Elevated City Living in an Old Town 2/2 with Parking for $625,000: 511 W. Division
This 2-bedroom in the Parkside of Old Town building at 511 W. Division in Old Town came on the market in March 2026. However it had been originally listed in November and December of 2025.
The last time we chattered about this building was in 2011 when the developer was still selling units in the building during the housing bust. That is the 2011 picture above. I have a newer picture of the back of the building below.
Parkside of Old Town was built in 2008, just as the housing boom was ending. It has 79 units and attached heated garage parking.
It’s an elevator building with an exercise room but no door staff.
The listing says this unit has been “completely reimagined” and has been “beautifully rehabbed” with “designer finishes.”
The unit has wide plank flooring.
There is a custom kitchen with green cabinets on the base and white cabinets on the uppers, quartz countertops, and premium stainless steel appliances along with a large breakfast bar that seats 5.
Both bathrooms have been “redesigned” with custom vanities and modern tilework.
The primary suite has a “spa inspired” en suite bathroom with a double vanity and bathtub.
This unit is a south and west facing corner unit and has a wraparound balcony that has city views of the Sears/Willis Tower and the Loop and, to the east, of the Hancock.
This unit has the features that buyers look for including central air, washer/dryer in the unit and one car heated garage parking is included.
This building is near the shops and restaurants of Old Town, Target and Jewel are just steps away, and it’s near major bus routes.
There’s a lot of residential construction going up south of this building, but directly south, as the picture below shows, are some townhouses.
Listed in November 2025 for $630,000, it was withdrawn from the market in December 2025.
It came back on in March 2026 reduced $5,000 at $625,000. This is $190,000 above the 2021 purchase price of $435,000.
Buyers love “new.”
Will this seller get the premium?
Blaz Bilic at Mark Allen Realty ERA Powered has the listing. See the pictures and floor plan here.
Unit #512: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1245 square feet
- Sold in November 2011 for $243,000 (from the developer)
- Sold in May 2015 for $369,000
- Sold in April 2017 for $412,500
- Sold in April 2021 for $435,000
- Originally listed in November 2025 for $630,000
- Withdrawn in December 2025
- Reduced
- Re-listed in March 2026 for $625,000
- Assessments of $817 a month (includes heat, a/c, gas, parking, exercise room, exterior maintenance, lawn care, scavenger, snow removal)
- Taxes of $6865
- Central Air
- Washer/dryer in the unit
- Heated garage parking space included
- Bedroom #1: 13×17
- Bedroom #2: 14×10
- Living/dining combo: 25×13
- Kitchen: 14×8
- Wrap around balcony
That looks like dead space by the refrigerator now as compared to the old floorplan which you can view on Redfin. It seems now that the refrigerator is in the living room.
Old floor plan sucked. New floor plan makes more sense, but still sucks.
Why? What moron decided the HVAC column should be 30” from a window? Oh, yeah, the same moron who put a structural or mechanical column in th middle of the room.
The layout compromises resulting from those two mistakes are epic. Could they have been easily fixed? Dunno, but they sure as shit should have been.
The few blocks around here are rough, and last I knew there was a sizable Section 8 population in the building. I can’t imagine investing over a half million here.
“What moron decided the HVAC column should be 30” from a window?”
the architect should have done away with that window in the kitchen area next to the HVAC. seems kinda useless anyway since it’s partially obstructed by the HVAC. then the HVAC goes in the corner. There are plenty of other windows throughout the space.
refrigerator in the living room
ahhhhh shades of student housing in Boston!
——
“Parkside of Old Town is the re-envisioning of Chicago’s infamous Cabrini Green neighborhood, an award-winning solution to replace dilapidated high-rises with a mixed-income community of rental and for-sale CHA, affordable, and market-rate homes.”
https://www.fitzgeralddesign.com/affordable-housing/parkside-of-old-town
“Parkside of Old Town is the re-envisioning of Chicago’s infamous Cabrini Green neighborhood, an award-winning solution to replace dilapidated high-rises with a mixed-income community of rental and for-sale CHA, affordable, and market-rate homes.”
Yep. It was a big development that many said would never work. They are still building it out, however. Like I said, there was a lot of construction south of this building. Some are apartment buildings, some are condos.
“The few blocks around here are rough, and last I knew there was a sizable Section 8 population in the building. I can’t imagine investing over a half million here.”
I didn’t find it “rough” recently when I was walking around in the daytime but it’s also not like the part of Old Town when you are east of the subway tracks. A LOT has changed in that area over the last 15 years but it’s still a work in progress. I’m not sure they’ll be able to get over $600,000 though. I don’t think anything else in the building has sold even close to that.
I would guess $500k for this.
Do the air vents look really low on the walls to anyone else? Would seem hard to decorate with that.
Any comments on the green cabinet choice in the kitchen? It’s “in” now. Last few years it’s been dark blue. But now it’s green. All shades of it. Or wood/white combo.
Apparently, all white kitchens (cabinets, backsplash, countertops) are “out.”
Way overpriced. Mixed income complex drags the area down. That park at night get sketchy for sure. I bike around there often.
How is the HOA so high with no pool or doorman (just a super small exercise room).
As others noted, odd deadspace in front of the fridge too.
At least the view is nice?
“ Any comments on the green cabinet choice in the kitchen? It’s “in” now.”
It’s going to age like milk in the sun. I don’t understand why people jump on these kitchen trends, when cabinets have a lifespan of 20+ years.
White cabinets, like white walls, might not be considered cutting edge, but will never be strongly era coded like espresso cabinets, grey cabinets, 2 tone cabinets, dark blue cabinets, and now — green cabinets.
“White cabinets, like white walls, might not be considered cutting edge, but will never be strongly era coded like espresso cabinets, grey cabinets, 2 tone cabinets, dark blue cabinets, and now — green cabinets.”
It’s true that you can’t go wrong with the white. Although wood cabinets were “in” for many, many years before white became popular. I’m not sure, if, in 10 years, people will like the white either. Lol.
“ Although wood cabinets were “in” for many, many years before white became popular.”
The problem with wood cabinets is that the tone speaks to a specific era in the vast majority of instances. Cherry. Oak, Maple, Espresso, beach grey — all strongly tied to specific years.
I had a friend (straight male) who installed cherry oak cabinets in a concrete loft ~5 years ago to warm up the space. He wasn’t wrong, it did warm up the space, but those cabinets became a huge problem when he went to sell because they were immediately perceived as dated.