Get a 3/3 With Lake and City Views For Under $500K: 1600 S. Prairie in the South Loop
This 3-bedroom at Prairie Pointe at 1600 S. Prairie in the South Loop has been on the market since February 2012.
It is a short sale.
At 2492 square feet, the listing says it has floor to ceiling windows with lake and city views.
The kitchen has maple cabinets, granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances.
The unit also has a unique feature of a see-through fireplace.
This building was constructed in 2006. We’ve chattered about other distress sales in it over the years.
Since February, this unit has been reduced $90,000 to $479,900.
2-car parking is also $50,000 extra.
Unit #1901, in the same tier and also a 3/3, is currently under contract listed at $559,000.
Unit #802, a 3/2 with 1900 square feet, sold in April for $499,000.
Given the square footage, is this a deal?
Phillip Buoscio at Better Living Realty has the listing. See the pictures here.
Unit #2101: 3 bedrooms, 3 baths, 2492 square feet
- I couldn’t find it in the public records- but Redfin says it last sold in October 2006 for $795,000
- Originally listed in February 2012 for $569,900
- Reduced numerous times
- Currently listed as a “short sale” at $479,900 (plus $50,000 for 2 parking spots)
- Assessments of $1017 a month (includes heat, gas, doorman, cable)
- Taxes of $11863
- Central Air
- Washer/Dryer in the unit
- Bedroom #1: 22×15
- Bedroom #2: 14×14
- Bedroom #3: 14×11
I would much rather live in a townhouse for the same price. No big assessments in a townhouse. I suppose you lose out on a view, but a three story townhouse is more appealing to me.
Taxes seem really high here. And what is with all the curtains. If it is the views we want, open the curtains when taking a picture
Nice unit…buuut for $31,520,100 more I could get this: http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/401-N-Wabash-Ave-60611/unit-89A/home/40378913
and damn, this photographer needs to layoff the HDR processing. This is real estate marketing not a Thomas Kinkade art show
“I would much rather live in a townhouse for the same price. No big assessments in a townhouse. I suppose you lose out on a view, but a three story townhouse is more appealing to me”
I would prefer a townhome too, but if on the lakefront by the heart of Downtown woudnt you rather have a view of the city and lake?
also its the south loop, personally there is no way i could consciously BUY in the sloop. but if i had to i would rather loose a bedroom and pay more for this
http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/1211-S-Prairie-Ave-60605/unit-2505/home/39571354
Elliot – I think that’s pretty realistic. You do get a lot more for the extra $31 million. But it’s the $12,000 a month assessment that seems out of reach for me.
“I would prefer a townhome too, but if on the lakefront by the heart of Downtown woudnt you rather have a view of the city and lake?”
Well it depends. If you have kids, a townhome might be more family friendly. However, Jenny doesn’t want or expect to have kids, so a skyrise is better for her.
However, she might have tortoises, so she doesn’t want them falling off the deck, so back to the townhouse with multiple bathrooms and dish washers.
The photography is terrible and the staging is tragic. This actually is a very roomy apartment with beautiful large windows offering great views, but you have to look long at the photographs to actually see that .
The open kitchen detracts. Someday soon, there will be a trend for enclosing all the open kitchens built in the past decade if only because most people are not good enough housekeepers to have their kitchens on display at all times.
Nice views and nice master bath.
The price sounds reasonable, but it might not be after you examine the association and see what its financial condition is. I haven’t looked so I don’t know. How many units are there in foreclosure or delinquency, and/or owing considerable assessment arrears? These kinds of liabilities make the situation very risky for a prospective buyer, can mean extra monthly assessments for much higher costs than you maybe counted on when buying.
“Taxes seem really high here.”
That’s what taxes should be for a place with a recent-ish sale for $800k.
Clearly, the Association needs to appeal the buildings’ assessed values, as they are no longer reflecting market value.
Open kitchens are here to stay, but the tv above the fireplace will disappear quicker than avacado green carpet.
” the tv above the fireplace will disappear ”
To where? Or are people going to remove their fireplaces?
“but the tv above the fireplace will disappear”
TV above the fireplace spawned from the boom’s cramped vanila boxes not having enough sqft to put and furniture anywhere. its also a byproduct of places with decent sqft and the “publics” demand for bedrooms larger than 12×11, which if you need a bedroom w/ a walkin closest bigger than that then you need to rethink your life.
“Or are people going to remove their fireplaces?”
probably sholdnt have been installed in the first place as modern heating has made it a novelty. and in a low sqft condo why in the F would you want one F’ing up your layout posssibilities? just a fail
but i dont blame the builders/developers for that. i blame the yahoos who NEED a bathroom for every bedroom, a walk in closet for each bedroom, a 20×15 master bedroom, a full kitchen with island in a 800sqft 2/2 plus a firplace.
since i am on a rant, why in the F if you buy a condo you need to also buy a 30-50k parking space. how is this not the biggest scam in the world?
