Get a Townhouse for a Condo Price: 1439 N. Cleveland in Old Town
Many homebuyers priced out of the single family home market look to townhouses for more space and privacy.
This 2-bedroom townhouse at 1439 N. Cleveland in Old Town has its own private fourth floor deck and single car garage.
Originally built by Smithfield in 1997, the two bedrooms are on the third floor. There is also an office/den on the fourth floor – which leads out to the private deck that has a gas line (for the all-important barbecue.)
The kitchen has maple cabinets and granite counter tops but it has black appliances which were the “in” appliances in the era when the townhouse was built.
The townhouse has been reduced by about $10,000 since it was first listed in October 2009.
Is this an attractive condo-alternative?
Burt Fujishima at Coldwell Banker has the listing. See the pictures here.
You can also see it in person at the Open House, this Sunday, Jan 31, from 12:00 to 2:00.
Unit #B: 2 bedrooms, 1.5 baths, 1860 square feet, 1 car private garage
- Sold in November 1997 for $205,000
- Sold in April 2000 for $307,500
- Sold in September 2002 for $367,500
- Originally listed in October 2009 for $399,000
- Reduced
- Currently listed for $389,900
- Assessments of $91 a month
- Taxes of $5762
- Central Air
- Bedroom #1: 12×10
- Bedroom #2: 11×9
- Office: 8×7 (fourth floor)
I like townhouse day! This one is probably my favorite, though I wonder if they’d ever drop below the ’02 price…
No way in hell this is 1860 sq. ft. Even if you include the garage.
“No way in hell this is 1860 sq. ft. Even if you include the garage.”
It’s hard to judge in the aerial where the units break, but the footprint looks to be 30×20–600 SF x 3 + the rooftop shed/office (~7×10) is 1860-ish. But that defintely includes the 200-ish sf of garage.
Seems like decent space for the price, but isn’t the neighborhood around there a bit…transitional? Seems too far west and south to be considered Old Town proper.
…and all the walls, the stairs, the utility closet, etc.
A unit with an 1860 sf exterior footprint should not be advertised as 1860 sf of living space.
“It’s hard to judge in the aerial where the units break, but the footprint looks to be 30×20–600 SF x 3 + the rooftop shed/office (~7×10) is 1860-ish. But that defintely includes the 200-ish sf of garage.”
“A unit with an 1860 sf exterior footprint should not be advertised as 1860 sf of living space.”
Tell it to the architects and BOMA-measuring advocates around here. I’ve gone too deep into that argument before to get into it again. Suffice that I agree with you.
At least we can be glad they offer a ballpark approximation of square footage, unlike 70% of listings out there.
Right behind the Evergreen Terrace apartments, nice…
You couldn’t pay me to live here
for 100k less you can get the budlong woods TH.
good way of putting things into perspective Sabrina 🙂
Very very close to the public housing on Evergreen street. This is an extremely sketchy area once it gets dark. (I live a few blocks away and its definitely not safe after sundown)
This listing on the same street has intrigued me as well:
http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/1272-N-Cleveland-Ave-60610/home/21942008
Been listed on and off for ~2 years now. I don’t think the asking price has dropped in over a year. It looks like a beautiful home until you notice what is directly across the street!
Very sketchy area. I used to run by that area on my long runs, but only during the day. Unless I was an ex-Navy Seal, special forces, or marine, I wouldn’t live there.
Who would pay over $1M in that neighborhood. Obviously people were smoking crack from the bubble…
Not a big fan even if I am not far either. That block of Mohawk to Cleveland is the good part. That block from Cleveland and Evergreen and Sedgwick….errr?? scary???
Can someone explain what qualifies a property as fee simple? I thought fee simple meant no assessments.
This is a truly nice modern townhouse for the price and location. Price sounds better than right.
The bathroom needs a little freshening but it’s not hideous, at least.
Prime location, nice-looking. If this place is only worth $367K, then the previously featured dump in Budlong Woods is only worth $180K.
