Gold Coast Mansion Reduced $6.55 Million Since 2007: 25 E. Banks

At one time, this vintage single family home at 25 E. Banks in the Gold Coast was the most expensive house for sale in Chicago.

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We have chattered about this house several times, including in November 2007 after it had its first price reduction.

See our November 2007 chatter here.

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It has been on the market for over 3 years and has now been reduced $6.55 million from its original asking price of $13.5 million.

This house, and the price reduction, have been in the news recently because it is owned by Jamie Dimon, JP Morgan Chase’s CEO, who used to reside in Chicago.

The listing says it has been extensively renovated by famed Chicago architect Marvin Herman.

At 13,500 square feet- it takes up nearly half a city block, but since it is on a corner lot there looks to be no backyard.

The only outdoor space appears to be a 900 square foot rooftop terrace.

It has 8 bedrooms, 9 bathrooms, 2 half baths and a wine vault.

The house also has 2-car parking.

“They’re trying to make a bold move to get ahead of the market,” said Jim Kinney, vice president of luxury sales for Baird & Warner, a residential brokerage in Chicago. “This time next year, that house is not going to be on the market. They’re going to find whatever it takes to get it sold.”

JP Morgan CEO Dimon cuts Chicago mansion’s asking price again [Bloomberg, Brian Louis, September 3, 2010]

Janet Owen at Sudler Sotheby’s has the listing. See the pictures here.

25 E. Banks: 8 bedroom, 9 full and 2 half baths, 13,500 square feet, 2 car garage

  • Sold in September 2000 for $4.68 million
  • Originally listed in April 2007 for $13.5 million
  • Reduced in November 2007 to $12 million
  • Reduced to $9.5 million
  • Reduced
  • Currently listed at $6.95 million
  • Taxes of $61,530
  • 2 fireplaces
  • Library

60 Responses to “Gold Coast Mansion Reduced $6.55 Million Since 2007: 25 E. Banks”

  1. How do you pick your two favorite cars though? Snark aside it will be interesting to see at what price this clears the market.

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  2. Nice when the taxes are in the send 3 kids to private school range.

    Lovely place.

    I’ll never have that much $$$

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  3. Well you don’t need a commuter car, because you are being driven back and forth between the office and the airport.

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  4. $61K in taxes! Ouch…another pain of being rich! That and no outdoor space what a drag! I’d bet that with that kind of F/U money you have plenty of outdoor space at your lakefront mansion on Lake Geneva or out in the country.

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  5. “$61K in taxes! Ouch…another pain of being rich! That and no outdoor space what a drag! I’d bet that with that kind of F/U money you have plenty of outdoor space at your lakefront mansion on Lake Geneva or out in the country.”

    Yeah let’s not forget who owns this, when he wants outdoor space he jets off to the Hamptons or whatever

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  6. Jamie is a true mover and shaker

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  7. You can see from the pricing history that Mr. CEO was drinking the kool-aid far too long and he might still be a little tipsy from the party.

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  8. I know I will get flak for saying this, but I think this is a pretty good deal. Taxes are high – but not unreasonable. I would much rather pay this amount for this house than 5 million for that modern disaster we talked about last week (838 W. Webster)- even my mother (the “teardown”) would agree.

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  9. Precisely why that house on Webster was hilariously overpriced. They thought living next to DePaul kiddos and a dollar beer bar and their modern architecture was par for the course for that area. They were never aware that Chicago wealth like that is concentrated in a very few areas–the Gold Coast being one of them.

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  10. I agree with Clio and Bob

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  11. Thankfully we’re realizing that the wealth is not as spread out as we thought… There are just not enough buyers of multimillion dollar properties throughtout the burbs and the city to support all of the properties. Wonder if they’s throw in the art for this price though?

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  12. This time next year we’ll be reading about how he unloaded this property in a short sale and the tax payers get to pick up the tab 🙁

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  13. It’s almost poetic that one of the CEO’s who runs a company that bought up all the CDOs that created the housing bubble now has first-hand experience with the slow real estate market. In fact, I think this might put a spring in my step for the rest of the day. Please, Sabrina, do keep us posted when it sells, if you notice it, for what price. I would LOVE to know.

