Bank Owned Then Rehabbed: A “Win-Win Deal” In Lakeview? 536 W. Belmont
This 2-bedroom unit at 536 W. Belmont in Lakeview just came on the market after being bought from the bank.
The listing says it’s been rehabbed and is now “priced under market.”
The building was converted to condos in 2006 so the units have all the bells and whistles including new kitchen cabinets, granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances, hardwood floors, central air and in-unit washer/dryers.
The prior listing for the unit, when it was bank owned, said it needed work but had tons of potential.
But comparing the listing pictures from the bank owned listing to the current listing, the kitchen and bath were intact and the cabinets and countertops in the kitchen look the same now as then. The kitchen now has a backsplash, however.
In the bathroom, the bathtub, tile and toilet look the same as in the prior listing but there is a new sink vanity and mirror.
The unit has also been staged.
The listing says it is “listed @ final & best price for no nonsense win-win deal.”
Is this a deal for someone given the listing prices of other units in the building?
Justin Brown at Jameson has the listing. See the pictures here.
Unit #3E: 2 bedrooms, 1 bath, no square footage listed
- Sold in October 2006 for $265,000
- Lis pendens in October 2008
- Bank owned in January 2010
- Listed in August 2010 for $179,900
- Sold in September 2010 for $163,000 (per the MLS)
- Originally listed in September 2010 for $229,900
- Reduced $100
- Currently listed at $229,800
- Assessments of $209 a month
- Taxes of $3824
- Central Air
- Washer/Dryer in the unit
- No parking
- Bedroom #1: 15×12
- Bedroom #2: 13×9
- Living room: 13×16
- Kitchen: 11×8
It seems as though the price is a little high for the times – I am not basing this on the potential profit for the seller. It also seems more of a rental (even w/ the staging). However, if someone wanted to buy it and asked me what they should offer, I would say…… just rent something until you can afford to buy. The seller should consider renting it out. His costs cannot be much more than 1000/month. He probably could rent this for 1200-1300/month which would give him a 10% annual return: this is assuming he put down 33k (20%) and has a 5% mortgage).
Link here?
http://www.jameson.com/536WestBelmontAvenue3E
Thanks for the link chichow. I fixed the post.
That condo hasn’t been staged, it has been “Trixie-fied”.
ouch that bathroom is tight.
“but there is a new sink vanity and mirror.”
Sounds like a flipper trying to be an intermediary between bank units and the market. Not so sure adding a stupid sink and mirror like the did immediately increases the value of your property 41% as they seem to think. We’ll see..
That seems really cheap.
Wood blinds in the shower… smart.
“Wood blinds in the shower… smart.”
they used minwax deck stain
13 x 16 “combo” LR/DR….tiny
ok, there is exactly one sink in this place to wash your face, brush teeth and it’s a high sided, vessel glass sink? waht about splash, etc? vanity cabinet will be ruined in a year – FAIL.
agree w/clio on price. Should be closer to 200k imo.
I’m guessing the square footage is smaller than most 1 BR’s of this vintage (tiny LR/DR; no mention of closet space, small bath, 2d BR very small & appears to be right off the tiny LR). maybe 750 sq. ft?
It does look like some 20-something followed the typical “flip this property” prescription: quickly come in, do a few cosmetic changes to freshen (paint, backsplash, sink) with a budget of $5,000 or so, stage nicely & make a significant profit.
what happend to the days when people would rent a nice place like this,
when did buying a apartment be so neo-cool that even after the bubble this mindset still rocks on?
Reduced $100! (or 0.04%) Now it seems like a bargain!
Seriously, what’s the point of doing something like this? Does it make the property show up higher on REALTOR(R)’s lists of marketed properties or something?
Financially, I would imagine one would be much better purchasing this for 200k than renting for 2k/mo unless he/she is only planning on living there for less than 1 year.
1 years rent = 10% dp.
I think it’ll fetch $220.
“Financially, I would imagine one would be much better purchasing this for 200k than renting for 2k/mo unless he/she is only planning on living there for less than 1 year.
1 years rent = 10% dp.”
do you think the market for a person living here (renting or buying) would live hear at least 5 years?