“TV above the fireplace spawned from the boom’s cramped vanila boxes not having enough sqft to put and furniture anywhere.”
Also resulted from the existence of tvs that could be easily be placed above a fireplace, though my inlaws do have a CRT cutout above their fireplace.
“Or are people going to remove their fireplaces?”
Yes! How much would that cost? I’m just a little serious.
The problem with TVs above the fireplace imho is that they are usually too high. They never seem to be at a comfortable viewing angle.
While fireplaces aren’t really needed, nothing beats a good fire in the winter. Relaxing.
“Yes! How much would that cost? I’m just a little serious.”
Depends on SFH v. multi, the type of firebox, and how the thing is vented. Can be ridiculously easy (ie, Groove & Anon, *while* drinking) or not.
If it’s a SFH, with a “modern” gas fireplace, and the fireplace being removed is the only thing using the “chimney” space (ie, no basement fireplace you want to keep “naturally” vented thru the same chase), it’s mostly drywall and framing to tearout and replace. Brick firebox is much more complicated.
I’d get rid of the TV before I get rid of the fireplace.
But I wouldn’t buy a place that has no room for a fireplace, yet has a fireplace.
A fireplace or a place to install a fireplace is on our Unicorn Criteria list.
“A fireplace or a place to install a fireplace”
What sort of fireplace is acceptable? Does it have to be a woodburner?
The TV belongs in a cabinet where you can conceal it when it’s not in use. I don’t remember TV screens ever being considered decorative.
“What sort of fireplace is acceptable? Does it have to be a woodburner?”
I’ll take any though I think my preference would be gas ventless. I understand old woodburning are inefficient but there have been improvements made that fix those problems.
I have a TV over the fireplace. It’s the most convenient spot for it. I would rather not have the fireplace at all actually since it’s just a gas fireplace. I love wood burning fireplaces, but gas fireplaces are a waste and the fake logs look ugly.
“I’ll take any though I think my preference would be gas ventless.”
Get this one:
http://www.lennoxhearthproducts.com/products/fireplaces/scandium/
And you can mount it on the wall *above* your flat screen TV!!
Groove77 is probably the same guy who said he would never buy in Old Town as it gentrified(with Sandburg Village being the rapid ascent of dwellers into that area). I’d say that area worked out okay. Just because the South Loop has it’s share of overbuilt issues, it is still a very viable location to live in the city. It’s clean. Neighborhood amenities are improving. Great public neighborhood elementary school. Easy ingress and egress to and from your home. It’s not all that different from the West Loop with similar streetscape(less run down industrial buildings), closer to the lake and city center. Does a neighborhood really need 10 of everything to make it a great?
“And you can mount it on the wall *above* your flat screen TV!!”
They need to put a tv in it, or vice versa. Solves all the problems. Or just run a video loop on your existing tv.
Creepy staging. Are we tired of open kitchens yet?
There will be a demand for fireplaces (open kitchens, maybe not so much) as long as the vast majority of Americans celebrate Christmas (religiously and/or secularly) and want a place for Santa to enter so he can fill the stockings on whatever passes for a mantle these days. The little rugrat in the crib in Bedroom #2 will be awfully confused otherwise!
And maybe some artsy types like to have a real fire going in the real fireplace while a Yule Log DVD plays on the TV mounted above. I saw this at an open house recently – on one of the warmest days so far – honest!
“maybe some artsy types like to have a real fire going in the real fireplace”
The real cutting edge is vehemently opposed to “real” wood fires:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/20/garden/20fire.html?pagewanted=all
“And you can mount it on the wall *above* your flat screen TV!!”
…and who said robots aren’t funny. I love that idea. Have stated my opinion many times on this. gas over wood for a house. wood is a pain in the ass unless you have a home where you can keep cords of wood , and even then you get rotting, and animals, and snakes, and…
@anon (tfo) — thanks. it’s too modern for my tastes, at least in a family room. Though perhaps it would work in the spa bathroom or even the kitchen.
Also, thanks for the article on wood burning FP — very informative
Anon – I meant a fire in either a wood or gas fireplace. I consider both of those “real” as opposed to the fake fireplace with the electric-light-illuminating-fake-log that has been a popular feature in some recent condo conversions.
” it’s too modern for my tastes, at least in a family room.”
Some of the other Lennox ventless can accomodate a mantel, and aren’t too much bigger. Basically, you just need enough wall space to fit a midsized mantel, without ruining the room’s layout options. And, if you have a frame house, and installing above the foundation, you could (depending on code stuff for distance from neighbor) add a barnacle outside to eliminate any floorspace theft beyond the mantel.
“though my inlaws do have a CRT cutout above their fireplace.”
built many of those back in the day. and in homes that had enough space for a entertainment center on both sides of the fireplace.
