Get a 1-Bedroom For Under $50,000 in River City: 800 S. Wells in the South Loop
I’ve gotten a few requests recently to check back in on River City at 800 S. Wells in the South Loop.
The last time we chattered about the building was in November 2009.
See our 2009 chatter here.
It’s more than 18 months later, and foreclosures and short sales are still ravaging the building.
Many ask: how long will the distress sales in Chicago go on?
All you have to do is look at River City to see how long it takes for these sales to work their way through the system.
Looking at all the listings for sale is a bit overwhelming in the building- so I singled out this bank owned 1/1, Unit #853, because it is among the cheapest units available in the building.
Despite being listed for 70% below the 2001 purchase price, and with the possibility of putting just 3.5% down, the unit still isn’t selling.
The kitchen and bathroom appear intact.
The kitchen has green cabinets and white appliances.
The unit is carpeted.
It has central air, but I don’t believe there is an in-unit washer/dryer.
The listing also indicates there is parking, but I don’t know if that is rental or deeded.
In addition to the distress sales in the building, if you recall, last summer, the parking structure suffered severe flooding which led to the building being evacuated for 3 weeks.
You can read about that August 2010 flood here.
How low will prices go in this building?
And when will it finally stabilize?
[You’ll notice the bank owned #853 for almost a year and a half before re-listing it.]
Helen Oliveri at Keller Williams Realty has the listing. See the pictures here.
Unit #853: 1 bedroom, 1 bath (no square footage listed but #753 is on the market with 653 square feet)
- Sold in September 2001 for $163,000
- Lis pendens foreclosure filed in February 2010
- Bank owned in January 2010
- Originally listed in May 2011 for $54,900
- Reduced
- Currently listed at $49,900
- Assessments of $425 a month (includes heat, pool)
- Taxes of $1204
- Central Air
- No in-unit washer/dryer?
- Parking? (deeded or rental?)
- Bedroom #1: 15×11
- Living room: 18×11
- Kitchen: 12×7
This style of architecture is impractical and fugly as sin. They should just tear this piece ‘o crap down or turn it into public housing. Maybe if Columbia college was smart they’d buy units and turn them into a dorm or something.
I love seeing a good deal. However, anything that has been an REO for that long is a sign that nobody wanted it.
The building looks like something the Soviet Union would have built.
“The building looks like something the Soviet Union would have built.”
it is too fancy of design for them, but it is as ugly as they come. Please tear it down!
Troubled building. Suspect a troubled tenant base here too. Plus, bad poured-in-place architectural design, with unattractive puny CHA-like units. A creative non-profit seeking low-income housing units for its clientele would be wise to buy units in this building and establish a controlling majority. (One developer who chairs a residential mental health non-profit tried to sell his inventory of unsold units to his charity non-profit several months ago in West Loop, for instance, but was successfully blocked by minority of homeowners already residing in that newish condo development.) Units here are selling well below replacement cost (construction costs, land, development overhead, etc.), but this condo development is still a bad buy for an individual condo-owner.
Tear-downs for large condo buildings likely to be very difficult, but an issue cities will need to address as deferred maintenance, code violations, foreclosures, and vacancy problems at condo developments make those building unattractive to homeowners and investors. Imagine that condemnation actions would be required against all hold-out owners after most units’ ownerships have been acquired by a single-owner or government authority. Can’t think of any downtown high-rise condos that have been demolished to-date.
Architect – great points about the unlikely chance of seeing a large condo development coming down as that is not likely. This place has issues that will never be resolved. It should have stayed as a rental building as that was it’s most natural fit. I think that some people could use this type of unit as a long term rental for a company with an out of town worker who does not place much value on their housing. It would be potentially cheaper than a hotel room.
Obviously I’m alone in this, but I love this building. I especially love the first floor duplex units with the patios. The problem in this place is HOA fees are astronomical, and you can’t get financed.
nothing like media publicity to help sell these units. i think the last thing i saw on the news was the garage flooded and the power was out for a month?
