Investor Alert! Get a Lakeview 2-Flat For Under $360,000: 1614 W. Roscoe
This 2-flat at 1614 W. Roscoe in Lakeview has been on and off the market since July 2006.
I actually took the picture above about 2 years ago but just never wrote on the property.
But it has remained on the market and has just reduced again to $359,000 so I thought I’d finally cover it.
Built in 1914 on a 25×99 lot, it has a 2-car garage.
Yes- that’s the El directly behind the building.
The units have newer kitchens with new appliances. There are refinished antique tubs in the bathrooms.
There is shared laundry in the basement.
Here are the two units:
- Unit #1: 2 bedrooms, 1 bath at $1100 a month
- Unit #2: 2 bedrooms, 1 bath at $1350 a month
The listing says to “make an offer.”
Does this building now make sense as an investment?
Sean Glascott at Prudential Rubloff has the listing. See the pictures here.
1614 W. Roscoe: 2-flat, 4 bedrooms, 2 baths, 2 car garage, no square footage listed
- I couldn’t find a prior sales price. Sometime before 1987.
- Originally listed in July 2006
- On and off the market ever since
- Was listed in June 2010 for $484,000
- Reduced numerous times
- Currently listed at $359,000
- Taxes of $8616
- Rental income: $28,800
- No central air
- Unit #1: 2 bedrooms/1 bath
- Unit #2: 2 bedrooms/1 bath
Pretty good cashflows. But if I owned this, I would feel like a slumlord. Only hobos should live on train tracks! LOL!
Can you really get $1,100 a month for a 1st floor apt ON the train tracks?
really there can be that many blues brother fanatics?
given there are no photos of it, I’ll bet the second bedrooms are about 8’x10′.
This has to be one of the dumpiest looking places in Lakeview.
he may be gone, but his legacy remains (no i won’t say his name – s… h…. )
where is he when his formula works?!?
For a rental property this is fine. And yes you can get $1100 for a 2BD here.
“And yes you can get $1100 for a 2BD here”
who and why?
Renters will pay $1100 for a two bd in this location.
this place is beyond a dump. Been walking by it for years now. Only advantage is proximity to El Tapatio and even though I love the place, the smell would get me down. You stare at the YMCA parking lot across the street and there’s a puppy store (ie puppy mill) is also your neighbor.
“And yes you can get $1100 for a 2BD here” who and why?
two college graduates who want to be within walking distance to Retro on Roscoe, Wrigley Field and other Meet & Mate establishments. It’s only $550 a person, which even I could have afforded back in the day. And remember, Im a product of CPS so my earnings represent the low end of salary potential.
It also has parking, which makes the rent more attractive.
“two college graduates who want to be within walking distance”
sorry if i spent 4-5 years of undergrad and had to pay $550 to live here (plus school loans), i would need a darn good therapist and a concoction of meds.
“For a rental property this is fine. And yes you can get $1100 for a 2BD here.”
Totally.
This is Lakeview. Sure- you have the El right there but as we’ve seen, many people don’t care about that. These kitchens have been remodeled. There’s granite! (enough said.) There’s some vintage features. There’s parking. What’s not to like?
Hey Icarus, I think you saw this one a while back–5413 S Ridgewood Ct. Just closed for $335k. Although no parking, I think the buyer got a nice deal on that place.
matthewlesko (May 18, 2012, 8:09 am)
Pretty good cashflows. But if I owned this, I would feel like a slumlord. Only hobos should live on train tracks! LOL!
Give me a break. You want to see Slumlording I’ll take you for a drive though E Garfield Park or Englewood and unlock some doors for you.
It does NOT make sense for an invester at $360K given the short lot and EL location there is little value in the dirt.
Taxes are almost $9K
While I wouldn’t choose to live here, I could see recent graduates renting here for a year before getting sick of it. I imagine there’s yearly turnover in this building and with it the added expense of finding new residents and fixing the place up between tenants.
Chris M, It’s a nice looking home except the Redfin comment says no parking options. Did not go see it myself but it looks like the price finally got someone’s attention.
