In this market, what are comps anyway?
It might be easier in one of the big highrises to determine the comp on a condo as there are obviously more units coming onto the market.
But what happens if you live in a smaller condo building that hasn’t had a sale in over a year?
Such is the case with the 433 N. Wells in River North. This was a new construction boutique building in 2002. There appears to be about 10 units in the building.
One unit is currently on the market.
Unit #601: 3 bedrooms, 3.5 baths, 4,100 square feet, 2 car parking
- Sold in May 2003 for $940,000
- Currently listed at $1.45 million (parking is extra)
- Assessment of $960 a month
Nothing sold in this building in 2007. The last unit to sell was Unit #602 in December 2006. It looks to be a sister unit to #601. It also has 3 bedrooms and 3.5 baths. Its sales history:
Unit #602:
- Sold in May 2003 for $968,000
- Sold in December 2006 for $1.575 million
Going off of that comp, #601 seems priced correctly.
But the market in 2006 was very different from the market in 2008. How do you price this unit? What comps do you use? Currently, it’s priced at $353 a square foot.
Gwen Stark at Koenig & Strey has the listing.
Is that Kerry Wood’s place, or was it the one that sold a year ago? I know he lived in one of the 6th floor units.
Comps will be affected by auctions, short sales and REO sales. What went up must come down. Any comp that more than 6 mo old should not be counted.