Will they take Visa? I have always liked this building. It has been awhile since I have been in there though.
Didn’t they have a tree collapse into a lobby or something serious?
I believe there is some sort of seriously huge special assessment (like 50k a unit) that these shady realtors aren’t telling you about at the moment
Um…yes. See above.
“In addition to the distress sales in the building, if you recall, last summer, the parking structure suffered severe flooding which led to the building being evacuated for 3 weeks.
You can read about that August 2010 flood here.”
You can also watch a video of the interesting interior of the building on Youtube.
It’s certainly a unique building.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amqye_5Cquo
Less than zero
This is a Bertrand Goldberg building, I believe. He also designed Marina City.
He’s one of those architects from the middle of the 20th century who always seemed far more interested in how his buildings would look from a mile away than how they would actually be to live or work in. The pie-shaped units at Marina City attest to this. The buildings (Marina City) are perfect for their site and quite attractive in a conversation piece sort of way (they’re memorable), but it doesn’t seem like they’d make the most practical place for an apartment dweller.
I’ve never been in River City (except to visit the Museum of Broadcast Communications, which was housed there many years ago), but from what I hear, it’s not very liveable. I’ve always liked how it looked from a distance, and some of the public space is dramatic, but it may be a failure as a residential structure. Not surprising considering the architect.
If anyone has actually lived in Marina City and disagrees with me re. the practicality of those apartments, I’d be interested in hearing. I’ve never been in one, but it never seemed like a pie-shaped unit would be very practical.
The youtube video of the inside looks really cool! I like the columbia college idea or something similar. I also like the way the building looks from a distance. I think if their where other buildings around it, it would look even more interesting.
Ugh, this place sucks so bad.
I have a friend who owns a unit here. The problem is the HOA is in shambles…after the flooding last year, it was discovered their reserves were woefully low. They tried to levy a special assessment of literally thousands per unit. Not sure that ever passed. I do know the HOA was completely overhauled so maybe they’re on the right track, but this building is still in trouble obviously.
I too like this building. back when it was apts they had a grocery store and health club (granted it was ballys, the kmart of clubs). took a tour then and thought it was cool and unique. it is obviously a hot mess today, too bad.
I could see a developer converting this to student housing/dorms. The development is past its useful life as apartments or condo imho. Maybe a hotel or short term rentals for folks working in the loop.
The HOA should have members vote to see if they would sell the building as a whole…the dorm idea or halfway house/public interest low cost housing seems like a good use of the space.
What do units rent for in this building. This unit is about 600+ a month.
correction, ballys is still there
“If anyone has actually lived in Marina City and disagrees with me re. the practicality of those apartments, I’d be interested in hearing. I’ve never been in one, but it never seemed like a pie-shaped unit would be very practical.”
I lived in Marina City for a year during my days at DePaul and would agree with Dan #2. The units are awkwardly shaped and the layouts are strange, as to be expected. I wasn’t too picky as a college student but I wouldn’t be interested in living there now. On the other hand, we had a spectacular view from the east tower to the southeast, looking out on the Chicago Theatre, the river, the lake, etc. Also, the rooftop of the buildings have amazing 360 degree views of the city, which was great for watching fireworks over Navy Pier (although, on July 4th it was more interesting to watch the fireworks all around the various neighborhoods). Also, there were some bizarre tenants living in the building that have probably been there since it went condo in 1977. Overall, an interesting landmark building that makes for a unique experience when you’re young and don’t have a lot of furniture, but I wouldn’t buy one of the units (although they are relatively cheap). One last thing–the studios are 1 pie slice and 1 balcony, the 1-bedrooms are 1.5 pie slices and 1.5 balconies, and the 2-bedrooms are 2 pie slices and 2 balconies. I don’t think there are any units originally designed with more than 2 bedrooms, but I could be wrong–I think some people have combined units.
abortion
Most of the units in this building seem realistically priced, and some are even under contract. However, at least one seller in the building seems oblivious to all of the short sales and foreclosures as well as that it no longer is 2006.
http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/800-S-Wells-St-60607/unit-1301/home/12724249
While it is large and has nice views, I would never even consider spending $650k in a buiding that has around 30+ foreclosures/short sales in it, not to mention the decor that is far from my taste.