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  14. Lisa,

    Except Dimon was smarter and his bank largely escaped the crisis relatively unscathed. He got out of subprime back in 2006, separating JPM from the likes of Citigroup and Bank of America which would’ve imploded without their multiple government bailouts. I’ve actually met Dimon and he’s a good guy.

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  15. 10 bathrooms?

    Who in the hell needs that many bathrooms….

    Insanely nice house though, albeit not really my style. (I’m not a wine cellar & beluga caviar type)

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  16. One of the worlds foremost crooks.
    That house should be taken away by a well armed and very angry mob of chase customers.
    That house, (paid for by the salary of the owner which was paid for by bailout money from the federal govt which was paid for by OUR taxes.)

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  17. Sonies on September 7th, 2010 at 2:04 pm
    10 bathrooms?

    Who in the hell needs that many bathrooms….
    _________________________________________________________________

    Lil Wayne.

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  18. But but you can get get more beluga this year…

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  19. Jamie really probably shouldn’t be lumped into a category of “those crooks” and Ken Lewis got a raw deal…but those yahoo’s at Citi…

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  20. 1. I don’t think he’ll end up losing that much money on this (other than the carrying costs). He paid $4.68 Million, and presumably the rehab was very high end, but I doubt he has much more than $7 Million.

    2. Even if he loses a million on this, that’s not too major in the scheme of things, when he’s earned in the tens of millions in some years.

    3. He probably will get some of the costs/losses covered as part of his relocation package.

    4. The initial pricing probably wasn’t too much out of line. But it takes a very unique buyer to want this property, and there are less people out there with this capability now. I think it’s a relatively good deal at current pricing.

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  21. Sorry–the reference to $7 Million was a guess as to his total costs for buying & rehabbing. Maybe that was a bit low, but I really doubt that the figure would be anywhere near the initial “ask” figure.

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  22. “Except Dimon was smarter and his bank largely escaped the crisis relatively unscathed. He got out of subprime back in 2006”

    And *hard* into Jumbo Prime–including 2d-lien mortgages–in 2007. So, Chase didn’t come out of it smelling quite so pretty.

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  23. hey dont pick on jaime, he was nice to bob once

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  24. Chase is the world’s largest hedge fund. c’mon, I know you’re a bunch of calculatedrisk readers

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  25. Long as we’re griping about Chase, don’t forget that the parking meters were sold to a consortium largely consisting of JP Morgan/Chase – who got more than what they paid Chicago in bailout funds.

    “That house should be taken away by a well armed and very angry mob of chase customers.
    That house, (paid for by the salary of the owner which was paid for by bailout money from the federal govt which was paid for by OUR taxes.)”

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  26. Why all the hate? Here is someone who actually bought a house that he could afford and knew exactly what he was buying. Luckily, we wont have to foot the bill for this one (unlike skybridge). And I agree that JPMorgan’s business is a lot less scary than what BoA and Citi were doing.

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  27. “the parking meters were sold to a consortium largely consisting of JP Morgan/Chase ”

    Morgan Stanley, not Chase. Indeed, per the SOS, the 4 members are:

    MORGAN STANLEY INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTORS LP
    MORGAN STANLEY INFRASTRUCTURE PARTNERS LP
    MORGAN STANLEY INFRASTRUCTURE PARTNERS A SUB LP
    DEESIDE INVESTMENTS INC

    Not a JPM or a Chase in there.

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  28. “Why all the hate?”

    u’r not from ’round here, are ya, pard’ner?

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  29. The Tribune actually broke this story last week, long before Bloomberg did: http://chicagobreakingbusiness.com/2010/09/jamie-dimon-slashes-price-on-gold-coast-mansion.html

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  30. I live on the corner of Astor and Goethe a block away, this house is beautiful. My living room faces south and I get a really nice view of the rooftop this place has.. The house is huge. They had some people looking at the place today… I agree with Clio that this is a good deal for the house and the location. I just moved out here 2 weeks ago ( from the south loop ) and I adore the neighborhood…if I had the money I’d jump at this..10 mil was a stretch but this is a very fair asking price imho!