Looks like a lot of wasted square footage from the pictures, especially on level 1, and then higher up where its carpeted near the top of the stairs. The ceiling height in the kitchen also looks a bit low.
“Prime location,”
Puh-lease pass me some of whatever it is you are smoking…
“Can someone explain what qualifies a property as fee simple? I thought fee simple meant no assessments.”
Fee simple means that you have exclusive ownership of all of your land. Your FS ownership can be subject to a homeowner’s association (which I presume this is) that covers some expenses and amenities for the community–this is *extremely* common in parts of California.
A nearby example are the SFHs where the Oscar Meyer factory used to be. In that case, I beleive that the alley is not a public alley and the HOA maintins the alley and has the garbage collection contract (as it’s not covered by Streets & San), but that may be incorrect. I don’t knwo what you get from the HOA here, but it’s probably about the same.
The song was incorrect “Cleveland does not rock”
I actually pay to live right by this place as a renter. So if there are people that would have to be paid to live here, it looks like I’m getting the sh*t-end of the stick. Those uncomfortable with walking around the location at night. WELCOME TO CHICAGO. The idea that this is an unsafe location because there is subsidized housing between Sedgwick and Mohawk / Schiller and Evergreen is silly. I’m a 5’6″ white kid and have never been made to feel uncomfortable. Clearly it’s a less desireable street than North Park or Weiland, which are less desireable than the 1400 block of Astor. Looks like a great buy for a first-time buyer if it can be delivered for around $330-$350k.
I pay to live by this place as well…just not on Cleveland! As long as you aren’t on this side of Cleveland/not on Sedgwick (this side of north) at all, then its fine.
LOL@your street comparison. There is little difference between being on Weiland/North Park compared to Astor, while the difference between North Park and this side of Cleveland is MASSIVE.
The difference between Weiland/North Park and Astor is also “MASSIVE.” As in, several millions of dollars massive.
I meant the people that walk the streets
Nice place for the money but across from the projects. NEXT!
project are low rise so it’s a little better than other areas west of here. but still… on the other hand, people there aren’t living in a war zone.
I don’t think its a good idea to put a gfa unit near a dryer.
“nox on January 28th, 2010 at 8:53 pm
project are low rise so it’s a little better than other areas west of here. but still… on the other hand, people there aren’t living in a war zone.”
Low-rise projects are still projects, and generally worse than any section-8 developments (apart from some large section-8 complexes that consist of former, you guessed it, project residents).
“Low-rise projects are still projects”
Yep, but neither the Marshall Field Garden Apartments nor the Evergreen Terrace Apartments are “projects”. They are BOTH section 8 housing, privately-owned.
“I don’t think its a good idea to put a gfa unit near a dryer.”
Non-sequitor of the day. Why not, Vas?
I once lived in this part of “old town” — a bit of a stretch, yes. There are nice pockets South of North Avenue — no doubt about it — and a friend of mine lives in a gorgeous basement unit on Mohawk that they paid more than $1million for and they are very satisfied. During the day, lots of families, strollers, etc., but I have to agree that at night it would be wise to be careful. With that said, there are break-ins and bad guys everywhere in the city. When I lived on the South side of North Ave, I was never broken into. On the North Side of North Ave, my car has been broken into 3 times. But if you are looking for a home where you can walk the streets and feel *mostly* safe, then I wouldn’t move South of NORth Ave in this part of Old Town — even though it has improved tremendously in the past 6-7 years. Still a little gritty. Just depends what you want, but clearly location is what’s causing this place to stick.
so what, exactly, are the borders of ‘true’ old town? I ask because everyone seems to dislike the area south of North Ave, but paradoxically, the 1400-1600 strip of Wells appears to be the commercial hub of old town.
there’s a police blue camera on sedgwick, but yet I see $1 mm asking prices 1/2 a block away (http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/329-W-Evergreen-Ave-60610/home/22173327).
old towner – I would appreciate any insight from a current resident as I’m currently considering a move to the area…
“a friend of mine lives in a gorgeous basement unit on Mohawk that they paid more than $1million for and they are very satisfied”
W T F ?