“Many ask: how long will the distress sales in Chicago go on?”
Statements like that only add to the public’s perception about what is actually going on in the market. A HUGE amount of distress sales in one building are not necessarily an indication of the entire city market—only that buyers are aware of the issues in that building and aren’t buying there.
I think this building looks awesome, but it’s really not conveniently located and you’d have to gut it to make it tolerable. And once you’ve done that you’re left with a nice pad in retro-futuristic building that no one will ever buy from you.
It’s sad that this building has fallen into such shambles. I have never been inside, but I like the look of the one benjamon9 just posted. I wouldn’t pay $650k since it’s so out of line with the rest of the building.
What happened with the developer when they were initially selling these after the conversion to condos? It looks like they could have been done nicely, but so many of these units look torn apart and dingy.
That penthouse unit is awesome! I hate the decor, but it’s got a lot going for it otherwise. I love the way the windows look from inside the unit. It’s like being on an ocean liner. However, I’d be worried if I bought the unit that someone might decide to build something between me and downtown, which would block that incredible view of the Sears Tower.
I think that Marina City is really cool! No I have not lived there but I have been in a a really cool combined unit. The units were really cheap back around the 1998 era and a realtor took me up to see a combined unit. I think was made from 2 one bedrooms and a studio and although I might be slightly off it was something similar.
The space was awesome! Those views and balconies were wonderful and the only downside was that the master bath and kitchen was still quite small. She tried to get me to put two units that were on the market under contract and then to pressure the “in between” unit owner into selling me that unit. This is when I realized that many agents had no idea about basic business strategy or common sense. That idea was a disaster waiting to happen. It would have put the “in between” unit owner into the most incredible leverage position.
I suggested that she contact that unit owner to see if they had any interest in selling their unit. Sadly they did not. Ended up in Wrigley instead. The other odd thing about Marina City was the valet parking issue. Has that ever been changed?
The $650k unit is actually quite amazing, with those views and that terrace, but yes who’s going to want to spend that kind of cash to move into a building with so many problems?
I also don’t understand why they’re still paying for that shuttle bus when they’re so badly off.
I know American Invesco is managing it now, were they the developers too?
Chris M: Are you (or were you) a grad student at I U? I think I may know you in the real world:)
I’ve been in these units many times. I think they are cool but ugly. Great location, though, for the price. What do y’all think about the advisability of a person who is single on a very limited income (say, a Catholic school teacher who makes 35,000) purchasing a unit like this? With the location, I think it could work for someone in that demographic and would be preferable to renting. Thoughts?
Now THIS is a cool 1 bedroom:
http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/921-N-La-Salle-Dr-60610/home/14110369
“You can also watch a video of the interesting interior of the building on Youtube.
”
looks like ugly suburban hotels.
“his is a Bertrand Goldberg building, I believe. He also designed Marina City.”
the other horrendous edifice in the city. what a surprise. I wish there was some sort of supervision so these tasteless architects could not just ruin a beautiful city.
Clio – I like that one bedroom on LaSalle. Very Californiaish.
Two car garage with a LR and separate (though lofted) FR, seating for 12 in the DR, and lots of natural light had me sold on the structure. Adding the private roof deck put it over the top. If I were in the market for a 1 bedroom I would put in an offer.
My instincts tell me that this is one of the rare one bedrooms that would actually be of value down the road. For an empty nester that wants a cool in-town it is an excellent choice. Put a pull out on the balcony and there is even some room for occaisional guests.