I stayed with a friend one night who has a place that backs up to the Red/Purple line tracks between Irving Park and Montrose. He’s used to the trains but, boy, that was one rough night for me.
“where is he when his formula works?!?”
His formula almost always “worked” since he actually just trying to demonstrate that you could float a place as a renatl if you needed to–that’s why he used the downpayment factor:
(28,800 – 8,616)/.055/.8 = $458k
which we all know is an absurd overvaluation. And, since you could get a 4% loan now, he’d likely argue that it should be:
(28,800 – 8,616)/.04/.8 = $630k
Where I’d argue the more likely “value” is more like:
(28,800 – 8,616)/.075 = $269k to (28,800 – 8,616)/.065 = $310k
unless either (or, more likely, both) (a) the rents are well below market, or (b) the place is in *perfect* condition, such that no meaningful repair/replacement would be expected for 7+ years.
If anything, those rents can be higher. I don’t care what the size of the bedrooms are or that it backs up to the el. For recent grads, or really any young 20 something, a 2-bed for under $1200 in this neighborhood is a steal. The unit shown is in great condition, too, which is just a bonus.
Chris – like a bunch of those places off of Nichols Park (Kenwood, Ridgewood, Dorchester), it was a half-lot with no parking or yard. Very small rooms. Not a bad deal (esp compared with some of the other ones on the street that were in much worse condition), but no steal.
“This has to be one of the dumpiest looking places in Lakeview.”
Which is saying something because Lake View is generally dumpy.
The tracks are surrounded by rental apartments in this area. Plenty of people live there. There is a market for nearly any type of rental unit in this location at the right price.
Definitely not a steal–$250k or below I would consider a steal for that place.
Long time lurker here; but at this price, it’s not an investment. I suppose the used home salesman thinks it’s already at a discount because of the proximity to the El. But I agree with Chris M; at $250k or less, it’s worthwhile. Anywhere near the list price, the margins are way t0o thin to cash flow on this place. Factoring management fees and repairs alongside the mortgage, insurance, taxes and water service, you are at about break-even to a loss.
If you want to jack up rents and entice a more stable tenant, which would be tough with the El there; you need to move the units up market. Those bathrooms are an absolute joke; renters don’t want the “vintage” claw foot tubs; has any one actually showered in those things? Then you’d know how awful they are. Buy at $230k; spend $20k to do some light reworking and you might have a good value on a cash flowing true investment.
My last comment was in regard to 5413 S Ridgewood Ct…for those that chose to thumbs down my comment.
And for new parents it’s just a short Bugaboo-stroller-ride to the “Be By Baby” shop – the Home Depot/Target for the attachment-parenting crowd.
“And for new parents it’s just a short Bugaboo-stroller-ride to the “Be By Baby” shop – the Home Depot/Target for the attachment-parenting crowd.”
Why would you ever lump a local merchant into the Home Depot/Target names? This is not the Buy Buy Baby (owned by Bed/Bath) that’s going in on Clybourn. *That* is the Home Depot/Target of that market.
“His formula almost always “worked” since he actually just trying to demonstrate that you could float a place as a renatl if you needed to–that’s why he used the downpayment factor:
(28,800 – 8,616)/.055/.8 = $458k
which we all know is an absurd overvaluation. And, since you could get a 4% loan now, he’d likely argue that it should be:
(28,800 – 8,616)/.04/.8 = $630k
Where I’d argue the more likely “value” is more like:
(28,800 – 8,616)/.075 = $269k to (28,800 – 8,616)/.065 = $310k”
anon(tfo), so you’re just applying a 6.5% to 7.5% cap rate? based on what? you’re not giving any credit to positive leverage, if one can use a 4% loan with no down payment.
This has to be one of the dumbest comment threads I’ve ever seen on cribchatter. What is wrong with these units exactly? ITS A FRICKEN RENTAL! The el is a minor inconvenience, but seriously, some of you are really, really out of touch.
Let me know if you want me to tour you through some buildings on the west side.