3 Exposures Plus Parking in East Lakeview: 2835 N. Cambridge
This 2-bedroom unit at 2835 N. Cambridge is located in one of the more popular areas of East Lakeview as it’s near shops, restaurants and the movie theater.
It has 3 exposures as well as a separate dining room. It has a washer/dryer in the unit but lacks central air.
The vintage features include a fireplace and what looks to be beamed ceilings in one of the bedrooms.
Most importantly, it has a deeded parking spot which is rare in this location (and at this price point.)
The unit has been on the market since February and has been reduced $21,500.
Is this a hidden gem at this price?
Adam Meredith at Coldwell Banker has the listing. See the pictures here.
Unit #3: 2 bedrooms, 1 bath, no square footage listed
- Sold in January 1997 for $178,500
- Sold in July 2002 for $299,000 (parking included)
- Originally listed in February 2009 for $317,500 (plus $20k for parking)
- Reduced
- Currently listed at $316,000 (parking included)
- Assessments of $402 a month
- Taxes of $3047
- Bedroom #1: 13×12
- Bedroom #2: 12×11
- Living room: 14×14
- Dining room: 11×7
- Kitchen: 13×7
Wonder what the catch is? Looks pretty decent to me, albeit not ‘rehabbed.’ a seperate living/dining room, check. patio, check. decent sized bathroom, check. not cookie cutter, check. nice bedrooms, check. parking, check. w/d in unit, CHECK!
not so good: no a/c, high assessments, kitchen/bath could use some updating (but don’t look terribly dated)
Guessing it goes for $300K all-in (seems like the logical offer)
Sabrina-
listing states “Parking additional $20k” so I don’t believe it’s included in the $316K
ChiGuy:
Sorry- I should have also linked to the other listings. The agent didn’t update his own Coldwell Banker listing but it’s been updated on the other listings to include the parking.
Check out the redfin listing here.
redfin = discount broker = more accurate info
CB = ‘certified NAR agent’ = can’t be bothered to update listings under $750K
BTW, is Greg Whelan the only broker at RedFin or what?
This is a clean rental unit; the all in one vanity in the bathroom sells for about 100 at Home Depot.
I know the people who lived there probably before these owners, or perhaps still own it, but that’s doubtful. If I remember correctly it was summer and was not too hot in the unit. With the layout I think the window a/c worked well in cooling it off. It’s in a good neighborhood and the building has a lot of character, in a good way.
Probably sitting because it is a 2/1 and no central AC. The kitchen and bath aren’t really commanding of a $300k unit either.
No closet in the master bedroom??
Assessments may be a little high, but that includes heat and cable. When you deduct the cost of what these would independently cost (on average), the true cost of the assessments are between $200 and $250/month. Not great, but certainly not outrageous for a building of that size.
That’s crazy it looks EXACTLY like the same exact unit my friend has at Lincoln & Dickens, the kitchen is exactly the same, the living room… my friend doesn’t have all that old lady furniture but its the exact same floorplan… and I believe he pays $1500 a month for it.
Looked at this unit – main drawbacks are lack of central air, and the “dining room” is actually a sunroom of sorts off of the living room – i.e. far from the kitchen. And there’s no elevator in the building – so my grandma couldn’t come visit. It’s got good-sized bedrooms, but the general condition seemed inconsistent with the price to me – floors could use some repairs (not just refinish), kitchen was OK, but not great, bathroom finishes not great. Nice vintage details, though. Ended up buying a couple blocks away in the Commodore.
The owner seems to be quite motivated, a wish profit of $38,500 down to $17k for maintaining a nice unit in a nice area. Far below most profit expectations. It should receive some attention and go rather quickly. The only drawback would be the lack of AC. A plus would be all the original woodwork is still intact. It is getting harder to find units that have left the wood unpainted.
BTW, Jim the vanity costs $199-$359 depending on the finish…this one is $199 + fixture cost. I have used this style in past rehabs and they do get compliments and are pretty solidly constructed.