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  31. Jamie Dimon generally gets good press from the MSM, undeservedly IMO.

    True, JPM didn’t lose $34 billion like Citicorp or $26 billion like Merrill Lynch by retaining the super-senior tranches of CDOs. But maybe that’s due more to luck than intelligence. Certainly, JPM didn’t avoid Citi’s or Merrill’s mistake.

    To wit: JPM created a CDO for Evanston-based hedge fund Magnetar, for which JPM earned $20 million in fees. And, just like Citicorp & Merrill, JPM retained the senior tranches, while Magnetar bought default insurance on those same tranches, essentially going “short.”

    Several months later, after the house of cards (that banks had helped create) had collapsed, JPM had lost $880 million on their investment while Magnetar had made $290 million.

    Read that story here:

    http://www.propublica.org/article/jpmorgan-gets-into-the-game-and-loses

    Magnetar is headed by Alec Litowitz. See some pics of his crib here:

    http://www.chicagohomemag.com/Chicago-Home/September-October-2008/Well-Manored/

    See more pics of Jamie Dimon’s Gold Coast crib here:

    http://www.luxist.com/2010/07/21/jamie-dimons-slow-seller-estate-of-the-day/

    (It appears that Dimon & Litowitz have similar tastes in home-design.)

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  32. Beautiful house. I, too, would rather give $9M for something like this than $5M for the ugly modern monstrosity featured a few days ago. However, the market for $9M houses is pretty thin these days, and always really was. Just how many people are there with the $50M net worth you really need to afford a place like this?

    Taxes are not bad for this price range, less than 1% of the market value, which is far less than most Chicago home owners are paying these days.

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  33. Matt the Coffeeman on September 8th, 2010 at 7:39 am

    “Have fun storming the castle!” -Princess Bride

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  34. “I’ve actually met Dimon and he’s a good guy.”

    Lol. Recruiting presentation for management trainees?

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  35. “Lol. Recruiting presentation for management trainees?”

    You need not be concerned. I doubt you’ve ever met someone of his caliber seeing as you manage daddy’s money.

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  36. “Lol. Recruiting presentation for management trainees?”

    Bob, you in the commercial part there, if so i think we crossed paths a few times.

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  37. No Groove we haven’t. And not an employee of JPM.

    Do you guys honestly think I would harbor such resentment and animosity towards the banking sector and bankers if I were?

    Sure JPM would’ve survived and came out in a better competitive position if no bank bailouts but that’s more a side product of their chips being better positioned.

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  38. Right, because no one uses JPMAM to run their money, nor would the head of JPM want to spend any time with his clients like he did earlier this summer at the Art Institute’s new modern wing.

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  39. “Do you guys honestly think I would harbor such resentment and animosity towards the banking sector and bankers if I were?”

    Yes, and would explain your psychosis a lot more 🙂

    also cause most management and middle bankers i know are title rich and salary poor. so i can see the reason for the anger developing within them.

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  40. Groove —

    Very incisive commentary. Well put.

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  41. “Right, because no one uses JPMAM to run their money, nor would the head of JPM want to spend any time with his clients like he did earlier this summer at the Art Institute’s new modern wing.”

    He’s a self-made man and personable. You’re not and obnoxious/snooty/believe in some sort of societal aristocracy class that doesn’t exist outside of your brain and CS magazine. (Lots of people with inherited money believe in these imaginary things because it gives them an air of superiority or ego boost).

    “also cause most management and middle bankers i know are title rich and salary poor. so i can see the reason for the anger developing within them.”

    I’m title poor and salary poor 🙁

    Okay not as salary poor as commercial bankers. Aside from the poor salary I am a complete personality mismatch for commercial banking: boring job, little intellectual stimulation and you need to dress nice for it. No thanks.

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  42. I dont know bob, it seems dimon went to some fancy private school in nyc where the rockefellers went, while our jmm is a product of public school system as far as I know.

