold days. I think I’ll see if it continues and if so call up the developer rep.

    http://img222.imageshack.us/i/img0512h.jpg/
    http://img3.imageshack.us/i/img0511f.jpg/
    http://img262.imageshack.us/i/img0509m.jpg/

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  332. Water condensation on windows is COMPLETELY unacceptable in new construction. Why are builders still allowed to get away with using such shoddy materials?

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  333. Wow, that is a lot of condensation. Maybe it’s water seeping in from the unit above you or something. It’s strange, though, since the weather has been so cold…all the moisture outside is frozen.

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  334. O-

    You need to contact the developer ASAP. This should not be happening. Reps phone # 312-595-7826. Email the pics, someone should be out this week!

    Please, if anyone else is having these types of issues the sooner it gets dealt with the better, for your unit and the health of the overall building.

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  335. O, that does look insane. The developer is pretty fast response time on these issues. i say kick up a sh!tstorm about it.

    as for the building being empty.. i thought they said only 15 or so units still available? Obviously it must be close with the condo associations starting up. As for fake assessment #’s, they just adjusted ours. The parking went up but our unit went down and overall it’s about $20 cheaper then before.

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  336. If people on this forum are looking in the area, starting 1/16/09 565 Quincy is slashing their prices… will likely be to the level of RD 659. I think its a better building. Better developer… better standard finishes, and nice to be a little farther from the noise of the highway. Plus lower assestments. I looked both places, went with Quincy.

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  337. Sorry- 1/16/10….not used to that yet.

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  338. My overall assessment (955sq ft unit) went up by a couple dollars/month after the rise in parking and fall in unit assessments. The parking assessments were ridiculously low before the adjustment. What was it? $3/month or something? I think it’s up around $20/month for the parking space assessment now, but I’m not looking at my bill.

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  339. My assessment also went up for parking and down for the unit (slightly up by a couple bucks overall). I believe the letter said the parking assessment calculation was a mistake originally and they were correcting it.

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  340. O-

    I had the same problem over the weekend, even resulting in the condensation freezing. Let me know what you hear back from the developer. From talking to family/friends, this is not an uncommon occurrence in high rises with metal window frames. I lifted my (temporary) blinds up and left my humidifier off for a day and all the condensation evaporated. Still not happy about having to alter my living patterns to suit my windows.

    All –

    As much fun as it’s been communicating via this blog post, would there be any interest in starting up a RD659 yahoo group? Personally, I’d like to complain about our internet speeds in a more efficient manner.

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  341. “As much fun as it’s been communicating via this blog post, would there be any interest in starting up a RD659 yahoo group? Personally, I’d like to complain about our internet speeds in a more efficient manner.”

    If you are setting up a condo association, why not set up a building website? Most buildings have this (to discuss these very issues.)

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  342. I would assume that would happen in the course of setting up the condo association. I’m just speaking about in the interim. But hey, I’m good with posting here as well!

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  343. we could always get a free forum going till the condo association gets a website up. If nobody does it before me, I’ll make one tonight.

    btw – as far as Quincy goes. i was turned off at the time b/c of there “price guarantee” being there selling promotion. Obviously that was a limited thing as I’m sure they will not be reimbursing current owners with the tier price discounts. I guess if you like Lou Mitchells (Personally Hate it, taste like greasy overdone day old leftovers) quincy is a better spot. I lived at The Edge (210 S. DesPlaines) before RD659 and have to say that area gets far shadier after dark. I know its only a few blocks down the road but my wife and I have noticed a difference (maybe its b/c not as many nooks and crannies to hide). I saw a guy getting mugged at the white hen by quincy last year as well as personally being followed coming out of that white hen a few times. Also the number of aggressive bums i’ve seen after dark has decreased by RD. Like i said, its only a few blocks but these are some things i’ve noticed. OF COURSE i think there is that club by RD659, think on lake street, that people have been shot by but i’m too old to go “club’n” anyways lol

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  344. mac, I haven’t lived in the “new” west loop or whatever they are calling it, so I guess I can’t speak to any muggings in the area- but with Kent Law School right next to Quincy I feel good about the amount of night time activity. The neighborhood in general is just no lincoln park or lakeview (of course, bad things happen up there too). But its walking distance from the loop- and that is the BIG selling point regardless of the building.
    Hopefully, with these two buildings filling up the area will begin to have more activity and become more safe.

