Bringing Back the Vintage in this 2/2 Walk-Up: 816 N. Dearborn in the Gold Coast
This 2-bedroom in a vintage walk-up at 816 N. Dearborn in the Gold Coast recently came on the market.
If it looks familiar, though, that’s because it was on the market for several months earlier this year and sold in May 2018. We didn’t chatter about it back then, however.
Built in 1891, the association has 16 units which would indicate that next door buildings such as 818 N. Dearborn are included in the same association.
The listing says it has been “renovated to sell” with just about everything updated.
The only original features still in the condo are the 3 original wood burning fireplaces and mantles along with the 10.5 foot ceilings.
Otherwise, all of the crown moulding, which is triple moulding at the ceiling, is brand new.
The unit also has a custom lattice on the living room wall which is not original.
It also new 6″ rift sawn white oak hardwood floors throughout.
The kitchen has white cabinets, marble counter tops with waterfall edge, a 6-burner Fisher & Paykel range and Liebherr paneled refrigerator.
There are 8 foot solid core doors.
There’s no private outdoor space but the association has a common patio behind the buildings.
The unit has the features buyers look for such as central air and washer/dryer in the unit but there’s no deeded parking. It’s available to rent in the neighborhood.
Is this a vintage lover’s dream?
Vincent Anzalone at Dream Town Realty has the listing. See the current pictures here.
You can see the prior listing photos here.
Unit #2: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1500 square feet
- Sold in April 1989 for $200,000
- Sold in February 2015 for $376,000
- Sold in May 2018 for $385,000 (per Redfin)
- Currently listed for $750,000
- Assessments of $601 a month (includes exterior maintenance, scavenger, snow removal)
- Taxes of $9665
- Central Air
- Washer/dryer in the unit
- No parking- available to rent in the neighborhood
- 3 original wood burning fireplaces
- Bedroom #1: 12×14
- Bedroom #2: 13×11
- Living room: 22×12
- Dining room: 17×14
- Kitchen: 14×8
Updates are very nice, but I prefer the old layout. Maybe it’s just the photos, but the kitchen seems awkward.
place looks like a rental to me
Let’s put in the same kitchen that’s in every other re-modeled house, but use ugly gold accents as a differentiator.
sonies–you looking at the new one? the old was clearly dumpy-rental-grade.
Amused that they kept the washer-dryer–makes it feel like they ran out of budget.
I would have liked the layout to have been changed more, but dunno about structural limitations–master is pretty small, 2d bed being in the front is meh, and there seems to be very little closet space.
“place looks like a rental to me”
are you looking at the before or after photos.
oh, hah! I clicked the wrong link
Wasn’t much charm to save, but I hate the molding choice.
I know Gray is supposedly out, and I’m sick of seeing it everywhere – but what’s the new color or colors that are going to be the next trend?
For a vintage-lover, the charm here would have to be found in the building itself, not much inside, although the updated inside is obviously an improvement. But (as someone who has not done it myself), I’m surprised the rehab was so quick — I’d be kicking myself for not getting it at $385K and wondering what the cost of the rehab was.
I was trying to imagine what they could have done to the layout without a floorplan to look at.
“I was trying to imagine what they could have done to the layout without a floorplan to look at.”
It might not have been workable to change anything, but what’s there is the MBR and the 2d bath off of the dining room, and the 2d bed up front off of the living room.
The old listing has the 3d view/dollhouse/floorplan–they took out the kitchen walls and the master bath wall, but otherwise it looks to be the same layout. I dunno if they could do anything else, but the layout is not awesome, imo.
I’d look closer at the location, rather than the renovation.
No comments about the close proximity to Lawson house? Lawson has some occasional problems, like this: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-met-homicide-lawson-ymca-20180513-story.html#
Elegant place, but I can’t imagine paying that much for it. However, in NYC it would be a bargain at this price, so maybe I should think more in terms of that comparison.
Lawson House nonsense is usually just some characters out front on Chicago Ave and isolated incidents like the stabbing referenced. Being that close to Chicago Ave red line and that McDonald’s could be more of an issue. Always nonsense happening there.
“No comments about the close proximity to Lawson house? Lawson has some occasional problems,”
Maybe someone should tell the developer who is going to build a luxury condo tower that is around 70 stories right across the street about this.
“I know Gray is supposedly out, and I’m sick of seeing it everywhere – but what’s the new color or colors that are going to be the next trend?”
Good question Steve. I haven’t seen any trends about paint color yet.
The only thing I’ve seen is that the white kitchen (like this one) is now going “out” on the coasts and natural wood cabinets and wood features are coming in instead.
“Maybe someone should tell the developer who is going to build a luxury condo tower that is around 70 stories right across the street about thIs”
Why would the developer care…he will build it, they will come. If they went to Cabrini, they will come here.
I do like that with one bathroom there is a tub and in another there is just a shower with a ledge to boot.
I would have expected a stack of books in the photos since the image of whoever to live here doesn’t watch TV.
anywhere you have people you’ll have crime, less people = less crime, its the city ffs
cabrini south of division actually has very little crime compared to all the other green zone neighborhoods nearby due to the fact that there aren’t many people there right now at all. And not all low income people are hoodrats either
I saw this place a couple of years ago when it was already on the market. I would have been willing to do the renovations needed, although I might not have done it quite as high end. I figured it would cost me around $75,000 to redo the kitchen the two bathrooms, refinish floors, etc. (I have done several renovations and have a good contractor.) Maybe the people ended up spending even as high as $125,000. So I am floored that they are asking an increase of $365,000 after only three months. Is this really a normal “flipping” profit margin? FYI, the reason I did not buy the place after all is that I was weirded out by the strange reddish covering on the exterior of the building. I assume the building used to be the same as the ones flanking it, so it seemed strange to me that someone would have done it. It looks like some cheap skim coating done for an old building in the slums. I was suspicious there was some underlying problem with the facade underneath that would eventually surface, and it would cost a fortune to address it. I was also suspicious of the high assessments. It’s just a walk-up and the hallway and staircase areas are not far from being describable as “seedy”. A standard walk-up vintage building like this in Lincoln Park would command HOA fees of around $175. Why $601 for including pretty much nothing? In any case, after you crunch the numbers including HOA and property tax, there are better options out there. See this one for equivalent outlay:
https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/1414-N-Wells-St-Apt-405_Chicago_IL_60610_M86585-22550?cid=eml_shares_core_ldp
BTW, it looks like the basement apartment in this building (spanning both 816 and 818 N Dearborn) was on the market as well, and is now shown as “contingent” status. It looks like the same flipper may have redone this unit, although with lower level finishes and fixtures.
https://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/818-N-Dearborn-St-60610/unit-BR/home/146421459
A/I