Matt- I doubt basic cable and heat for 4-5 months = $2400. basic cable (or sat) is about $20-40/month = $480. so, paying $2K for ‘heat’ for the 4 coldest months seems ridiculous.
“its the exact same floorplan… and I believe he pays $1500 a month for it.”
“The owner seems to be quite motivated, a wish profit of $38,500 down to $17k for maintaining a nice unit in a nice area. Far below most profit expectations. It should receive some attention and go rather quickly.”
Until buyers start bidding on properties relative to rental equivalence and not some formula based on entitled appreciation or “what someone else paid for” we still haven’t hit capitulation.
If indeed this can be had for $1500/month (and I suspect it can, with 1700/mo with parking), it certainly isn’t a deal at 316k with a $650 monthly nut in assessments.
Westloopelo
Where do you see a profit here? If this sells at ask wouldn’t this be a $1900 loss?
redfin sez prior sale was for $238k in 2001. Of course, they have the PIN wrong, so who knows?
OK, curious enough–redfin is wrong–2002 sale, but CCRD has teh amoutn wrong (sez $2,000). But the purchase mortgage was $218k, so $299k seems somewhat unlikely.
?
It seems as though I am making a big mistake here in the calculation…can’t think straight right now. I’m dealing with a huge tile order that was totally screwed up, was delivered and the driver is refusing to take it back… and I’m in the process of trying to get it straightened out.
If ONE order for product that I need would be correct I think I would just crap!! EVERY order has somehow been wrong putting me behind by over two months….and these are all Chicago area companies I am dealing with. Who the hell do I need to pay off to get this crap straight the first time??????
OK no time for this today, if you would care to break down the obvious for me I will read it later today.
Thanks for correcting what is probably a very simple mistake on my part!!
Oh, and $117k in 1992.
Westloopelo,
It is a cheap vanity I have used this style in a half bathroom of rental garden unit. This place looks like a cobbled together rental made up of whatever was on sale at Home Depot or Menards at the time.
This Condo is sitting on the market because the potential buyer is most likely renting a nicer unit for much less.
Bob:
Curious to your thoughts. People normally buy places that are nicer and more expensive than they rent. Dare I say that rental equilvalence is not really a good measure of where the market is price wise. I don’t think most people buy the same thing that they rent.
Most of the first time home buyers I work with are renting well below what they ultimately wind up buying. I see guys making $150k+ living like college students for the most part with their rental units, but wind up buying $350-$500k.
I can see the rental equilvalence at the lower end of the market, but I don’t think it holds true as you start increasing in price. Of course, I could be entirely wrong, but something tells me from my antecdoctal evidence that rental equilvalence is not all that accurate.
“Dare I say that rental equilvalence is not really a good measure of where the market is price wise.”
You’re correct, as of the past decade (and perhaps more) and today. I suspect we will get closer to it as the bubble deflates, however is my suspicion.
And it is true that people typically purchase a higher ‘quality’ unit when they buy vs. rent, however I (being thrifty probably) do not place as much of a premium on the finishes and other ancillary things of the unit so long as it is sound.
I guess its more in terms of being able to rent the same unit with the exact same finishes/quality/etc. Perhaps most buyers do not think of it this way and are willing to spend more to ‘own’, which is definitely the case these days. But I’m unsure if it will remain so.
Most rental stock is indeed of lower quality/finishes than units built for owners, but theres also condominium buildings with units for rent as well as new SFHs both for sale and rent so it removes the quality differential from the equation.
Lets be honest, when we are single most men don’t really care much about what there place looks like, it tends to be more when we are looking to settle down that we care about what our place looks like.
You are also right is saying that rental values, and incomes have been out of synch with prices for about 8-10 years, but that was because your removed the cost of $ from the equation causing…what for it…a bubble
Cheap subsidized loans aside, prices, rents, and the cost of money are going to have to come back into line
The place next door is the reason we should have mandatory drug testing for all architects.
Sorry, mis-post above.