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  345. test

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  346. created a temp for td659 though having trouble posting the url for some reason.

    phpbbplanet(dot)com/rd659

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  347. just received word from the agent who sold me my unit that there is one unit left for sale … a 2bed / 2bath facing south.

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  348. AttorneyintheMaking on February 5th, 2010 at 9:19 pm

    Hi all,

    I was wondering if anyone knows where I can purchase additional cabinets like the ones that came with the units. I have the dark brown/wood looking cabinets and wanted to make an island that matches. If anyone knows, I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks in advance.

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  349. Wow, there’s only one unit left? The elevators do seem to be getting pretty busy in the mornings… 🙂

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  350. Hi all,

    I’ve never lived in a condo building before so this question might be dumb but is there any way to make automatic payments for assessments?

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  351. Has anyone in RD659 appealed their tax assessment? They seem REALLY high… does anyone know if the condo association will do this? is it already too late for 2009. Please help.

    Thx.

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  352. asdf, I don’t believe that they’ve set up any automatic payment options for assessments yet. That is a fairly common thing for management companies to do, though. Hopefully the board gets on it 😉

    tax, I haven’t received any information about property taxes yet…

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  353. Tax,

    The developer is aware of the tax situation, and to my knowledge is trying to sort it out. Only a few units were sent forms, of these units the tax seems to be grossly overestimated.

    I inquired with the assessor’s automated phone system and found the pin # didn’t coordinate with my unit but a smaller one on a different floor. I did file an appeal, but I wouldnt worry too much about it now. Again, only a few units got estimates. (I believe the end appeal date has now passed anyway).

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  354. tax,

    The condo association typically does the appeal for all units. West Township has closed at the assessor’s office but a tax atty can still get the case heard at the board of review. There are many who specialize in condos in Chicago. You absolutely want one who already does similar properties. Good luck.

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  355. Hi,

    I just recently moved into the building and am having a hard time figuring out how to put up window treatments, being that there is no space for mounts around the windows. I saw that it was addressed a while back, but without details. I’m going to use a tension rod for the bedroom window, but I think the treatments will be too heavy for one in the living room. Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

    Thanks!

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  356. the installers drilled all the mounts into the ceiling at my unit. hope this help.

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  357. Thanks for the reply! I had thought about that, but I read in the binder that we are not allowed to drill anything into the ceiling. Is that meant just for big projects? Or have the rules changed? Thanks again.

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  358. cb,

    The rules haven’t changed, but I don’t think they are worried about window treatments. You can ask the management office about it. I used the company that advertised in the binder the developer put together, so I assume that their methods of installation (drilling into the ceiling) are approved. I can’t think of any way to install window treatments without drilling into the ceiling.

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  359. Hello neighbors, i’m wondering if anybody has been using AMC3’s internet for the last couple of months and how has the reliability/speed been?

    I got an e-mail from AMC3 and they are offering 6Mbps for an extra $15 a month. I currently have ATT’s DSL and i’m at a solid 5-5.5Mbps connection that hasn’t dropped and my speed has been consistent. However, it’s $45 a month and AMC3’s is cheaper with an extra megabit to boot.

    I spoke to a tech named Quin and she said that I would be guaranteed 6Mbps and it would never drop below that. I voiced my concerns that they couldn’t provide 2Mbps when most people were on (at night and the weekends) how can they provide 6Mbps?

    She said, “we went in and changed the configs on some of the ports and everybody is getting 2Mbps now.”