“The problem with TVs above the fireplace imho is that they are usually too high. They never seem to be at a comfortable viewing angle.”
neck hurts within 15 minutes, even when sitting on a higher bar stool.
“The TV belongs in a cabinet where you can conceal it when it’s not in use. I don’t remember TV screens ever being considered decorative.”
Tv’s are toooooo big now to conceal, i have seen a flip type of thing with a large painting. but practicality of it seems to cumbersome.
“I would rather not have the fireplace at all actually since it’s just a gas fireplace. I love wood burning fireplaces, but gas fireplaces are a waste and the fake logs look ugly.”
this is one thing negitive you said that i agree with and dont think is complete bat crazy.
Hey how about this, remove the gas burner (and lines) and install the tv IN the fireplace?
bucktown km:
Imo Groove is the last cc poster who deserves a slap like yours – he is currently gentrifying past your B’town comfort zone. He has thoughtfully considered Sloop in past and found it wanting on the purchase side – has said in past he would consider renting there iirc. To each their own.
“bucktown km (June 1, 2012, 12:10 pm)
Groove77 is probably the same guy who said he would never buy in Old Town as it gentrified(with Sandburg Village being the rapid ascent of dwellers into that area). I’d say that area worked out okay…”.
“bucktown km (June 1, 2012, 12:10 pm)
Groove77 is probably the same guy who said he would never buy in Old Town as it gentrified(with Sandburg Village being the rapid ascent of dwellers into that area)”
Wow dooode, you are way off.
reason i say sloop is shyte is not because of the “neighborhood”, i actually love it and its location.
its shyte because of the abundance of inventory, and its future as foreclosure and planed foreclouse central. its over built and will become a rental oasis, if not soon mixed income, or my longer view of CHA owned. It has transient inhabitants which will KILL resale and all around values going forward.
sloop was built with a short term mentality for short term inhabitants. in the current market and the closer future market it does not look good for current owners or new owners.
what does it say when only 10% of the owners when they bought thought about living there long term (7+years)
so again before you try calling someone out, try calling them out on what they actually are saying not what you feel like assuming they are saying.
“bucktown km:
Imo Groove is the last cc poster who deserves a slap like yours – ”
dooooode thanks! nice to have someone on my side during internet wars 😉
“he is currently gentrifying past your B’town comfort zone.”
actually to be honest the past two years it has been beyond my own comfort zone.
“He has thoughtfully considered Sloop in past and found it wanting on the purchase side – has said in past he would consider renting there iirc.”
correct we were trying to rent an “in-town” at OMP or the Columbian. couldnt get anybody to budge to a price “I” thought was reasonable. funny story the guy who came the closest IIRC wouldnt budge $100 or $175 a month to have me as a tenant and it ended up not being able to renting it out for 19 months. the dang fool had to cover the full costs for the 12 months i would have been there.
We’ve got two wood-burning fireplaces, but didn’t have a single fire over the past two winters. In the place we rented for the two previous winters, which had a wood-burning fireplace, I think we had 3 or 4 fires total.
I like how fireplaces look, and I like having a fire. But the wood is just such a hassle (in terms of hauling it, storing it, and cleaning up after), and on very cold nights, having a fire often makes a place colder. I lived in many houses/cabins//trailers/condos that had wood-burning fireplaces or stoves, where we’d have fires pretty much daily/nightly from late Oct through early April. But doing so was like a part-time job, and that lifestyle was just more conducive to fires. Perhaps the temporary employment experience of delivering a winter’s supply of firewood to the balconies of hundreds condos (mostly walk-ups!) during one fall season forever soured me to the whole concept. Were we to stay in our current place long term, we’d convert one of the fireplaces to gas.
I greatly prefer open kitchens, but maybe that’s because we use our kitchen to cook in and it’s often a gathering point after the kids and parents are home. I can see how you would want it tucked away if you never use it. I’m about to spend like $60 large to open mine up.
I don’t want to say this one is a leaky condo buy it is possible. If I remember correctly, the association is carrying out some projects to fix some windows (or structures) in the building later this year. Even it does not necessarily make it a leaky condo, I will try to avoid any condos with windows not tight enough.
The description and price of this place seemed so promising! Then I saw the pictures…
I hope it is better in person than these photos or it will sit for a LONG time!
XXX, if what you’re saying is true, I’d back away from the deal completely, and this unit will end up selling much lower.
There aren’t many things scarier than a massive high rise with water seepage problems. Seepage costs a fortune in mitigation yet has this nasty way of recurring after you’ve spend a fortune to mitigate.
Xxx and Laura,
1717 s Prairie had that issue and the cost to olive the issue was very high! Giant PITW as in pain in the wallet. If anyone is considering a purchase in a condo building I’d advise that they request any and all property association documents available and scour them for issues like this that have been reported prior to purchase.