This area is completely fine if you aren’t a whiny person afraid of the city. Likewise noted above, I am a 5’9 white kid and have never been bothered in 3 years living on the 1300 block of cleveland.
That townhouse complex has TONS of families and young professional type people.
anon (tfo) on January 29th, 2010 at 10:40 am
“Yep, but neither the Marshall Field Garden Apartments nor the Evergreen Terrace Apartments are “projects”. They are BOTH section 8 housing, privately-owned.”
Can’t say I know specifics of those two complexes, but privately run section 8 can end up pretty bad when project buildings get demolished. St. Stephen Terrace at Jackson and Western got a whole lot worse when Rockwell Gardens came down across the street and a whole mess of Vice Lords moved in.
beju–i wasn’t saying they’re good or bad, just pointing out all the distinctions b/t “projects” and sec.8 were based on a faulty belief that either of these two are “projects”.
“I don’t think its a good idea to put a gfa unit near a dryer.”
Non-sequitor of the day. Why not, Vas?
Really anon, I guess that’s all I really wanted to say about the place at the time, it could cause a problem. I would have cautioned that I am no expert but I been told you can be anything on CC, so I am tellin’ like it is.
well the lint and dust from the dryer would mess up the gfa (in boilers the ignition thing that glows), and possible reduce its life-expectancy; if its air flow gets restricted with dust.
or lots of 80 dollar service calls or doing it yourself.
““a friend of mine lives in a gorgeous basement unit on Mohawk that they paid more than $1million for and they are very satisfied”
W T F ?”
must be vampires or mole people!
I live in the Old Town Triangle, but there are several definitions of “Old Town”. For realtors and anyone who lives south of North Avenue, Old Town begins at Division and runs north either to North Avenue or Armitage. West boundaries can vary from Halsted Street to Sedgwick, but most people agree that the east boundary is Clark Street.
The Old Town Triangle is a historic district that runs approximately from North Avenue to Wisconsin, east to Clark Street and west to the old Ogden Avenue, which was an angle street that ran north and east from around Larrabee.
All these boundaries can be defended as the “true” Old Town. The historic district is the most “official” definition (according to the City of Chicago neighborhood maps), but there are others that say the “original” Old Town is the commercial district on Wells Street, and that it ended at North Avenue.
Wikipedia says Old Town is the area between Division Street and Armitage Avenue, Clark and Halsted Street, and that the Triangle historic district is a subset of the overall Old Town area. That’s probably the best definition that covers all the competing claims to Old Town.
The commercial district on Wells Street is a bustling area, but not everyone wants to live so close to the bars, restaurants and shops. The streets to the west of Wells Street, south of North Avenue, are rapidly gentrifying, and they are the most likely to have cheaper housing, but might not be safe enough for everyone. The historic district is the most expensive, but overall the safest and most residential area. There is little commerce except for Wells Street, but even Wells is fairly quiet north of North Avenue.
The great thing about Old Town is it offers many varieties of housing options, and all within a lovely, walkable neighborhood that is close to the lake, downtown and public transportation.
Izzo on January 29th, 2010 at 12:33 pm
so what, exactly, are the borders of ‘true’ old town? I ask because everyone seems to dislike the area south of North Ave, but paradoxically, the 1400-1600 strip of Wells appears to be the commercial hub of old town.
there’s a police blue camera on sedgwick, but yet I see $1 mm asking prices 1/2 a block away (http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/329-W-Evergreen-Ave-60610/home/22173327).
old towner – I would appreciate any insight from a current resident as I’m currently considering a move to the area…
“The Old Town Triangle is a historic district that runs approximately from North Avenue to Wisconsin, east to Clark Street and west to the old Ogden Avenue, which was an angle street that ran north and east from around Larrabee.”
It’s called the “Triangle” for a reason–what you described is not a triangle, having four sides–it was originally North Ave on the south, Wells (extended) on the east and Ogden (former) on the west. Ogden used to intersect Clark at ~LPW/Armitage.
The Landmark District is described here: http://egov.cityofchicago.org/Landmarks/O/OldTown.html