    Can anybody verify or deny Quin’s claim about the 2Mbps speed?

    Thanks

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  360. I’ll see what it’s like tonight. Recently the speed has seemed a bit better, but nothing miraculous, and I think it’s more like 1.75Mbps when I’ve checked. I’m sure that they can provide higher speeds if they wanted, though you’re right about peak hours. During non-peak hours, the bandwidth to the building is not saturated and the only reason you don’t get much, much higher than 2Mbps is artificial limitation (QoS). That’s how all ISPs work. If you get 6Mbps service, they’ll bump up the bandwidth available to you, but you would still suffer during peak hours unless they also increase the priority of your traffic above people who are at the “standard” tier. The $15/month deal is tempting (I got the same email today) but I’m so dissatisfied with AM3’s basic service that I’d rather not give them money. I’m also not sure that they can actually provide 6Mbps service during peak hours when I actually want to use it.

    If you do go with the upgrade, definitely post here and let me know!

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  361. I ran a speed test just now (around 6PM) and got 1.94Mbps down and 460Kbps up…doesn’t seem to be having the peak hours slowdown at the moment.

    Also, as far as reliability goes, my connection hardly ever drops. It’s the most reliable service I’ve had, so I can’t fault it there.

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  362. Interesting, the tech said I can have 3 free months to try it and then cancel it if i’m not satisfied. However, after 3 months i’m locked in for $15 a month for a year. I’m not really concerned about their QoS, ideally since it’s LOS which is just as good as fiber.

    I’m just not confident in their backhaul that actually connects to the internet. I’m going to call again and try to speak with a tech who’s more technical than Quin and see if I can get more answers about our SLAs.

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  363. what about upload speed? $15 upgrade including all ports open? I am currently using DSL, hate AMC3’s service when they charges extra $7/month just to have all the ports open!

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  364. I did the $15 upgrade yesterday, 90days free, but hasn’t taken affect just yet. Takes up to 72hrs they told me. I also have the static ip for $5 (or $7) a month so my NAT is open for gaming purposes so yea it’s a separate charge.

    I also have the AT&T for work/websurfing and it is consistent 4.5-5mb but the NAT isn’t open (causes gaming issues) and the upload is near nadda. AM3 upload has been like 4mb which is double what the standard download. (kinda odd)

    i’ll let you guys know how the 6mb down/2mb up is when it goes in.

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  365. mac, you’ve been getting 4Mbps upload pre-upgrade? Perhaps the static IP also gets you an upload boost. I’ve never gotten anywhere close to 4Mbps upload. It’s always stayed strictly at or below 2Mbps for me.

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  366. You guys really need to get together and get a building website together to discuss all of these issues. Or perhaps your management company will have a homeowners website for R&D? There are so many issues in a new building it is very helpful.

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  367. yea, my upload can go up and down from 4mb but its been consistent. the download is always like 1.90 to 1.99 though. The speed upgrade hasn’t kicked in yet. I will test it when i go home today.

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  368. Wed. April 28th: AM3: Yes we have upgrades let me sign you up. We have also emailed you a confirmation number.
    Fri., April 30th: AM3: Sorry it takes 72hrs for upgrades to take affect. Wait till tomorrow.
    Mon. May 3rd: AM3: It takes 72 business hrs before upgrades take affect wait till the end of the day

    Wed. May 5th: AM3: It usually takes 72hr business hours.
    ME:yes it’s been a week I ink that means atlas 5 business days!
    AM3: Oh hold..let me get technical support
    AM3 Tech Support: So why are you calling again..
    Me: recap..blah blah blah..order number blah blah
    AM3 Tech Support: Oh thats not an order number thats your account number.
    Me: So you mean they emailed me a confirmation number thats my account number. GREAT!
    AM3 Tech Support: Let me see if that building even has upgrades..
    .
    .
    Am3 Tech Support: Let me get back to you by friday…

    $100 I do not get called..EVER, let alone by friday.

    And they wonder why I called them so much..AM3 is the pits!