“Now THIS is a cool 1 bedroom:”
For once I’ll agree with you clio, except for it being on La Salle and the awful mirrored closet doors/wall in the bedroom.
It’s gone from “a home is a man’s castle”, to a home is a man’s hassle.
“What happened with the developer when they were initially selling these after the conversion to condos? It looks like they could have been done nicely, but so many of these units look torn apart and dingy.”
“In 1997, an American Invsco venture paid $41.3 million for the 448-unit apartment building at 800 S. Wells St., with plans to convert it into condos.
Read more: http://www.chicagorealestatedaily.com/article/20110323/CRED03/110329949/gouletas-hit-with-another-suit-on-south-loop-project#ixzz1S0B8U3Ea”
That purchase price included the commercial space and parking garage which separately went back to a lender for $11.5mm (out of over $20mm in loans), and which is subject to a lawsuit by the junior lender.
“What do y’all think about the advisability of a person who is single on a very limited income (say, a Catholic school teacher who makes 35,000) purchasing a unit like this?”
Endora, if the monthly payments could be equal to or less than the price of renting, I think your friend could look into it, however NOT in this building. There is just WAY too much risk here for any individual buyers and it’s a crapshoot as to whether if you take a gamble now, things will turn around in the future. There are many units available in other parts of Chicago in this price range, but make sure you do your due diligence to make sure the buildings are stable. Some are and some are not.
If your friend is open to Logan Square, Albany Park, Edgewater or Rogers Park, there is plenty on the market.
If your friend specifically needs to live in the South Loop I’d tell her to rent even if it costs more.
The other thing to think about is what she would do with the apartment if she needed to move and could not sell.
Endora, the problem with buying when you have limited income is the unexpected maintenance costs of owning. I see borrowers all the time who can qualify from a income standpoint, but God forbid if they have an emergency. They simply don’t have the disposable income or savings to cover the misc ownership expenses.
Obviously this building has problems but the fact that some of you are suggesting it should be torn down makes my heart hurt. This is a Goldberg! Furthermore, its surrounded by vacant lots, which suggests there probably isn’t a ton of demand to build something else there. We shouldn’t be tearing anything down without an immediate plan to build, let alone the architectural significance. Short sighted thinking like this is how the urban fabric of Chicago has become so patchy over the last half century. Shame.
Not surprising that American InvScamCo was involved in this debacle. How is Gouletas not in jail by now?
I really want to buy in this area but just looking at this building triggers my gag reflex. It is truly hideous.
I like the two newer buildings just north of here, the Vetro and one other one. They are priced too rich for my blood though.
The bank is going to pay you $49,000 to own/live here…not a bad deal at all….
Hi Mocha –
Can you please clarify what you meant? (I’m not being argumentative. Just unsure what it means that the bank will pay you 49K to live here.)
At first I thought you meant if you bought at 49K you’d be getting a 50% discount on the original purchase price. But if I’m reading CCRD correctly it looks like the last owner paid an unbelievable 163K for the unit back in July 2001 – exactly 10 years ago – and actually put 20% down – something I’ve NEVER seen before, LOL.
Scrolling fruther through the CCRD entries, it looks like the owner then took out a separate mortgage for that 32.6K downpayment in November 2001. Therefore she financed the entire purchase price after all. I got excited too quickly. Then followed a messy series of mortgages and mechanics liens.
Reading between the lines, I guess it was the building repairs which forced the owner into insolvency?
Milkster:
I read as a joke, that the place is so awful that the bank must be advertising the amount it will pay for someone to take off its hands. Next price change will be an increase.
Somewhat relatedly, the real estate market in St Louis was so bad in the late-60s that the city passed an ordinance requiring the *buyer* sign a deed acknowledging that they were accepting the property and the responsibility to pay taxes, etc. Even Detroit hasn’t yet sunk to that.