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  43. $515/sq. ft. for true luxury is appropriate IMO.

    I think Clio should buy this place…just as an extra “in-town”

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  44. Well Dimon in person displays better social etiquette, personable demeanor and manners than JMM on here, admittedly not that that’s worth anything.

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  45. Indeed, I am a product of the public school system. Unlike Mr. Self Made salt of the earth. And unlike Mr. Self Made, my children attend public school, not Latin.

    I didn’t inherit anything, yet. And I certainly know a lot more about how businesses operate than our friend Bob, who is probably an IT / project manager at Kraft working on his MBA at night so he can sell Mac and Cheese like the grown ups.

    Plus anyone who thinks significant “self-made” wealth isn’t another word for “luck plus a modicum of skill” is fooling themselves. Whether it is inherited or is “right place right time”, immense wealth creation is not an excercise in meritocracy nor is it pre-determined solely by our abilities.

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  46. “Well Dimon in person displays better social etiquette, personable demeanor and manners than JMM on here, admittedly not that that’s worth anything.”

    I am sure your bitter rants plus the graphic sexual assault posts that got censored a while back amply demonstrate your sense of social etiquette.

    Granted if I am going to be a second to someone, I will take Dimon.

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  47. “I didn’t inherit anything, yet. And I certainly know a lot more about how businesses operate than our friend Bob, who is probably an IT / project manager at Kraft working on his MBA at night so he can sell Mac and Cheese like the grown ups. ”

    JMM you know nothing about me but that won’t stop you from trying. You shouldn’t really look down at middle mgrs at large companies as you might be reporting to them one day, or trying to.

    Middle mgt at large co’s where most burnt out finance professionals try to land mid-career after most inevitably flame out. They don’t often get placed though because its not a well kept secret that financial services teaches zero management and interpersonal skills, which you exemplify.

    You know nothing about business or management, that much I can safely guess. (Technical questions on an earnings call about financial ratios really isn’t considered management or business knowledge.)

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  48. “who is probably an IT / project manager at Kraft working on his MBA at night so he can sell Mac and Cheese like the grown ups. ”

    Again JMM’s contrived social stratification that somehow brand managers are above operations professionals (ie: “grown up).

    You don’t have the social graces nor the right paradigm to ever effectively lead an organization or even a small group, JMM. Luckily for you 10Ks don’t need to be managed. Have fun on those earnings calls.

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  49. Did they teach you the word paradigm at your night school MBA class?

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  50. “I think Clio should buy this place…just as an extra “in-town””

    this place isn’t nice enough for our friend clio

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  51. JMM,

    As a former CPS alum with a chip on your shoulder I would offer a definition for you. But its so easy to find words on the interwebs these days I’ll leave the legwork to you.

    Sounds like JMM considers himself a bit of a Horatio Alger, but in reality there is no “high society” or stratification he always thought he would ascend to.

    Does name calling on intertubez make the boo boo stop hurting temporarily? 😀

    Sorry you’re riddled with debt dude–but its of your own choosing.

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  52. “this place isn’t nice enough for our friend clio”

    It’s nice enough, but I’m not sure about the neighborhood.

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  53. “It’s nice enough, but I’m not sure about the neighborhood.”

    actually, the neighborhood is quite nice – not “scary” at all!!

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  54. “As a former CPS alum with a chip on your shoulder I would offer a definition for you.”

    I FIND DETAILS INCORRECT WITH THIS STATEMENT

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  55. “Did they teach you the word paradigm at your night school MBA class?”

    He’s not talking about 20 cents?

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  56. I dont recall bob bragging about sexual assault. though he does have a true knack for sniffing out dollar beer nights.. and the hookups one finds there are anything goes.

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  57. “I dont recall bob bragging about sexual assault.”

    “bragging” is an exaggeration appropriate for this exchange only, but if you weren’t reading that day you missed it, as it was deleted.

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  58. I think this place is under contract:

    http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20100922/NEWS12/100929961/jamie-dimons-gold-coast-mansion-under-contract

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  59. Michael Polsky of Invenergy is the buyer. Nice guy.

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