    Does anyone know why we have AM3? 2MB infrastructure. Whats it made out of? Tinfoil and paperclips? This isn’t the early 90’s. We live a new building!

    Anyone know what kind of contract the building is tied to with these slubs and how hard it would be to get another provider into the building? GOD I MISS COMCAST INTERNET!

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  369. mac, you’ve got to come to the HOA meetings! At both meetings we’ve discussed the awfulness that is AM3’s internet service. The reason we haven’t switched and aren’t currently looking is that AM3 did our building’s wiring and the developer made a contract with them where we have to pay them for the wiring if we cancel our contract within 3 years of closings started. So we’re stuck for another 18 months or so. They’ve said that technically we shouldn’t be bound to contracts the developer made, but the board doesn’t want to deal with it.

    Feel free to review AM3 on Yelp: http://www.yelp.com/biz/access-media-3-willowbrook It seems we aren’t alone in our lack of speed and customer service.

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  370. Maybe by “72 business hours” they mean 9 business days 😉

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  371. Hey- while you’re at it at your association meetings- why don’t you suggest that you start a residence only website for the building?

    Lots of buildings have them- to address these very issues (that you keep coming here to discuss.)

    Please- I beg of you- just do it!

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  372. We may be a little bit limited in our internet speeds because of how the cables are run. There’s only 1 CAT5 cable going into my condo, even though you probably know we have to pay AM3 to activate an “additional line”. I have one jack by my front door and an unactivated jack in my bedroom. Both are sharing the single wire coming in.

    They do this by only running the data through only 4 of the 8 wires inside each CAT5 cable. It’s also pretty sloppy (long untwisted sections and stripped lengths). It’s closer to how you’d expect a do-it-yourself project to end up than a professional new install. You should still be able to get something over 2Mbps though, you’ll just never be making any Gbps file transfers through your wires….

    For me, the sloppy wiring and slower speeds are more of an annoyance. I’m more displeased with their overall knowledge of their own systems, excessive install charges, and port blocking.

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  373. Is AM3 your only option in the building? You’re not allowed to get Comcast?

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  374. Sabrina, the website issue was also brought up, so hopefully this post will die soon… 😉

    Simon, I believe we cannot get Comcast, but DSL is an option. Of course, we’re still paying for AM3 through assessments whether we like it or not.

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  375. Does anyone have a recommendation for a contractor to install shower door or electrical outlets? Thanks.

    For window treatments, how do you hang them from the ceiling without preventing the screen from opening? Do you just hang it farther out from the window? Thanks.

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  376. Sabrina on May 5th, 2010 at 7:27 pm
    Hey- while you’re at it at your association meetings- why don’t you suggest that you start a residence only website for the building?

    Lots of buildings have them- to address these very issues (that you keep coming here to discuss.)

    Please- I beg of you- just do it!

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  377. i thought am3 upgraded the internet service on last thursday? but i tested the speed few times the last few days and it is still very slow, 2m down/.7m up. anybody else get faster speed?

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  378. also, do we have a residence only forum?

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  379. They probably just did an IOS upgrade on their equipment. I wouldn’t expect them to actually increase the bandwidth without raising the price of the internet.

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  380. ic… thanks for the info Valeu…

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  381. Is there anyone in the building who has their fire alarm in front of their oven? Anytime I turn the oven on above 400 degrees the fire alarm goes off. Is there any solution to this?

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  382. http://www.chicagorealestatedaily.com/article/20110105/CRED03/110109951/mental-health-non-profit-wants-to-buy-mesirow-condos#axzz1ACIkvWh5

    Check this out owners

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  383. haha , David I just read that on curbed…can’t believe it. that would be interesting, having mental health patients as neighbors…to say the least.

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  384. How do the owners feel? You may have mental health patients living amongst you. Sounds like they are just trying to get them back on their feet.