“granted it was ballys, the kmart of clubs”
CH, I respectfully disagree! I’m a gym class junkie – I take them all – boxing, yoga, zumba, belly dancing, weight training, etc., and if you are into classes, Bally’s and the NY Sports chain on the East Coast have some of the best instructors and challenging classes. I tried Equinox for a week and didn’t join because their offerings were gimmicky and way too easy.
I agree with you on the equipment at Bally’s though. I used to go to the one across from Grand Central Station, and there was a wall of windows onto the hot tub so you could see in when you were on the treadmills. The hot tub was always full of massively overweight women of questionable morals in teeny tiny thongs and overly hairy dudes in serious need of manscaping! It was like “Oh, my eyes! TMI!!!”
Hi anon –
Interesting. Is the St. Louis ordinance still in place? Are things there better now than in the late 60s? I know nothing about that market.
“Is the St. Louis ordinance still in place?”
Yep.
“Are things there better now than in the late 60s? I know nothing about that market.”
I know only a bit more than nothing. It’s a lot better than 40 years ago, but I dunno if I’d call the STL *city* market “good”.
i am always impressed with some people’s self confidence, i would for sure forego bikinis and shorts if i were chubby.
i read that as you’d be nekkid
Milkster, I’ve never taken a class but I was a bally member for years bc it was super cheap , had the equipment I wanted and plenty of free weights. some locations were better than others, I mostly went to the dungeon on e washington. saw roaches, mens diapers left on the floor, and worse in the locker room. plus it smelled. maybe once a year there would be an attractive woman in the club. at best it was a Walmart, but usually Kmart or worse.
Ok, well yeah. A friend told me there was a douche bag in the shower once. And not the human kind of douche bag either!!!
Yes, mixed housing/cha/college dorms would be about right. Also, are there still boat slips here? Seems if you were a boat person, having an apartment here might be just perfect for weekend parties, etc.
I believe the asessments cover the docking fees if you live here. Another thing they should ditch to get those fees down.
“the other horrendous edifice in the city. what a surprise. I wish there was some sort of supervision so these tasteless architects could not just ruin a beautiful city.”
Of all of the monstrosities and copy cat designs in this city you somehow find Goldberg’s work tasteless? Please go back to your hole and refrain from commenting on legendary architecture in the future, thank you.
Hideous, nonfunctional building, ugly apartments lacking amenity or functionality, high HOA, unlimited liability due to high number of foreclosures and delinquencies, aged mechanical elements..
What’s not to hate?
This is the kind of place you would not pay money for.. I’d have to BE paid to take the place.
“He’s one of those architects from the middle of the 20th century who always seemed far more interested in how his buildings would look from a mile away than how they would actually be to live or work in. The pie-shaped units at Marina City attest to this.”
Could not be further from the truth. His designs came as solutions to the problems (low budget, high unit demand, quick assembly) given to him by the developer. His methods of repetitive, structural cast in place concrete design allowed for low cost, high speed construction that had never been imagined before. When this buildings opened that served the needs of the users quite well… affordable apartments for middle and low income users. These (marina and river) were never meant to be high end condos, much less condos at all.
Look at his high rise on Astor to see how me approached non rental, higher end units. Much much different.
“I’ve gotten a few requests recently to check back in on River City at 800 S. Wells in the South Loop.”
Will you check back in on my crappy building next? Prices are stabilizing here. No, seriously. Stop laughing. Well, at least no one here is selling units for 50k.
“This is the kind of place you would not pay money for.. I’d have to BE paid to take the place.”
Even if given it’s a liability. $650/month plus risk with regard to the HOA and future taxes. Yeah no thanks unless downward liability can be capped. No sign of that on this thing.
Once deadbeats in a building hit a certain critical mass it becomes untenable for upstanding citizens who pay their bills to survive: there just aren’t enough of them to carry all of the deadbeat’s weight.
The potential liabilities because of the sheer weight of deadbeats not paying their assessments are very scary for the moderate-to-middle income buyer looking for a “bargain”.