As the developer on this project, I hope it’s not bad form to comment on this but thought I can interject useful info into the dialogue on this unit. I know that I may be opening myself up to attack and ridicule, but I appreciate all feedback even if some of it is negative.
The sister unit 536 W. Belmont unit 3W with the exact same layout, closed on 8/20/2009 for $250K with a much lower level of finish. It was MLS# 07212106.
All the other non-garden units in the building are listed for $259K+, but with much lower levels of finish. This top floor unit in the U shaped courtyard complex is positioned facing Belmont with the largest setback from the street. This is important when your complex is on a noisy street like Belmont.
Just in the last month (not in 2006), 3E has been “cosmetically” rehabbed to a nicer level of finish than any unit in the complex. Specifically, the recent cosmetic rehab added a new stainless steel refrigerator, recess lights, 6 LED dimmers, 2 ELFA closets with walnut fascia-drawers-& jewelry box, 2 new faucets, a new bathroom vanity & medicine chest, new brush nickel shower-bath trim set, new brush nickel bathroom hardware including a double hotel shower bar, a new kitchen backsplash, 3 ceiling fans with remotes, a foyer entry light, a kitchen track light, a bathroom wall light, decor switches & outlets, floor repairs, Eight 2.5 inch real wood window treatments, a furnace cleaning, a touch screen thermostat, a combo smoke/co2 detector, window repairs, and significant drywall and painting work (3 coats of colored primer to cover the walls that were painted black).
I wish I could have got all that work done for $5K – but it was several times this amount unfortunately.
The bathroom size is actually quite normal and very typical of a 2/1. Bathrooms never photograph well.
I got an exceptionally good purchase price on the unit as I bought from bank using cash agreeing to close 7 days from acceptance, and then fixed it up myself.
When you take into account transaction costs (both ends), rehab costs, staging costs, carrying costs, and my aggressive pricing then I stand to make a modest profit which in this market all one should realistically hope to do.
I truly believe I’m offering what the best 2/1 deal in Lakeview. I base this on the fact that I have physically viewed everything from 200-250K from Diversey to Irving and Ashland to the lake and nothing I have seen is even competitive.
On the few showings that I have had, due to our wonderful market, I’ve gotten very positive feedback. It would be interesting for someone else who has actually seen the unit to review it.
If you are in the market for a 2 bedroom in Lakeview, call Justin Brown at Jameson and check it out for yourself.
For your convenience, here is a link to the pics and Justin’s contact info: http://tours7.vht.com/JRI/T70048027.
I’m an honest real estate professional trying to put out the best product I can at the best price. Again, thank you for the opportunity to offer up some information.
Respectfully,
The Developer of 536 W. Belmont Unit 3E
Remav:
Thanks for the info about what actually went into the unit.
Remav,
thank you for coming on here and giving a great explanation of your unit and what actually went into it. thank you also for doing it knowing/being ready for the internet backlash.
quick question, you being a Developer, when renovating a smaller place how much of the material used and finishes are leftovers from bigger jobs?
speaking as a longstanding critic of the flipping crowd, I’m always happy to see people buying a property and improving it.
this is what development *should* be about, improvements. as those are what prevent slums/counter physical depreciation in the big picture.
so thanks, 536 Belmont developer
Groov77,
In answer to your question, when renovating a smaller place how much of the material used and finishes are leftovers from bigger jobs?
I would say it varies based on how big the developer is and how efficient they are. In my case I’m very small so I make smaller purchases and do not have a warehouse.
On this project, I bought the backsplash from a previous GC client at his cost ($10 sheet but the sheets were 10×10). I know his cost cause I intitially bought it for him and got reimbursed. So since this was a client and a friend I was able to buy at cost with no wait time and return the overage and have virtually no waste. This saved me about $300 which is nothing to sneeze at on a small job.
thanks remav,
a company that we did brick work for had a large “shop” on NW HWY and i swear every home we went to work had the same bathroom. wasnt a big developer but the owners (brothers and brother-in-laws) bought stuff in bulk and as i explained did the same bathroom everywhere. we did a job for them again a year and half later and guess what same bathroom just new light fixture. (guess they ran out of those.)
i know saving costs and all but dang they were ridiculous. i bet after a while one of the places would end up a mix-and-match of all over runs of all their jobs. given I’ve seen tile guys create some great stuff when give supply constraint.