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  385. I am a resident, and I am extremely unhappy (to say the least) about this latest move by the developer. Does anyone know whether the Condo Association plans to call a meeting on this subject?

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  386. The letter provided by the buildings BOD reads that Thresholds is “…a not-for-profit social service organization to house its business clients (as described earlier as having “severe mental illness”) in a dormitory-like environment, with its intention to provide on-site mental health services…”.

    Some of you are much more versed in Chicago real estate law than I am. Outside of writing to the Alderman, are there other things the building (or its owners) can do to appeal this? Is it likely that the building can stop a group from buying 19 units in our building? Anyone have involvement with the City of Chicago to know if this has ever happened in the past and how the city responded?

    Any recommendations?

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  387. Are they a Joe Zekas client?

    “I am a resident, and I am extremely unhappy (to say the least) about this latest move by the developer.”

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  388. “In early March 2009, Joe Askins of YoChicago.com and NewHomeNotebook.com visited the nearly finished R+D659, Mesirow Financial Real Estate’s 17-story condo high-rise located at 659 W Randolph St in Chicago’s West Loop.”

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwrBErYXKoY&feature=channel

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  389. Not a client, Dan. They did advertise in our print magazine occasionally prior to 2009 if my recollection is correct.

    Most of the places we video are not clients or advertisers. When Joe Askins goes out to shoot video he’s almost invariably decided where to go on his own.

    When you and other folks are hurling insults at YoChicago you should keep in mind that you’re insulting the integrity of my fine young employees. If you knew any of these people, or their standards, you might begin to realize how laughable your assertions are. If you’ve ever had to manage grads from top-tier j-schools (Joe A went to Missouri, others have come from Medill) you know that they don’t bend their standards very much.

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  390. Joe: you should let CC regulars write up the RE questions for the journalism grads to ask, if you wanted to provide real insight into things for viewers…. are you sure you can call it journalism? Alot of people were peeved at Scott Pelley’s softballs to Ben Bernanke on 60 Minutes.

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  391. For cryin’ out loud, I’m not a fan of Joe Z either but are we not capitalists? This feels like a witch hunt. Our system works on the premise that companies can offer a product, and do what they can to promote that product. Prospective buyers make decisions based on all the available information.

    When you work in marketing as Joe does, your responsibility is to do the best job possible for your client. You need to be honest, of course, and you can’t do anything illegal to sell the product. WRT the real estate market, many people – including the Fed Chairman – thought it would go up in perpetuity but that didn’t happen. The fact that Joe Z represented developments that got their ass*s handed to them doesn’t make JZ a villain – I get the feeling underwater CCers are looking for someone on which to scapegoat their own poor decisions. JZ’s is but one voice in a sea of voices that influence RE buying decisions.

    Think of all the attorneys who have an obligation to knowingly represent criminals. Joe Z has no such obligation, and there are plenty of counterbalancing sources that will provide contrary perspectives from which consumers can make decisions based on the best available information.

    I’ve said before that JZ is a royal arse, but I respect his right to operate and provide sponsored information to the consuming public. I’m frankly surprised the capitalistic chatterati don’t, as well. To accuse JZ of being behind every f’d development in Chicago is ludicrous.

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  392. You so totally don’t get what our site tries to do, and what limited value a place like CC has to most home buyers.

    We don’t set out to do investigative journalism. Don’t have the resources for that, and it’s of very limited interest to the typical home buyer.

    We don’t set out to serve the anxiety-ridden thinking about thinking about maybe becoming a home buyer person. Most of them wind up renting anyway.

    Our audience is people who have decided to buy and want to set out looking at what’s available, primarily in new construction.

    We go to more places and show people more real estate and more neighborhoods and lately suburbs than any other Web site other than the listings sites. We expose them to more real estate news sources than any other site. Guess what – most of them don’t read the advice / market conditions, etc. stories. They mostly don’t care. They’ve decided to buy and, despite the attitudes of CCers, most of them are fully capable of making intelligent decisions, and aren’t swayed to any degree by what they read. They typically consider CC a monumental waste of time with far too little intelligence embedded in it. They typically consider YoChicago a boring, monumental waste of time once they’ve bought or decided not to.