I used to like large condo associations because they can absorb one or two foreclosures or HOA delinquencies more easily than a small association (3 to 24 units), but I never imagined the situation we see now, which is huge buildings with 20 or more foreclosures or delinquent borrowers with massive assessment arrears to the point where the building can scarcely afford to keep its elevators running and the corridor lights on. In the current context, small associations are beginning to look good. Whatever, if you’re a bargain hunter of limited means, you need to look very carefully at the finances of the association,because the potential liability can bankrupt you or force you into default yourself.
“Will you check back in on my crappy building next?”
Sure. I’m making my way through all the, um, “interesting” buildings so I’ll put yours on the list.
@ dude, sorry still find the place ugly and not functional. your rude tone does not change my mind.
“The potential liabilities because of the sheer weight of deadbeats not paying their assessments are very scary for the moderate-to-middle income buyer looking for a “bargain”. ”
This is why I’m not looking at this place (aside from sheer ugliness). I’d love a place at this pricepoint to be able to walk to work. And yea I don’t think the assessments are that high for the price. But who wants to put their financial neck out to have it lopped off. For places like this renting makes infinitely more sense when you consider all the risks, even if it costs a hundred or two more a month.
“I used to like large condo associations because they can absorb one or two foreclosures or HOA delinquencies more easily than a small association (3 to 24 units)…”
The key is to look for large buildings which went condo in the seventies or eighties with low assessments, solid financials and active HOAs.
Large, new construction condos from the past 10 years are the ones to be leery of because all your neighbors basically got funny mortgages and are at a higher risk of defaulting.
“Large, new construction condos from the past 10 years are the ones to be leery of because all your neighbors basically got funny mortgages and are at a higher risk of defaulting.”
And likely poor construction which hasn’t been fully repaired yet. If it was originally a rental, hopefully the landlord took care of it in the first few years.
“your rude tone does not change my mind.”
That was actually pretty polite for an architecture snob.
River City’s biggest aesthetic problem is it’s shite relationship to the street, which was largely intentional, but made worse by the changes to the surroundings since its construction. It’s very space-age from the river and cool in a retro-ugly way.
It’s conversion to condos is an entirely separate disaster.
i toured river city just 2 months ago when i was in the market for what i thought would be a unique condo. my realtor and i visited several of the cookie cutter 1 bedroom foreclosures. i can usually talk myself into liking pretty much anything however a view of the marina/river from a unit couldn’t cover up the horrible odor that seemed to encompass the entire building nor the poorly run central hvac system. without exaggeration, about half of the units that i walked passed had bank owned key lockboxes on their door handles.
i brought my parents along for the tour who both pointed out that no one in the entire complex was smiling. the place walks as if it were a housing project.
Two other 1-bedrooms in this building just closed for $58,888 each (both were bank owned).
So this price seems in the ball park.
This complex shows that ‘forced Urbanism’ doesn’t work.
My gosh, that assessment cost is high!
But where else are you going to find a liveable property (walkable and safe neighborhood, ample transit, convenient to the Loop) in the city for that purchase price?
If you notice, none of the 1 bedrooms are left. The chance to snap up a rental property for 50k and immediately start charging at least 1k a month in rent was too good to pass up. Even with high assessments and taxes, the remainder of the rent will be able to recoup the cost of the unit within 15 years. At that point, you own a condo downtown and are poised to sell when the market is peaking again…
I stay in this building now and find it very convenient to walk to work, not to mention its safe with 24 hours door man and an access card entry. Have no problems of any roaches,insects or any leakages at least in my unit.
I think its not as bad as it was before but the only flip side is the sky high assessments. But think about it when new owners move in place of delinquent ones who had to foreclose they will all be paying their assessments on time and it should come down or at least stabilize. The management already charges a hefty fee from renters to move-in and move-out so my guess is the building will survive.