    Whatever your take is on our videos, they’ve been viewed millions of times. Whatever you think of our site, it’s had cumulatively about a million unique visitors.

    Journalistic standards enter into what we do because we try to be objective, taking our audience’s interests into account. We won’t repeat anything we know to be false – and we know a great number of things about real estate in Chicago, and have access to people who know what we don’t and what CCers never will. We won’t accept advertising or sponsorships from companies we know to be dishonest in their business dealings. Ever wonder why some developments / companies never appear in our videos?

    If CCers dictated the content of our site no one would talk to us and our audience would be deprived of information they value. Who would benefit from that?

    The naiveté here is truly astounding.

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  393. This arse thanks chi)dad for adding some rationality to this discussion.

    My previous comment was addressed to Dan.

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  394. Hi Joe,

    I think you do a great job showing the variety that our city and suburbs has to offer.

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  395. Joe,

    I think most on this site realize that you are just doing your job. Most of the negative comments come from a few people who look at you as the the reason real estate went south (which, as we both know is not true). They also blast American Invesco quite often. I, as far as I know, am probably the biggest AI client on this site (having bought 6 condos from them) and yet I am their biggest defender. All they were doing was doing their job – and they did a great job doing it!!! Nobody was holding a gun to the head of the buyers. And, each one of my condos is doing OK – none are underwater and all are able to be rented at a price that covers the mortgage, assessments, fees. NONE of them are lower than my purchase price. IF investors of AI are mad, they should be mad at themselves for being so greedy and gullible. All of this negativity is absolutely misdirected….. just my 2 cents.

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  396. So, how about the problem with Mesirow and R+D? What do you thinkt he building’s chances are at appealing this and blocking the developer from doing this?

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  397. The proposed ordinance to turn R+D 659 into a halfway house/assisted living facility was introduced by the Mayor at the city council meeting on December 8. It is extremely rare for the mayor to be involved in zoning issues. Most are brought up by Aldermen. It was sent to committee and remains on the committee agenda for today.

    If you want to see the proposed ordinance and its backup documents, it begins on page 136 at the link below.
    http://www.chicityclerk.com/referred_matters/2010/dec8/1_PresentedbytheMayor.pdf

    If you google Daley and Mesirow you will find the connection – it is James Tyree, former president of the city colleges of Chicago (Daley appointee), and chairman of Sun-Times Media holdings – and current Chairman and CEO of Mesirow Financial.

    Tyree’s profile: http://www.mesirowfinancial.com/company/people/mgmtteam/tyree_j.jsp

    I add this last link because it quotes Tyree sweating over the fact that Daley will soon be leaving office and the next mayor might not be so “cozy” with big business:
    This is the last one and it doesn’t prove anything except that I’m right. .
    http://chicagoist.com/2010/09/14/daleys_departure_inspires_corporate.php

    So the condo board has done the right thing and hired an attorney to explore this unprecedented grab. In the meantime, you need to be sure you are registered to vote. There is an election on February 22 — and there is nothing more powerful than registered voters’ voices right before an election.

    City of Chicago voter registration information:
    http://chicagoelections.com/page.php?id=162

    Writing to the alderman is a good suggestion – and your voice is empowered if you are a registered voter. Elected officials listen best to the people that actually hire them. And you need to vote . . . this is important.

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  398. Also, be aware that if this comes down to a public fight (since Mesirow is connected to the Sun Times as well), the owners at 659 will be portrayed as haters of the mentally ill. The media is already sneering and calling it a NIMBY fight. 19 units is the equivalent of one on every floor and more than one on some floors. Register to vote and make some noise.

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  399. Queen. Thanks for the response. Fantastic and much appreciated.

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  400. So is this building a good buy? I am looking at this building and 123 S Green street. which one is better?

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